INBRE seeks to strengthen biomedical research, student experiences across the state

Research is important to all of North Dakota, and a new $16.3 million grant will enable UND to strengthen the ability of all the state’s colleges and universities to participate in the search for new knowledge — often with important economic consequences for the communities involved.

The School of Medicine and Health Sciences is playing the lead role in a National Institutes of Health (NIH) biomedical research program that reaches across the state to four-year schools and tribal colleges. North Dakota will receive the new funding over five years during the second phase of an NIH program aimed at making the state more competitive in attracting federal funds for biomedical research.

“This marks another big step in research for North Dakota,” said Dean H. David Wilson of the UND medical school. “We are most gratified to fill a pivotal role in coordinating this grant. It will advance the level of scientific inquiry throughout the state and encourage students to pursue meaningful and productive careers in the biomedical sciences.”

Health and the environment will be the focus of research conducted under the North Dakota IDeA Networks for Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) program. Half of the budget will be used to support research projects at predominantly undergraduate institutions in the state.

The Institutional Development Awards (IDeA) program under the NIH National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) assists states such as North Dakota that have historically received relatively little research funding from the NIH. The objective is to develop an infrastructure that supports biomedical research, creates opportunities for students to pursue careers in biomedical research, and assists researchers in becoming more competitive for NIH funding.

John Shabb, INBRE principal investigator and an associate professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, said the program provides a broad range of benefits.

“It improves the collaborative research environment between UND and NDSU and extends this network to include other colleges and universities across the state,” Shabb said. “It also complements workforce training in the biosciences.”

The statewide network will be administered by the UND medical school in collaboration with NDSU. Major projects will be led by researchers at Dickinson State University, Mayville State University, Minot State University, Turtle Mountain Community College, and Valley City State University.

Under a subcontract with INBRE, the North Dakota Association of Tribal Colleges in Bismarck will invest more than $1.2 million in science outreach programs for the five tribal colleges in the state. They are Cankdeska Cikana Community College, Fort Totten; Fort Berthold Community College, New Town; Sitting Bull College, Fort Yates; Turtle Mountain Community College, Belcourt; and United Tribes Technical College, Bismarck.

Vice President for Research Peter Alfonso said that the NIH in recent years has increased funding to small states such as North Dakota in an effort to increase the capacity to conduct biomedical research.

UND, which submitted the grant proposal, will receive $4.42 million of the total. Alfonso said a program that encompasses both the state’s research universities, four public baccalaureate institutions, and five tribal colleges provides the best approach.

“We know that what we want to do in North Dakota is going to take all of us working together,” he explained.

Sen. Byron Dorgan, who has worked to increase federally funded research in the state and advocates the development of a Red River Valley Research Corridor, said North Dakota INBRE is good for the economy and future.

“By developing our universities as hubs for advanced research, we’re attracting more federal research funding, creating good new jobs, and nurturing a pool of home-grown talent at our undergraduate institutions,” he said. “The benefits of this grant will reach nearly every public college and university in the state, and give great opportunities for our young people to explore their academic potential without having to leave North Dakota.”

For example, Dickinson State University assistant biology professor Lynn Burgess will receive nearly $1 million through INBRE to fund his research on the anti-cancer properties of lycopene, the red pigment found in tomatoes, strawberries, and pink grapefruit. “This program is about creating opportunities for students: opportunities for further education and jobs,” he noted. “I want graduate schools competing for my students, and they are.”

INBRE is the second phase of an NCRR program that began in October 2001 and was originally known as the Biomedical Research Infrastructure Network (BRIN). North Dakota was one of 23 states that received a three-year, $6 million grant to help develop biomedical research capacity. The BRIN program ended June 30, 2004.

Shabb said that INBRE enables North Dakota to build on the success of the BRIN program, which has helped bring highly qualified biomedical researchers to the state, assisted in developing student interest in science and involvement in research, and provided the equipment, information, and computer resources needed to support these efforts.

“This kind of grant increases the pipeline for young medical researchers,” Wilson concluded. “We know we have the talent, we know we have the brains. This gives us the tools to compete.”