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LONDON, ONTARIO: Researchers Get $11M Grant London labs hail the federal funding as a vital part of their medical work. PATRICK MALONEY, Free Press Reporter 2004-03-06 03:22:44 When Gary Shaw is in his laboratory, money is the last thing on his mind. But he'll be the first to tell you without it, his research can never be completed. When the University of Western Ontario and the Lawson and Robarts research institutes announced yesterday several researchers will share an $11-million federal grant, Shaw was quickly back in his lab with the privilege of having only work -- and not money -- to think about. "It makes a huge difference, because without the research funds . . . you just can't do the research," said Shaw, who will get more than $585,000 over the next five years. "In research, there are a lot of things you really get excited about, but by far one of the most important is to find out (you've) been funded." As part of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research's twice-annual grants, 22 local research projects will split $11,136,426 over the next few years. The money will go toward hiring lab workers, buying chemicals and essentially bankrolling the projects. Among the projects are research efforts in such areas as cancer, heart disease and health-policy development. A UWO biochemistry professor, Shaw focuses his research on understanding the proteins involved in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Because only about 30 per cent of applicants get grants, Shaw said being selected indicates his work is worthwhile. "Your research proposals are reviewed by other (experts), so when you get your research funded, it's one way that people are telling you, 'Yeah, this is good.' " The biggest winners in yesterday's windfall are: Melvyn Goodale, a physiology/pharmacology professor, who will get nearly $890,000; Grant McFadden, a Robarts scientist and UWO microbiology professor, who gets $835,500, and Qingping Feng, a Lawson scientist and UWO medicine professor, granted about $640,000. The London recipients received more money than any other research team in Canada, said UWO medical school dean Carol Herbert. While the $11 million may sound like a lot to non-scientists, Herbert said grants such as these change human health. "When we see an announcement of a great advance . . . it looks like it just happened last night," Herbert said. "The fact is, those advancements start with basic scientists in their labs. "If it weren't for basic scientists doing work in their labs, we would be in the dark ages. It may take 10 years to turn into results, but it starts here." With the money come high expectations. But facing research pressure beats the alternative, Shaw said. "We'd much rather have the funding and a little bit of pressure than no pressure and (no money)," he added. "When you find out you've been funded, there's a big sigh of relief." SOURCE: London Free Press, Canada http://www.canoe.ca/NewsStand/LondonFreePress/News/2004/03/06/372051.html References: CIHR Unveils Blueprint To 2007 http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20040126/02 * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn