Welcome
Background:
The goal of North Dakota INBRE
is to build biomedical research capacity by serving research universities,
baccalaureate institutions, and tribal colleges within the state. The specific
aims are to:
- Initiate competitive, sustainable research programs at six predominantly undergraduate institutions (PUIs)
- Increase the number of students from PUIs who choose to pursue advanced training in the biomedical sciences
- Increase the number of students from tribal colleges who matriculate into baccalaureate degree programs in the sciences
- Enhance the state's access to computational and electronic resources supporting biomedical research
- Enhance existing proteomics and biology core facilities at the research universities to make them sustainable and effective training and service centers for the scientific network
The centerpiece of this plan is the development research programs at PUIs, built around the thematic focus of "Health and the Environment". This broad theme is subdivided into three sub-themes:
- Pesticides and non-mammalian biomarkers
- Nutrition, growth and development
- Genetic factors
Nine individual investigators, located atfive PUIs, will be mentored by established biomedical scientists from the University of North Dakota and North Dakota State University. Proteomics and biology core facilities at the research universities will provide specialized services and training for PUI students and investigators. A bioinformatics core will provide computational facilities and work to increase state-wide access to electronic resources for biomedical research. Recruitment of students will be primarily through their involvement in the research projects of INBRE investigators on their home campuses.
The scientific network will also offer research opportunities to students from neighboring tribal colleges. An Outreach Core is designed to empower tribal colleges to strengthen their introductory science curricula so as to increase the level of preparation of tribal college students for transitioning to four-year science programs.
Current INBRE Research at Minot State University:
- Research Project: Functional
genomics of endocrine disruption
Principal Investigator - Chris Beachy, professor of biology, Minot State
Mentor - Don Sens, professor of surgery, UND - Research Project: Discovery and development of
new anti-fungal drugs
Principal Investigator - Mikhail Bobylev, assistant professor, Minot State
Mentor - Pending - Research Project: Analysis of MLL
translocation and fusion genes
Principal Investigator - Heidi Super, professor of biology, Minot State
Mentor - Dr. Mary Ann Sens, professor and pathology department chair, UND -
Research Project: Genetic control of leaf expansion in Arabidopsis
Principal Investigator - Christoper Keller, associate professor of biology, Minot State
Mentor - Gene Homandberg, professor and chair of biochemistry and molecular biology, UND