U of A Receives $1.95 Million for Biomedical Research Training

The U of A will receive $1.95 million over the next five years from the National Institutes of Health to continue preparing undergraduates from across the state for careers as biomedical researchers. 

"We don't need a lot of persuasion to convince people to go to medical school," said Feng Wang, the outreach program's project leader and a Distinguished Professor of chemistry and biochemistry at the U of A. "But to improve health and treatment plans, in addition to healthcare providers, we need people with Ph.D.s." 

The program offers undergraduates from schools across the state an opportunity to conduct biomedical research. The federal grant also funds an annual undergraduate research conference at the U of A. 

The U of A receives funding for the outreach effort through a $19.6 million grant administered by the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences for the Arkansas IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence. The program began in 2001 and has been renewed every five years since. At the end of the current grant cycle in 2031, the Arkansas INBRE will have brought nearly $108 million in federal funds to the state. 

"Sustained funding is critically important for impactful development of biomedical research capacity," said Lawrence Cornett, a Distinguished Professor of physiology and cell biology at UAMS and director of the Arkansas INBRE program. "The grant allows us to continue to provide students and faculty with research opportunities, strengthen scientific infrastructure and develop the next generation of researchers and innovators." 

During the 10-week summer research experience, undergraduates from a network of colleges across Arkansas work directly with faculty mentors at the U of A and UAMS. Nearly all the students attend schools other than the U of A. The program is free, and students receive a stipend. 

"For a lot of these participants, their undergraduate institutions simply do not have the capacity to provide the caliber of research that we can offer at these bigger institutions," Wang said. 

Since the program launched in 2001, nearly 350 students from schools in all four congressional districts have participated in the summer program. More than half of them went on to obtain graduate degrees. 

The annual undergraduate research conference is the largest such conference in the Midwest region. This year, the Arkansas INBRE Research Conference will take place in early November at the U of A. Nearly 150 students are expected to present posters this year. Along with undergraduate and faculty presentations, the conference features a keynote talk from an international biomedical researcher. 

The Institutional Developmental Award (IDeA) is a congressionally mandated program to build research capacity in states that have historically received lower levels of NIH funding. Arkansas is one of 23 states and Puerto Rico that receive IDeA funds.