Recovery Act funds over $17 million for medical research and education in Maine this year

Grants awarded for a range of programs across the state

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree announced that in the 2009 fiscal year, ending today, the American Recovery Act has funded over $17 million in medical research and education at facilities across Maine.  The funding is through grants awarded by the National Institutes of Health.
 
“It’s encouraging to see that stimulus funds are helping our economy recover in a range of areas,” said Pingree.  “These grants have not only helped create and sustain hundreds of jobs in our state, but are supporting growth in a very important part of the Maine economy.”
 
Research grants funded by the American Recovery Act have covered 34 projects in Maine overall.  Grants include:
 
·     $800,000 to Maine Medical Center for a study on the connection between genetics and bone growth;

·     $220,000 to the University of New England to use hormones in fruit flies to study higher functions of the human nervous system, such as memory, sleep, drug abuse, and addiction;

·     $150,000 to the Foundation for Blood Research in Scarborough to develop a high-school biology curriculum that will support learning in mathematics and science in the real-world context of clinical trials; and 
 
·     $200,000 to a University of Southern Maine program that will bring life on the nano-scale to Maine elementary and middle-school students using advanced microscopy tools and the Southworth Planetarium.

Click here for a full listing of programs in Maine that have received National Institutes of Health grants funded by the Recovery Act.
 
The 2009 American Recovery Act was passed by Congress and signed by the President earlier this year.