The Society is delighted to announce the recipients of its Research Grants in 2014:
• Katharine Dibb (University of Manchester)
• Paloma Bellido (University of Cambridge)
• Karl Emanuel Busch (University of Edinburgh)
• Patrizia Camelliti (University of Surrey)
• Matthew Cocks (Liverpool John Moores University)
• Eric Downer (University College Cork)
• Gina Galli (University of Manchester)
• Samuel Lucas (University of Birmingham)
• Carl Nelson (Nottingham Trent University)
• James Turner (University of Bath)
• Aphrodite Vasilaki (University of Liverpool)
With the aim of supporting physiologists in their first permanent academic position, the Research Grants are intended to develop current research or provide seed-funding to start a new project. Each of these individuals will receive up to £10,000 over a 12-month period to conduct pilot studies, develop a new technique or finalise a project they are currently working on. Professor William Colledge (University of Cambridge) assessed all of the grant applications: “I was impressed with the diversity of the applications, ranging from molecular to systems physiology and using a variety of cellular, animal and human model systems. The quality of the applications this year was very high.”
Through collaboration with the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs), The Society was also able to fund an additional project that has the potential to impact on the 3Rs. The beneficiary of this earmarked funding was Karl Emanuel Busch (University of Edinburgh), who said, “The Physiological Society’s Research Grants are a fantastic help for a young group leader setting up a new research direction, and I am delighted about and deeply grateful for receiving this award. I am currently setting up a lab in Edinburgh using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as a simple model for long-lasting signalling in sensory neural circuits. The majority of gene families in the human genome are conserved in C. elegans, and together with the broad experimental toolbox available for it, a lot of “upstream” basic research on the function of genes acting in the nervous system can be done in this simple invertebrate instead of using live mammals. As an example, if I tested a hundred candidate genes for their role in controlling sensory function in mice instead, it would take at least 1000 mutant animals to do so. The Research Grant will allow me to purchase crucial equipment for my lab to identify the cellular factors underlying long-lasting sensory responses.”
Other recipients have also expressed their thanks. Gina Galli said, “This is fantastic news!! Please extend my gratitude to The Physiological Society for its generous support, I very much look forward to purchasing the new equipment.”
The Society would like to extend its congratulations to all recipients and wish them every success in their research.