Dr. Christine Schnitzler awarded MIRA grant from the National Institutes of Health

Dr. Christine Schnitzler awarded MIRA grant from the National Institutes of Health

Published: Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Congratulations to Assistant Professor of Biology Dr. Christine Schnitzler for receiving a five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for her project titled:

Characterizing the molecular regulators of stem cell populations during homeostasis and regeneration in Hydractinia, an emerging cnidarian research organism

The $1.786 million grant is a Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award (MIRA) for Early Stage Investigators from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) of the NIH. The purpose of the grant is to provide support for a program of research in an early stage investigator’s laboratory and allow investigators the flexibility to follow important new research directions. Dr. Schnitzler’s research focuses on the colonial marine invertebrate Hydractinia which possesses the remarkable ability to regenerate any tissue or body part throughout its lifetime, known as “whole-body regeneration”. Her group will focus on the cells and molecular factors controlling this amazing biological phenomenon, which is only found in a limited number of groups across the animal tree of life.

Read more about MIRA awards