Panetta Announces Federal Grants for the University of California, Santa Cruz

SALINAS – Today, Congressman Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.) announced that the University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz) has received two federal grants from the National Institutes of Health. UC Santa Cruz received one federal grant totaling $269,500 from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to be used to research how the human body defends against infections. UC Santa Cruz also received one federal grant totaling $203,280 from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases to be used for arthritis, musculoskeletal and skin diseases research.

"This investment will inspire groundbreaking research by scientists at UC Santa Cruz's Carpenter Lab to drive targeted treatment of debilitating conditions that impact millions," said Congressman Panetta. "I am committed to funding scientific and medical research which not only improves lives, but also creates jobs and positively affects California's economy."

"The Carpenter lab is dedicated to determining how long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) control inflammation and contribute to host defense against bacterial and viral infections," said Susan Carpenter, Assistant Professor of Molecular, Cell & Developmental Biology at UC Santa Cruz.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH)

NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, as well as investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.