Renee N. Juhans
Headquarters, Washington, DC                   December 1, 1998
(Phone:  202/358-1712)

RELEASE:  98-217

NASA ANNOUNCES RESEARCH GRANTS 
IN MICROGRAVITY BIOTECHNOLOGY

     NASA has selected 48 researchers to receive grants totaling 
approximately $33 million to conduct microgravity biotechnology 
research.  Forty of the grants are to conduct ground-based 
research, while the remaining eight are flight definition efforts.  
Fourteen of these grants are for continuation of work currently 
being funded by NASA, but the majority (34) represent new research 
efforts.

     Sponsored by NASA's Office of Life and Microgravity Science 
and Applications, this research allows investigators to take 
advantage of a low-gravity environment to improve understanding of 
fundamental physical and chemical processes associated with 
biotechnology.  The research support by NASA under this 
announcement includes protein crystallization, cell science 
studies, and new technology development.  This research may affect 
such important areas as structure-based drug design, tissue 
engineering, and biosensor development.

     The investigators will have NASA's microgravity research 
facilities such as aircraft flying parabolic trajectories and 
sounding rockets at their disposal; the flight-definition 
investigators will work toward experiments on the International 
Space Station.

     NASA received 165 proposals in response to its announcement 
in this research area.  These proposals were peer-reviewed by 
scientific and technical experts from academia, government and 
industry.  In addition, those proposals selected for flight 
definition were reviewed in terms of engineering feasibility by a 
team from NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. Huntsville, AL.  

     A list of awardees (by state), their institutions, and 
research titles can be found via Internet at:  
ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/pressrel/1998/98-217a.txt


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