UC Merced event this afternoon to highlight stem cell research

From staff reports

UC Merced is observing Stem Cell Awareness Day today by highlighting some of the research being conducted on campus.

Professors Marcos Garcia-Ojeda, Nestor Oviedo and Maria Pallavicini will offer a short primer on stem cells, and will describe how organisms such as worms can lend insight into stem cell biology, the university said in a press release.

Members of the Stem Cell Consortium, a research group of faculty, graduate students and post-doctoral fellows, will also provide updates on the construction of the planned Stem Cell Instrumentation Foundry. The foundry is funded by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, a state agency established in 2004.

UC Merced has received $8.49 million from CIRM as of August 2009, including $4.3 million to build the foundry in the university's Science and Engineering Building, according to the press release.

"This work is the foundation for groundbreaking treatments and cures for debilitating conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, heart disease and spinal cord injuries," said Pallavicini, dean of the School of Natural Sciences, in the release.

The event, which is free and open to the public, starts at 5:30 p.m. in Room 105 of the Classroom and Office Building at UC Merced, 5200 N. Lake Rd.