U.VA. SCIENTISTS GIVEN $1 MILLION FOR PROGRAM TO IMPROVE USE OF
GENETIC ENGINEERING TO TREAT VASCULAR DISEASES

	CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Dec. 2 -- Researchers at the
University of Virginia have received a $1 million grant from the
Whitaker Foundation to establish a training and research program in
genetic engineering targeted at vascular diseases.
	Led by faculty in the Department of Biomedical Engineering,
the research team of nearly 20 will include members of the
electrical and chemical engineering faculties and several
departments and centers of the U.Va. Health Sciences Center.
	A major goal of the program is to develop better ways of
monitoring the use of genetically altered material (recombinant DNA)
to treat patients who undergo angioplasty for atherosclerotic
disease, said Dr. Klaus Ley, associate professor of biomedical
engineering.
	Genetically engineered material introduced into vascular
cells in patients' arteries during angioplasty can reduce or prevent
a recurrence of arterial blockage, he explained, but there are now
no systems to monitor the efficiency of the process. Ley said the
U.Va. team seeks to develop methods to assess the success and
stability of the recombinant DNA treatment as it is administered, by
monitoring the body's reactions, to help doctors use it more
effectively.
	Ley said another goal of the program is to produce
biomedical engineers with a strong background in applied molecular
biology and biomedical imaging. It will emphasize research
experience gained during experimental laboratory work.
	Pre- and postdoctoral students will conduct research aimed
at developing advanced imaging technology to monitor the success of
the use of genetically engineered cells, the progression of
artherosclorosis and the development of blocked arteries.
	"This hierarchical program encompasses studies at the
molecular, cellular, animal and clinical level," said J.S. Lee,
chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering.
	"It is designed to train our students to become successful
biomedical engineers with a unique combination of skills, to advance
basic knowledge in the treatment and monitoring of atherosclerotic
diseases and reperfusion injury, and to improve the clinical
practice of angioplasty."
	This was the second Whitaker Foundation grant this year for
the biomedical engineering department, which is part of the research
group that established the U.Va. Center for Engineering of Wound
Prevention and Repair last September with a $750,000 award from the
foundation.
	The Whitaker Foundation is a private, nonprofit organization
based in Washington, D.C. that primarily supports research and
training in the biomedical sciences.
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December 1, 1995