Prof Earns Early Researcher Award
August 14, 2007 - News Release
A University of Guelph professor who is working to combat kidney disease has received an Early Researcher Award from the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation. As part of the award, Prof. Nina Jones of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology will receive $100,000 to cover research-related expenses.
The highly competitive Early Researcher Award program is intended to invest in promising young Canadian researchers and attract world-class talent to Ontario universities. The program is open to researchers within the first five years of their career.
The provincial money is supplemented by contributions from the universities. The professors use the funds to further their research and build teams of graduate students, post-doctoral fellows and research associates.
"One of the challenges in establishing a new laboratory is the availability of resources to recruit graduate students and research assistants," Jones said. "I feel very fortunate to have received the Early Researcher Award, as it will accelerate the growth of my research program."
A leading cause of kidney failure is injury to the basic blood filtration unit of the kidney. Jones is investigating the mechanisms that underlie the structure and function of the kidney's filtration barrier.
She hopes her research will help identify new molecular targets for therapies to fight kidney disease and point Ontario's pharmaceutical industry in the direction of new approaches.
Jones joined U of G's faculty in 2006. She earned a B.Sc. from Guelph and a PhD from the University of Toronto, and conducted post-doctoral research at the Mount Sinai Hospital/Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute.
Contact:
Prof. Nina Jones
Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology
519 824-4120, Ext. 53643
jonesmcb@uoguelph.ca
For media questions, contact Communications and Public Affairs: Lori Bona Hunt, 519-824-4120, Ext. 53338, or Deirdre Healey, Ext. 56982.
