Exiqon Announces 2009 North American Grant Awar...( Exiqon A/S (...),Health

Exiqon A/S (NASDAQ OMX Copenhagen: "EXQ") today announced the two winners of their 2009 North American Grant Program. Exiqon had recently announced the development of a new research grant program, open to researchers from academic and non-profit institutions across North America, engaged in microRNA research.

(PRWEB) July 1, 2009 -- Exiqon A/S (NASDAQ OMX Copenhagen: "EXQ") today announced the two winners of their 2009 North American Grant Program. Exiqon had recently announced the development of a new research grant program, open to researchers from academic and non-profit institutions across North America, engaged in microRNA research.

The 2009 Grant Program winners are: Dr. Liang Zhang, Ph.D., of the Rockefeller University Fuchs Laboratory of Mammalian Cell Biology and Development, and Dr. Toshifumi Sugatani, Ph.D., of the Hruska Laboratory in the Department of Pediatric Research at the Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine.

Dr. Sugatani will receive funding to pursue research aimed at elucidating the role of microRNAs (miRNAs) in physiological and pathophysiological bone remodeling in vivo. This research has potential therapeutic indications for the treatment of osteoporosis, a disease which currently affects more than 75 million individuals worldwide.

Dr. Zhang will receive funding to pursue research aimed at determining how microRNAs (miRNAs) regulate the maintenance and development of epidermal stem cell populations. This research has implications for a wide range of disorders and conditions, including skin cancer. Skin cancer is the most prevalent form of cancer, with over 1 million new diagnoses each year in the United States alone.

To qualify for the grant awards, Dr. Zhang and Dr. Sugatani each submitted abstracts providing background on their field of study, specific aims of the project, as well as detai
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