University of Otago research in many fields has been boosted by funding totalling more than $13.9 million in the latest Marsden Fund grants, announced today.
Otago University researchers gained 22 contracts, the same number as last year, but will receive significantly more funding in the latest round, up from $13.026 million last year.
Researchers from across the university's divisions of health sciences, humanities and sciences will lead the new research, which involves 16 standard projects and six ''Fast-Start'' projects, the latter designed to support outstanding researchers early in their careers.
The Otago deputy vice-chancellor, research and enterprise, Prof Richard Blaikie, warmly congratulated Otago's latest Marsden recipients, who together gained one-quarter of the $55.65 million available in this year's round.
Several projects involve investigations at the frontiers of neuroscience, including studying impairment-causing changes in brain cell connectivity after strokes.
The following Otago researchers gained grants exceeding $700,000: Associate Prof Ian Barber, anthropology and archaeology, $720,000; Prof Judy Bennett, history and art history, $710,000; Dr Sian Halcrow, Dr Stephen Bunn, Andrew Clarkson, anatomy, respectively, $720,000 and each of the latter two, $773,000; Associate Prof Ruth Empson, Dr Rebecca Campbell, physiology, each $820,000; Dr Peter Fineran, micobiology and immunology, $773,000; Prof Steven Higgins, botany, $808,000; Associate Prof Daphne Lee, geology, $810,000; Prof Robert Poulin, Dr Bruce Robertson, Prof Jon Waters, zoology, respectively, $790,000 and the latter two, $808,000 each; Associate Prof Mark Hampton, pathology, Christchurch, $815,000.
The fund is administered by the Royal Society of New Zealand, on behalf of the Government.
