This application, a supplement to the Border Biomedical Research Center (BBRC) award, provides funds to equip an Animal Resource Facility (ARF) in support of the rapidly expanding biomedical sciences research and educational programs at the UTEP, a Hispanic- serving Institution. Research projects of the BBRC focus on areas of concern to the Texas-Mexico border, with a particular emphasis on infectious diseases, environmental toxicology, neurosciences and metabolic disorders. Over the past ten years, UTEP has been successful in attracting extramural funding for both biomedical research and research infrastructure. The biomedical and health science research portfolio has increased from less than $1 million in 1992 to over $22 million currently. Two new Ph.D. programs in biomedical sciences have been instituted and the number of faculty members actively involved in biomedical research has increased from 50 percent of 19 tenure-track faculty in 1992 to 75 percent of the present 27 tenure-track faculty. Eight new faculty members in biomedical sciences will be added over the next five years. However, due to UTEP's recent success, there are several unmet needs in its research infrastructure. The 2001 Texas State Legislature, responding to UTEP's need for additional research laboratories, approved funding for the construction of a state-of-the-art Biosciences Research Building. The continued faculty expansion and concomitant increase in biomedical research now also necessitates a larger and better-equipped animal resource facility. To meet this need, the first floor of the Biosciences Building will house an 11,000 sq. ft. specialized ARF. The application requests funding for fixed equipment for the facility that is essential to ensure the safety of facility personnel, the health and comfort of the laboratory animals, and the integrity of UTEP's ongoing biomedical research.
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