The Research Improvment in Minority Institutions (RIMI) program was established to provide support to strengthen the research environments and capabilities of predominantly minority institutions or institutions that have substantial minority student populations. Eligible institutions must also have graduate programs in science or programs in engineering. Funding is provided for faculty research in fields of science and engineering supported by the Foundation and for the acquisition of research instrumentation. California State University - Los Angeles will use RIMI support to establish a core research facility for recombinant DNA technology. The investigators will explore the regulation of neuroactive peptide production and release, the expression of action genes during development, the regulation of membrane development during the sporulation cycle of Bacillus subtilis, the structural definition of viral protein genes in mutant Sendai viruses, and the characterization of gram-negative anaerobes. Many experiments will utilize cDNA synthesis and molecular cloning techniques. The principal investigator is a well-trained biologist with a specialty in neuroendocrinology. He has published several articles in refereed journals. The Foundation has supported this project because more minorities will have opportunities to participate in meritorious research in recombinant DNA technology.
