Cenix BioScience and collaborators secure research grant from German National Genome Research Network (NGFN) to advance RNAi-based phenotyping.
 

Dresden, Germany, June 4, 2001  - Cenix BioScience GmbH today announced that it, along with Prof. Anthony Hyman's group at the Max Planck Institute of Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG), has been awarded a research grant totaling 439,000 Euro under the German National Genome Research Network (NGFN) program, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

The project entitled "Development of Fluorescence Microscopy-Based Techniques for High Throughput Functional Analyses of the C. elegans Proteome (FluoWorm)", projected over a time frame of three years, will support the technological improvement and advancement of RNAi screening methodologies in C. elegans. The funds will support the development of new target validation strategies for detailed analyses of RNAi-induced phenotypes, including the generation of novel marker strains, development and optimization of high throughput fluorescence microscopy techniques, and database development. The project will build up on the pioneering genome-scale RNAi screening work started in 1998 by the company's three scientific founders, Drs. Echeverri, Hyman and Gönczy, and will help Cenix to further advance its industry-leading programs for RNAi-based drug discovery and development.