Troy, N.Y. — Governor George E. Pataki and Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno today announced that Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has received one of 10 New York State Office of Science, Technology, and Academic Research (NYSTAR) James D. Watson Investigator Program awards, designed to recognize and support outstanding scientists and engineers who, early in their careers, show potential for leadership and scientific discovery in the field of biotechnology.

The $200,000 grant was awarded to Jan Stegemann, Ph.D., assistant professor of biomedical engineering, whose research focuses on combining nanotechnology and tissue engineering to develop new living tissue that can bridge and support damaged regions of the cardiovascular system. Support from the NYSTAR J.D. Watson Investigator Program will allow Stegemann’s laboratory to advance a novel project aimed at creating a living heart wall patch for the treatment of congestive heart failure and congenital heart defects.

"Professor Stegemann's work is focused on extending the lives of people suffering from serious cardiovascular ailments," said Rensselaer President Shirley Ann Jackson. "This award will help to advance Professor Stegemann's work, increasing the likelihood that his research will move from the lab to medical application in a timely manner."

Stegemann said his research in the area of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine is part of a growing effort in these disciplines in the Capital Region. The emerging tissue engineering industry is growing rapidly and has the potential to become a major new segment of the multi-billion health care industry nationally in the coming decades, according to Stegemann.

"We applaud Governor Pataki, Senator Bruno, and NYSTAR for their dedication to strengthening biotechnology research in New York state, and for their foresight in supporting rising stars like Professor Stegemann," President Jackson said. "Tissue engineering and regenerative medicine is one of the focal areas of research in Rensselaer's new Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, and is one of the ways in which we will help advance the Capital Region, the state, and truly change the world."

Russell W. Bessette, M.D., executive director of the New York State Office of Science, Technology, and Academic Research, said, "Dr. Stegemann's research will significantly advance the state-of-the-art in terms of biomaterials and medical applications of nanotechnology and it will help build the Institute's fast-growing reputation as a world-class life sciences center."

The James D. Watson Investigator initiative is part of the $225 million Generating Employment through New York State Science (Gen*NY*sis) program, which was created to maximize the potential of the world-class life sciences research being conducted at New York's public, not-for-profit, and private academic research institutions, according to the Governor's announcement today. The program complements New York's comprehensive efforts to make the Empire State an international leader in high-tech and biotechnology-related research and economic development.

The purpose of the Watson program is to assist New York state's leading research institutions in recognizing, retaining, and professionally developing early-career scientists who demonstrate leadership potential at the frontier of knowledge in the life sciences and conduct research that is anticipated to enhance economic development in the state, according to NYSTAR.

Rensselaer's new Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies is scheduled to open in September 2004.

Contact: Theresa Bourgeois
Phone: (518) 276-2840
E-mail: bourgt@rpi.edu