June 08, 2009

New York - June 5, 2009: Mary Helen Barcellos-Hoff, PhD, of the Department of Radiation Oncology and a member of the NYU Cancer Institute, has been selected by NASA to receive a grant to study space radiation effects on humans in space. NASA's $28.4 million dollar investment will fund a Specialized Centers of Research (NSCOR) at NYU Langone Medical Center, led by Barcellos-Hoff, and at Loma Linda University, the University of Texas Medical Branch and Georgetown University on determining space radiation carcinogenesis and central nervous system risks that could pave the way for countermeasures, developed during a five-year award period. This NYU-NSCOR consists of a team of investigators who have complementary skills and who work together to solve a closely focused set of research questions in support of the Space Radiation Program Element within the Human Research Program. The proposals were reviewed by non-NASA scientific and technical experts and selected by NASA.

To learn more, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/exploration/acd/hrp_nscor_awards_2009.html