DENVER, Colo., July 6, 2004 -- The March of Dimes today announced it has awarded new grants to two Colorado researchers. Kristin Bruk Artinger, PhD, and Jeffrey Scott Kieft, PhD, both of the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, have each received $75,000 to advance their studies. The grants are Basil O’Connor Starter Scholar Research Awards, designed to support young scientists embarking on their careers.

Artinger’s work focuses on the mechanics of proper brain cell development. Kieft is studying protein interactions to learn how they impact genes and cause birth defects.

These new grants bring the total of current March of Dimes awards in Colorado to $1.4 million. The March of Dimes also funds a number of its own health education and resource programs.

Basil O’Connor was the first president of the March of Dimes. He served in that role from the organization’s founding in 1938 until 1972.

The March of Dimes is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the health of babies by preventing birth defects and infant mortality. To achieve its mission, the March of Dimes funds research, community services, education and advocacy. For more information, visit the March of Dimes at www.marchofdimes.com (English) and www.nacersano.org (Spanish).

The University of Colorado Health Sciences Center is one of four campuses in the University of Colorado system. Located in Denver and Aurora, Colo., the center includes schools of medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and dentistry, a graduate school and a teaching hospital. For more information, visit the Web site at www.uchsc.edu.