Seven Latin American Scientists Named 2005 Pew Latin American Fellows in the Biomedical Sciences

Philadelphia, PA -  The Pew Charitable Trusts and the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) announced today that seven promising Latin American biomedical scientists have been named 2005 Pew Latin American Fellows in the Biomedical Sciences. Funded by the Trusts through a grant to UCSF, the highly competitive fellowship program offers talented young Latin American scientists $25,000 a year for two years (supplemented by at least $5,000 per year from the host institution) to obtain cutting-edge postdoctoral research training in a leading U.S. research laboratory, followed by $35,000 to set up a laboratory in the scientist's home country upon completion of his or her training. “This marks the 15th year of our support for the Pew Latin American Fellows in the Biomedical Sciences program and we are exceptionally proud, and humbled, by the fellows' accomplishments and tremendous long-term potential,” said Rebecca W. Rimel, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Pew Charitable Trusts. “The science frontier is truly a global one, and these fellows have brought outstanding talent, skills and intellectual curiosity into this program and then have gone on to enrich their own scientific abilities and the scientific enterprise in their home countries.”

The Pew Latin American Fellows Program in the Biomedical Sciences was launched in 1991 to help develop a cadre of highly trained Latin American scientists who could stimulate and contribute to the growth of high quality biomedical science in Latin America and foster collaboration between scientists in Latin America and the U.S. Since 1991, the Trusts has invested more than $11 million to fund nearly 140 fellows, over 80 percent of whom have returned to their home countries. Applicants from Mexico and all Central and South American countries are invited to apply, and selection is made by a distinguished national advisory committee chaired by Dr. Torsten N. Wiesel, president emeritus of Rockefeller University, and a 1981 Nobel laureate in physiology or medicine.

The 2005 Pew Latin American Fellows in the Biomedical Sciences are:

Fellow and Host Laboratory
Roberto Araya, Ph.D., Chile Columbia University
Alexander De Luna, Ph.D., Mexico Harvard University
Tatiana Hochgreb, Ph.D., Brazil University of California, San Francisco
Yazmin Macotela, Ph.D., Mexico Harvard University
Adriana Elisa Tron, Ph.D., Argentina Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Adrian Gustavo Turjanski, Ph.D., Argentina National Institutes of Health
Alexander Omar Vargas, Ph.D., Chile Yale University

The Pew Charitable Trusts serves the public interest by providing information, advancing policy solutions and supporting civic life. Based in Philadelphia, with an office in Washington, D.C., the Trusts will invest $204 million in fiscal year 2006 to provide organizations and citizens with fact-based research and practical solutions for challenging issues.

The Pew Latin American Fellows in the Biomedical Sciences program is part of a portfolio of projects funded by the Trusts that focuses on science and technology. Other programs include the Science and Society Institute, which trains biomedical scientists so they can effectively contribute to science policy discussions and solutions, and three science policy initiatives that address the benefits and challenges raised by emerging technologies – the Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology, the Genetics and Public Policy Center, and the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies.