A UW-Madison biochemist's proposal to invent a drug that remains hidden inside a cell until activated by a pathogen has received a $100,000 award from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Ron Raines, a professor in the UW-Madison Biochemistry Department, and a team of researchers were granted the award through the Gates Foundation's Grand Challenges in Global Health initiative. According to a university release, the proposal beat 40-to-1 funding odds and aims to broadly develop therapeutic agents to limit drug resistance. The idea would create a way to prevent viruses, such as HIV, from entering cells.
Raines and his research team is one of 104 recipients of the $100,000 grant from the foundation this year.
According to its website, the Bill & Melina Gates Foundation aims to help individuals lead healthy, productive lives through support in the U.S. and around the world.
