The University of California, Davis has announced a $1 million grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation in support of biotechnology research.

The grant will support the research of professor Angelique Louie, vice chair of the university's Department of Biomedical Engineering. Her project, In Vivo 3D Imaging Using Bioluminescent Gene Reporters and MRI, aims to develop novel technology that can detect gene expression in deep opaque tissues. To that end, Louie is working with Yohei Yokobayashi, an associate professor in the biomedical engineering department, and Jared Shaw, an associate professor in the chemistry department. "With such technology," she said, "we'll be able to apply the power of noninvasive imaging to myriad new biomedical applications."

Louie, who earned an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering at UC Davis, joined the university's biomedical engineering department in 2002. Since then, she has worked with imaging techniques and the design of probes to characterize molecular phenomena in diseased and normal states, with the goal of helping clinicians better understand what causes cardiovascular disease, retinal degeneration, and tumor formation.

"We're grateful for the Keck Foundation's support," said UC Davis College of Engineering dean Enrique J. Lavernia. "The advancement of cutting-edge technology requires our researchers to push the envelope, to take risks and try new approaches. Such daring often won't be embraced by government funders or foundations, and I applaud the Keck Foundation for its devotion to bold ventures that can have a positive impact on the entire world."