The University of Rochester is getting a major grant to lead a research project to study longevity.
The U of R will be doing the research into how a person's lifespan can be extended in cooperation with scientists from Harvard and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
The grant is for $9.5 million, and lead researcher and U of R biology professor Vera Gorbunova says that money from the National Institute of Aging is quite significant.
"We're very happy to receive it because these days the funding climate is very difficult for people to get research grants and here we're very proud that we were recognized."
Researchers will focus on mice and rats because they are genetically similar to humans. The study will build on earlier work by Gorbunova which focused on DNA repair and cancer resistance in naked mole rats, which are of special interest since they remain free of age related problems and disease until the very end of their lives.
