The USC Center for Transdisciplinary Research on Energetics and Cancer (C-TREC) recently awarded $265,000 to fund a range of pilot projects designed to attract new investigators to work in the fields of obesity and cancer.

C-TREC provided an average of $35,000 for each investigator of five research-based grants:

� Howard Kaufman, associate professor of surgery, “Colon Cancer Related Epigenetic Changes in Obesity”;

� Thomas W. Valente, associate professor of preventive medicine, “Social Network Influences on Diet and Physical Activity”;

� Jaimie N. Davis, research associate of preventive medicine, Combining Strength and Cardiovascular Exercise to Reduce Obesity and Associated Diseases in Overweight Latino Youth”;

� Rob McConnell, professor of preventive medicine, “SportBrain Pedometer and GPS Logging Technology: Better Tools for Evaluating Physical Activity in Children and an Application to the Impact of Neighborhood Land Use and Children’s Commuting Time”;

� Steven Mittelman, assistant professor of endocrinology, Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, “Exploring the Link Between Obesity and Poor Prognosis of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Using a Murine Model;”

� Dawna Salter-Venzon, postdoctoral fellow in preventive medicine, “Functional Brain Responses after Satiety in Normal Weight and Overweight Adolescent Girls.”

C-TREC provided an average of $5,000 for each of four community-based grants that focused on diet and health and benefited the YMCA Orange County-Community Services Branch, the Coalition for Community Health, the Boys and Girls Club of Watts-Willowbrook and the Pacific Islander Health Partnership.