difficult year marred by uncertainty over US funding and Christmas lay-offs.

Although there could be more cutbacks in the coming months, there will not be any further lay-offs, BBSR director Dr. Tony Knap promised yesterday.

And he disclosed plans for "a new and exciting'' molecular biology project which is due to be launched in April and already has the backing of the US Office of Naval Research.

The project involves marine pharmacology, which is the study of potential drugs from the sea and its coral reefs.

A new laboratory has been built specially for the project, which will be headed by Dr. Hank Rosenthal of Florida's Whitney Lab.

Dr. Knap is hoping the project will help build up as good a reputation for the station as oceanographic and global warming research has.

"Molecular biology is a new direction for marine science and it is receiving a great deal of interest in the US,'' Dr. Knap said. "It's new and very exciting.'' He added the research project may well attract leading scientists in the field, thus putting Bermuda in the spotlight.

Dr. Knap said that depending on the grant situation, the BBSR may have to look at reducing the hours of more employees.

The station receives most of its funding from the US, but due to the recession its grants have not been forthcoming.

In an attempt to break even, the BBSR laid off one secretarial employee just before Christmas, while slashing the hours of another.

And the crew of the Weatherbird II found themselves out of a job for five months while the research vessel went for a refit in America. The station could not afford to keep them on during that period.