Life Science Company and Industry News Briefs

Researchers at Harvard University were recently awarded $2.1 million by the NIH for a project titled “Dissecting the Establishment and Regulation of Human Pluripotency.” The NIH RePORTER describes in detail the specifics of the project in the project’s abstract, written by the Harvard researchers:

Researchers at Harvard University received a $9.8 million grant from the NIH this year for the New England Regional Center of Excellence in Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases Research. The project leader is listed as Dr. Dennis Kasper. According to the Harvard University website, Dr. Kasper and his research team are interested in the interactions of microbes, including commensals and pathogens, with the immune system. The NIH RePORTER goes into further detail about the organization receiving NIH funding:

The University of Pittsburgh will soon begin construction on a new $1 million laboratory at the Pymatuning Laboratory of Ecology. The new laboratory is expected to attract researchers from around the globe. The 3,600-square-foot facility will be funded by the NSF, and in addition to being used by some of the world’s top researchers will be a base of outreach to elementary, middle and high school teachers in the region.

The University of Pennsylvania received a $7.2 million NIH grant for its Abramson Cancer Center this year. The project abstract was submitted by Dr. Chi Dang, the director of the center. On the University of Pennsylvania website, Dr. Chi Dang says that the future of cancer care at the Abramson Cancer Center rests with the creation of Translational Centers of Excellence that focus on closely connected disease-specific care teams. The NIH RePORTER goes into more detail on the history of the Abramson Cancer Center:

“In 2007, the University of Alabama at Birmingham (DAB) and its affiliates completed three important, large- scale strategic planning efforts. Together, these processes generated a ‘blueprint for our research future’ that lays the foundation to transform our substantial clinical and translational research enterprise through integration and innovation across all disciplines, schools, and our health care system,” says the University of Alabama’s abstract for its Center for Clinical and Translational Science on the NIH RePORTER. The Center for Clinical and Translational Science received a $5.1 million award last year.

Researchers at Stony Brook University, led by Samuel Stanley, applied for NIH funding to build an animal biosafety level three laboratory and received $14.2 million this year. Stony Brook University is one of the leading research universities in the country. According to the Stony Brook website, the university employs over 1000 researchers working on 1600 active sponsored projects. Stony Brook aims to collaborate in research partnerships that bring about new knowledge in all fields of research and scholarly activity The NIH RePORTER has details on some of the project information for the new laboratory receiving NIH funding:

Lab suppliers looking to increase sales can take advantage of this information about the University of Alabama, Birmingham. This free resource is provided by Biotechnology Calendar, Inc.

Two researchers at the University of Arizona have an innovative idea for how to raise research funding at a time when federal research dollars are shrinking: the two graduate students in Anna Dornhaus’ social-insect lab have turned to crowd-funding and social media. The method of raising money for research is so new that administrators at the University of Arizona aren’t prepared to deal with it. Faculty and staff will have to wait to follow the graduate students’ lead until the university can figure out a way to defray the “indirect costs” of supervising research.

Researchers at Rockefeller University, led by Dr. Gaby Maimon, recently received NIH funding for their studies of fruit flies’ neuronal activity in decision-making, which they believe has the potential to impact pharmaceuticals for human mental illness. According to the Rockefeller University website, Dr. Maimon’s research team aims to “link the electrical activity of neurons and the biochemical action of molecules to their computational roles in animal behavior. The lab has a particular interest in understanding how central brain structures, distant from the sensory and motor periphery, govern behavioral choice.” The latest research grant money has been given to an ongoing project titled “Linking Genes to Higher Brain Function by Way of Cellular Electrophysiology.” The project received $2.5 million from the NIH. The NIH RePORTER details the goals of the project in an abstract posted online:

With cancer recognized as the second most common cause of death in the US, closely trailing heart disease, and responsible for 1 in every 4 deaths annually, it's no surprise that cancer research remains prominent on university and research campuses nationwide. Prostate cancer, a cancer that forms in the tissues of the prostate and adds up to nearly 240,000 new cases each year, is especially impacting on the 40+ male age group and is the second most common cancer-related cause of death in men.