By UA News Services
October 20, 2004
The BIO5 Institute for Collaborative Bioresearch and the University of Arizona's Biomedical Engineering (BME) Program have jointly announced their partnership.
Stuart K. Williams, head of the BME program, said, “BIO5 is part of the biology revolution that is rapidly incorporating engineering analysis and synthesis design approaches. As engineers, we work through a ‘measure, model, manipulate’ paradigm. As molecular components become easier to manipulate, our approach will be invaluable in understanding and predicting the effects of these manipulations. Quantitative methods now permeate all of biology."
The partnership will further BIO5's multidisciplinary approach to solving complex scientific problems of medical importance.
Vicki L. Chandler, director of BIO5, said, “I am very excited about the inclusion of biomedical engineering into BIO5’s portfolio of research initiatives This will further BIO5’s vision of bringing together distinct disciplines to form collaborative teams to tackle difficult biological problems.”
The Division of Biomedical Engineering is part of UA's Arizona Research Laboratories. BME faculty, who work at the interface between engineering and medicine, often have appointments in both the College of Engineering and the College of Medicine. Now they will also have faculty appointments in BIO5.
BME's areas of expertise include imaging technologies and materials science. BME has established an international reputation in regenerative medicine, an emerging field that focuses on the repair or replacement of damaged tissues and organs. The BME program also provides students a superior interdisciplinary educational opportunity. Chandler said, "It will be terrific having BME faculty in the new Keating building, which will serve as the BIO5 hub once it is finished."
The Thomas W. Keating building, future home of BIO5, will house a diversity of researchers and provide state-of-the-art laboratories. The building's very design will facilitate interactions between researchers from different disciplines, thereby promoting cross-disciplinary approaches. BME faculty will have labs in the Keating building.
UA's biomedical engineers already work with companies in the private sector, so the new BIO5/BME partnership will further UA's effort to bring the inventions and discoveries developed within the university to market for the public good. In addition, the new partnership will aid the state’s goal of expanding economic development by commercializing intellectual property.
Tucson companies that have benefited from UA's expertise in biomedical engineering include Biopsy Sciences, Medipacs, SEBRA, Arizona Microsystems and CellzDirect. In addition, the recent start-up of IKEN Tissue Therapeutics by BME faculty is based, in part, on UA patents that are pending. Two more companies are under development and are planned for incorporation this year.
- Updated: October 20, 2004
