Tag Archives: medicine

CTRC Grand Opening Marks Move Downtown of Medical School Researchers

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The new Clinical and Translational Research Center, a 170,000 square-foot research facility that houses the laboratories of several UB physician-scientists.

The University at Buffalo has made another major addition to its campus: the Clinical and Translational Research Center (CTRC).

The School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences held the grand opening of its CTRC in the joint UB-Kaleida Health building at Goodrich and Ellicott streets in downtown Buffalo on September 20.

The 170,000-square-foot research facility allows UB’s physician-scientists to see patients, conduct research and work with clinicians downstairs in Kaleida Health’s Gates Vascular Institute. The CTRC’s offices and laboratories occupy the building’s top four floors, while Gates Vascular Institute is housed on the bottom four.

The CTRC is an important step in the relocation of UB’s medical school to downtown Buffalo. When it is completed by 2016, the new medical school will bring approximately 1,200 people to downtown Buffalo. In total, the CTRC and medical school projects will create more than 3,000 jobs, 250 of which are physician-scientists and staff.

The new facility houses the laboratories of some of UB’s highest-profile researchers, who collectively have earned more than $25 million in research funding. They are conducting research to develop treatments for a broad range of diseases and conditions, including diabetes and obesity, cardiovascular disease, HIV/AIDS and Alzheimer’s and memory disorders.

In addition to custom-designed laboratories and common spaces, the CTRC includes:

  • Clinical Research Center, which coordinates clinical research activities among institutions in the Buffalo Translational Consortium.
  • Center for Research in Cardiovascular Medicine, an interdisciplinary research center.
  • Jacobs Institute, which conducts research, development and training in vascular medicine.
  • Toshiba Stroke and Vascular Research Center
  • Biosciences Incubator, to assist UB researchers with the commercialization of new medical therapies.

For more information on the new CTRC, read the UB Reporter article.

First Biomedical Engineering Students Graduate from UB

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Biomedical engineering is an emerging field of research that applies engineering principles to medicine.

UB recently celebrated the first graduating class from its Department of Biomedical Engineering, a milestone for the fast-growing program that focuses on developing medical devices and therapies for diabetes, cancer and other illnesses.

Most of the 12 undergraduates are expected to immediately enter the workforce. But most plan to attend UB’s new biomedical engineering graduate program. Starting this fall, UB will offer MS and PhD degrees in biomedical engineering.

Biomedical engineering is an emerging field of research that applies engineering principles to medicine. Examples include the development of the pacemaker and prosthetic limbs, as well as creating artificial organs and ultrasounds.

Students come from a variety of backgrounds, including engineering, medicine and pharmacy. Such was the case with North Tonawanda native Jessica Utzig, who transferred into the department from the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences two years ago, and graduated last month.

“There are so many avenues to pursue, but I’m really interested in devices,” said Utzig, a summer intern at Greatbatch in Akron who plans to enter UB’s biomedical engineering graduate school later this year.

The UB department is a collaboration between the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. Created with the support of the John R. Oishei Foundation, which provided $3 million toward its establishment, the department is expected to advance and support the Buffalo Niagara region’s already strong medical device industry.

Enrollment has climbed steadily since UB launched the department two years ago. Fifty-six students were enrolled in 2010, the number rose to 137 the following year, and it is expected to reach 195 students this fall.

Read more at http://www.buffalo.edu/news/13498.