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AREA MAY GET RESEARCH HUB
A MEDICAL RESEARCH COALITION LED BY UB WOULD PARTNER WITH IBM LIFE
SCIENCES TO OPEN A DISEASE MODELING AND THERAPY DISCOVERY LABORATORY
ON FOREST AVENUE IN BUFFALO AND A RESEARCH CENTER, POSSIBLY ON HIGH
STREET.
Published on March 25, 2001
Author: CHET BRIDGER
© The Buffalo News Inc.
Bioinformatics certainly is not a household word in the Buffalo Niagara region, but it may represent one of the most promising new economy sectors for the area.
State officials are on the verge of investing millions at the University at Buffalo to build a bioinformatics hub. The proposals, funded by two separate state programs, call for a new laboratory on Forest Avenue in Buffalo and a research center, possibly on High Street, that will be connected to an expanded supercomputer at UB. Bioinformatics involves using high-speed computers to process massive amounts of biological data with the goal of designing new drugs and treatments. For example, computers can be used to compare and contrast brain maps of healthy patients with those of Alzheimer's patients in an attempt to design new therapies. A medical research coalition led by UB has submitted a $24.2 million grant proposal to the New York State Office of Science, Technology and Academic Research. The coalition would partner with IBM Life Sciences to open a disease modeling and therapy discovery laboratory on Forest Avenue in Buffalo. Gov. George E. Pataki has also announced plans to invest about $270 million in three SUNY centers of excellence, one in bioinformatics at UB. Leaders in the Senate and Assembly have similar high tech funding proposal and details will be worked out in the state budget process. "At the end of the day, we have three proposals from the governor, the Senate and the Assembly, all moving aggressively in the same direction toward regaining New York State's status as a leader in investing in science and innovation," said Assemblyman Robin Schimminger, D-Kenmore. UB officials hope to get $60 million to $80 million to build a new bioinformatics institute and expand the university's supercomputer. Several sites for the institute are being considered, predominantly on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus around High Street in Buffalo. What would all this mean to the Buffalo Niagara economy? At the least, the state capital investments should help draw more research dollars here from the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation and private foundations. That would create new high-paying research positions at UB, Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute, Roswell Park Cancer Institute and local hospitals. Two scenarios include drug companies, biotechnology firms and software companies being attracted to Buffalo, and new companies forming here based on local research work. Bioinformatics, which essentially marries life sciences with computer sciences, is projected to be a growth industry because of the recent mapping of the human genome. "The genome map and the appropriate amount of change will buy you a cup of coffee. What you have to do is take that genome map and figure out what it means to the design process," said Dr. Bruce Holm, senior associate dean for the UB School of Medicine and Biomedical Science. Part of the state funding would be used to expand the processing and storage capacity of UB's supercomputer. Cycle time on the supercomputer, the amount of time the computer is working on a specific computation, would serve as the bait to attract private industry. For example, algorithmic calculations which take five months to process on a standard computer can be calculated in one day on UB's supercomputer. "The research divisions of drug companies would have access to machines that are far more powerful than what's currently available to them," said Russ Miller, director of UB's Center for Computational Research. If the proposed investments are made, UB would host one of the most powerful supercomputers not owned by the United States government, according to state officials. One practical use might be to have the supercomputer process and store genetic information on why the human body builds up resistance to antibiotics. This might help a company develop better antibiotics. All these projects are in the planning stages. To execute them, state officials are looking for private sector funding for the centers of excellence. Corning, Kodak and Xerox are leading an effort to raise $70 million in private sector funding for a center of excellence in photonics in Rochester. Leaders from the local research community are seeking companies that might be interested in becoming partners in Buffalo's bioinformatics institute. Several meetings are scheduled for the next two weeks, said Holm, who declined to identify the companies. The supercomputer is not Buffalo's only draw. The community has a number of highly respected scientists experienced in the field of drug discovery. For example, Dr. Lawrence Jacobs, jointly affiliated with UB and Kaleida Health, helped develop the drug Avonex for multiple sclerosis. Laboratory science, the traditional work involving microscopes and specimens, would occur at the disease modeling and therapy discovery center on Forest Avenue. The lab would be on the local campus of Bristol-Myers Squibb. Academia and industry could use the lab to conduct genetic research, such as exploring how human, plant and animal genes react to the introduction of different chemical agents. Scientists from the Buffalo Niagara region have participated in a number of significant discoveries, such as the technology behind nicotine gum. Most of those discoveries have been licensed to companies outside New York, resulting is a small stream of royalties coming to Buffalo while the biggest economic benefits were reaped elsewhere. The new state strategy is aimed at doing more of the product development work here. The Assembly's plan includes a $125 million fund to apply and commercialize biotechnology research. "You're never going to license everything in your own state. But we'd like to keep more of it here," Holm said.SHARON CANTILLON/Buffalo NewsDr. Bruce Holm of UB said meetings will be held in the next two weeks with firms that might be interested in becoming partners in Buffalo's bioinformatics institute.Graphic- Map-Linking to UB's supercomputer
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