The University's Center of Biomedical Excellence for Cancer Signaling Networks was recently awarded a Center of Biomedical Research Excellence grant worth more than $5.5 million to be paid in annual $1.1 million increments for five years. The grant will be used to purchase and maintain new equipment for the Center for Genomics and Proteonomics. This marks the third time in 15 years that the center has received funds from this grant.
The center currently serves about 40 labs, conducting research in subjects including engineering, immunology, biology and molecular pharmacology, said Christoph Schorl, assistant professor of molecular biology, cell biology and biochemistry.
"We want to get as many people in as possible to make use of the infrastructure," Schorl said, adding that the facility aims to be as inclusive and accommodating as possible. Schorl and others who work in the Protein Genomics labs do not have research projects themselves but assist others with their research, something Schorl called "mercenary science." There are about 120 regular equipment users, ranging from undergraduates to post-doctoral candidates to professors, Schorl said.
The new equipment funded through the grant will impact a community broader than the University, helping to make the Jewelry District and Rhode Island a more competitive place for research, Schorl said. Small biotechnology companies and researchers from Rhode Island Hospital are currently welcome to use the facility for a relatively low user's fee due in part to the support of this grant and grants previously received.
After this most recent grant, the Genomics Core Facility will be "weaned off" of funding from the National Center for Research Resources, which awards the research excellence grant a maximum of three times to the same institution, Schorl said. The facility will explore other options for self-sustainability, including increasing user fees and applying for smaller grants, Schorl said. It was an "amazing achievement" to receive the grant three times, he added.
