The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) this week announced an award of $2 million in capital grants to be shared by four of the campus’s Core Facilities managed by the Institute for Applied Life Sciences (IALS). The funds are for the purchase of hardware and software, analytical and other equipment, as well as research supplies and reagents.
IALS Core Facilities receiving the support are:
- Light Microscopy, directed by James Chambers, for the enhancement of the UMass Amherst Light Microscopy Facility for cutting-edge workforce training.
- Flow Cytometry, directed by Amy Burnside, to update cell sorter, spectral analyzer cytometer, and high throughput sampler.
- Mass Spectrometry, directed by Steve Eyles, for the acquisition of Synapt G2-32k Mass Spectrometer for native mass spectrometry.
- Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), directed by Jasna Fejzo, for the purchase of a SampleJet, a high-throughput sample changing robot for NMR.
- Center for Human Health and Performance, directed by Michael Busa, plus industry partner Embr, for “Artificial Intelligence for Menopause Symptoms (AIMS).”
Peter Reinhart, IALSdirector, highlighted the important role centralized Core Equipment Facilities and the professional staff managing them play at UMass Amherst. “These awards are a recognition of the value of shared facilities for both on-campus research, and for facilitating interactions with industry partners,” he said.
Massachusetts Housing and Economic Development Secretary Mike Kennealy, co-chair of the MLSC board of directors, said, “These investments represent the vital role the Life Sciences Center plays in catalyzing new partnerships and deepening cross-sector collaboration with a goal of taking on pressing life sciences challenges. Massachusetts is uniquely positioned to provide support of new ideas and innovative strategies to improve health conditions, diagnoses, and treatments, and better understanding their impact across various health care populations.”
In this latest round, MLSC awarded a total $8.3 million support for 11 projects focused on its two newest capital programs, “novel therapeutics delivery,” and women’s health in Massachusetts overall “to support innovation and cross-sector collaboration between non-profits and industry as teams tackle pressing life science challenges.”
Other recipients of the MLSC support in addition to UMass Amherst include Boston University, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard University, Massachusetts General Hospital, UMass Lowell, UMass Medical School, Westfield State University and their industry partners.
The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) is an economic development investment agency. Through public-private funding initiatives, it supports innovation, research and development, commercialization, and manufacturing activities in the fields of biopharma, medical device, diagnostics and digital health.