University marks major progress in life science research partnerships

Just over two years ago, my photo appeared on the cover of the Columbia Business Times, along with an article describing how I, as the University of Missouri-Columbia’s vice chancellor for research, was dedicated to helping the university and the UM system form research partnerships with local, state and national businesses. The opportunity to write this column has spurred me to reflect on the progress we’ve made since that article appeared and how, thanks to the hard work of an incredible cadre of faculty, staff and students, we’ve succeeded in more ways than I ever could have imagined.

So, what has happened?

· Earlier this month the UM Board of Curators approved the design and naming rights for what, in the spring of 2008, will become the “MU Life Science Business Incubator at Monsanto Place.” This means that soon, after nearly a decade of planning, Columbia will have a facility where MU’s faculty can turn their discoveries into commercial enterprises — businesses with the potential for providing a host of economic benefits for central Missouri. Already the incubator project is a profound demonstration of what can be accomplished when we work together toward a common goal: Sen. Kit Bond and Rep. Kenny Hulshof helped acquire federal funds for planning and construction; the state of Missouri, through the Missouri Development Finance Board, approved tax credits; Gov. Matt Blunt, with the support of all of our local state legislators, has included the incubator in the proposed Lewis & Clark Discovery Initiative; and the City of Columbia and Regional Economic Development Inc. have provided funds, as have generous private-sector supporters — most notably the Monsanto Corporation, which contributed $2 million.

· Earlier this year, thanks in large part to the leadership of John Gardner, vice president for research and economic development for the UM System, we broke ground for Discovery Ridge, a research park that will be home to companies drawing on MU’s powerful research enterprise. Our first tenant will be ABC Laboratories, a key mid-Missouri life science company.

· Just over one year ago, MU formed a partnership with Allied Minds, an early-stage venture capital company. Allied Minds already has invested $2 million in two new companies – one focused on a cancer diagnostic technology, another on a therapy for Type I diabetes. In addition, thanks to the work of Mike Nichols, MU’s director of technology management and industry relations, we expect Allied Minds to soon double that investment. They are actively seeking opportunities in homeland security, novel therapeutics, medical diagnostics and devices, IT software, material science, communications, agriculture, nano-energetics and technologies for replicating DNA on tiny chips.

· The MU Research Reactor has entered into a joint partnership with Mid-America Isotopes, Inc., to construct a cyclotron facility in mid-Missouri. The cyclotron, a type of advanced particle accelerator, will assist scientists working to discover new radiopharmaceutical drugs and also will ensure a ready supply of critical compounds needed in medical diagnostic procedures.

These and other research capabilities are already enhancing economic development across Missouri. Recently, a leader in the Kansas City business community said that MU’s strength in animal health care and medical imaging were factors in the decisions of a California-based animal health company and a European cancer diagnostic company to locate in the Kansas City area. With the help of Sen. Bond, officials at the National GeoSpatial Intelligence Agency (NGA), a federal agency with an office in St. Louis that has approximately 3,500 employees, recently partnered with MU to create a Center for GeoSpatial Intelligence. The NGA pointed to the university’s research infrastructure as a deciding factor in the agency’s decision to establish the center in Missouri. NGA also is looking to MU to train its future workforce in St. Louis. “We are having to make some considered judgments about which civilian institutions to align with, and clearly U of MO is one of the handful that we can support,” wrote an official from the agency. “The research capabilities I saw during the briefing are very significant and very impressive…”

Such relationships exemplify how we reach out as an institution to our private and public partners. But of course none of these connections would be possible without the incredible innovation, creativity and drive of our nearly 2,000 faculty members.

Over the last 10 years, research conducted by MU faculty has nearly tripled, growing faster than any of the other 61 elite U.S. universities that share our membership in the Association of American Universities.
All of this activity is having a huge impact, improving the health and well-being of millions as it expands the boundaries of scientific understanding.

Each year brings dozens of new breakthroughs. Among the most recent are Randy Prather’s development of swine engineered to produce omega-3 fatty acids, an achievement that has given researchers an incredibly powerful research tool in the fight against cardiovascular disease; Jimi Cook’s creation of tissue regeneration technologies that could restore mobility to animals and people with arthritis; Sheila Grant’s work on “biosensors” that will improve disease detection, disease treatment or even food processing; Gabor Forgac’s success in “printing” individual cells in a manner that allows scientists to build complex tissues, a technology that may revolutionize the treatment of disease; Elmer Price’s discovery of adult stem cells that can be made to grow into specific tissues, among them nerve cells that could treat spinal injuries; and Peter Pfeifer’s development of a material made from waste corn cobs that could lead to new, more efficient alternative-fuel vehicles.

As MU’s chief research officer, I am privileged to play a role in facilitating the work of these and many other faculty scientists. I also take great pride in the fact that, over the past two years, we have made so much progress partnering with our private-sector colleagues to bring these discoveries to market. It is truly an exciting time at Mizzou!