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Director Announced of New UCSB-Burnham Institute Research Center for Nanomedicine
(La Jolla and Santa Barbara, Calif.) - Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham) and University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) have named leading biomedical researcher Jamey D. Marth, Ph.D., director of their new Center for Nanomedicine to be established at the UCSB campus. This collaborative biomedical research partnership merges UCSB's core competencies in bioengineering, chemical and computational engineering, materials science, nanotechnology, and physics with Burnham's strengths in biological sciences and biomedical research to promote the convergence of these fields and pioneer development of novel technologies for advancing human health. UCSB and Burnham plan jointly to recruit additional scientists to the Center for Nanomedicine, creating collaborative teams that produce innovative technologies for an entirely new generation of biosensors, medical devices, drug delivery nanoparticles, instruments for advanced biomedical research, and other products.
"Interdisciplinary approaches are vital to establishing a holistic and rigorous initiative in biomedical research that encompasses disparate knowledge and integrates all of the cellular molecules and other factors that contribute to disease," said Dr. Marth, who joined UCSB's faculty in the Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology (MCDB), as well as Burnham's faculty, on July 1. Prior to joining Burnham and UCSB, Marth was professor of cellular and molecular medicine and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator at the UC San Diego School of Medicine.
"With appointments at both UCSB and Burnham, I look forward with excitement to building further bridges between the talented scientists at these institutions and to promoting our joint efforts to develop new nanotechnologies for disease diagnosis, prevention, therapy and cures - an initiative that will require the expertise of engineers, physicists and materials scientists working in close collaboration with biologists, geneticists, and pharmacologists," Dr. Marth added. "This unique partnership allows for a new and timely approach to biomedical research that builds on the complementary strengths of UCSB and Burnham Institute for Medical Research."
At UCSB, Marth's laboratory investigates the biological functions of protein glycosylation. . This key process, common to all cells, regulates mammalian physiology and disease pathogenesis. . By integrating genomics and proteomics, his research has defined new disease mechanisms that cause autoimmune disease, morbidity in pathogen-host interactions, and the pathogenic basis of dietary-induced type 2 diabetes.
"We are pleased to welcome an elite scientist like Dr. Marth to Burnham and to this collaborative partnership with UCSB in the exciting field of nanomedicine," said Dr. John Reed, Burnham's president and chief executive officer, professor and Donald Bren Presidential Chair. . "The impact of our collaborative efforts will be far-reaching, not only in terms of advancing the science of nanomedicine, but in terms of economic development opportunities for new company generation and job creation."
Pierre Wiltzius, Susan and Bruce Worster Dean of Science and professor of physics at UCSB, noted that "The coupling of biomolecules to nanomaterials and their assembly into nanostructures will produce a wide range of ‘smart' devices with an enormous breadth of practical applications, including diagnostics and biosensors, drug screening and delivery, tissue engineering and much more." Wiltzius further commented that "The impact of this new field of science, termed nanomedicine, on medicine and life sciences will be hugely transformative, comparable in magnitude to the transition from discrete transistors to silicon integrated circuits in the computer sciences."
Burnham established an affiliation with UCSB in 2006, led by internationally-renowned medical researcher Erkki Ruoslahti, M.D., Ph.D. Dr. Ruoslahti maintained his primary appointment as Distinguished Professor with Burnham and joined UCSB's MCDB department as an adjunct Distinguished Professor. This type of collaboration, involving a highly ranked university and a nonprofit, independent research institute, exemplifies the inherent value of interdisciplinary research and the enhanced potential created when two such entities join force.
"Professor Marth will invigorate interdisciplinary biomedical research at UC Santa Barbara, not only with his own exciting research in the Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, but also with expansion of Burnham at UCSB," said Dennis O. Clegg, co-director of UCSB's Center for Stem Cell Biology and Engineering and professor of MCDB. "Burnham is one the premier forces in medical research in the world, and expansion of the partnership with UCSB will enable novel approaches to uncovering the molecular mechanisms of disease."
At UCSB, Marth has been appointed to two prestigious endowed professorships: He is the first recipient of both the John Carbon Chair in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and the Duncan and Suzanne Mellichamp Chair in Systems Biology in the campus's Biomolecular Science and Engineering Program.
About Burnham Institute for Medical Research
Burnham Institute for Medical Research is dedicated to discovering the fundamental molecular causes of disease and devising the innovative therapies of tomorrow. Burnham, with operations in California and Florida, is one of the fastest-growing research institutes in the country. The institute ranks among the top four institutions nationally for NIH grant funding. For the past decade (1999-2009), Burnham ranked number one worldwide in the fields of biology and biochemistry for the impact of its research publications (defined by citations per publication), according to the Institute for Scientific Information. Burnham utilizes a unique, collaborative approach to medical research and has established major research programs in cancer, neurodegeneration, diabetes, and infectious, inflammatory, and childhood diseases. The institute is especially known for its world-class capabilities in stem cell research and drug discovery technologies.
About Engineering and the Sciences at UCSB
Engineering and the Sciences at UC Santa Barbara are global leaders in bioengineering, chemical and computational engineering, marine and environmental science, materials science, nanotechnology, and physics. UCSB has five Nobel laureates on its faculty, of which four are in engineering and the sciences.
About UCSB's Carbon and Mellichamp Chairs
The John Carbon Chair is named in honor of UCSB Professor Emeritus John Carbon, a pioneering biochemist who has made numerous major contributions to advancing medical research. Donors to the Carbon Chair include the Amgen Foundation, the William K. Bowes, Jr. Foundation, the Franklin and Catherine Johnson Foundation, and the Rathmann Family Foundation.
The Mellichamp Chair in Systems Biology was created by UCSB Chemical Engineering Professor Emeritus Duncan Mellichamp and his wife, Suzanne, to support research in that emerging field.
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Burnham Institute for Medical Research
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