Cutting-Edge Biophysics Research Facility Opens May 5 at the Jackson Laboratory
Contact: Joyce Peterson, The Jackson Laboratory, 207-288-6058; Nick Houtman, University of Maine, 207-581-3777; Louise Berlin, Maine Medical Center Research Institute, 207-885-8108
What: Opening reception for the Institute for Molecular Biophysics (IMB), a collaborative research facility with the University of Maine, Maine Medical Center Research Institute and The Jackson Laboratory
Where: The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor
When: Wednesday, May 5, 2004, 3:00-5:00 p.m.
Who:
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Rick Woychik, Ph.D., Director, The Jackson Laboratory
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Peter Hoff, Ph.D., President, University of Maine
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Kenneth Ault, M.D., Director, Maine Medical Center Research Institute
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Judy Cuddy, State Representative for Senator Susan Collins
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Barbara B. Knowles, Ph.D. (co-director, IMB), Vice President for Research, Education and Training, The Jackson Laboratory
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Michael Eckardt, Vice President for Research, University of Maine
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Michael Grunze, Ph.D. (co-director, IMB), University of Heidelberg, Germany
BAR HARBOR–“Throughout history, new imaging capabilities–“from the first 17th century light microscopes to the latest MRIs and electron microscopes—have opened new worlds in biomedical research. Today, now that the human and mouse genomes have been sequenced, researchers need nanoscale imaging technologies to explore the structure and function of genes and chromosomes within cells.
The Institute for Molecular Biophysics (IMB) was created to develop and deploy the biological imaging technologies of the future. This interdisciplinary program brings together expertise in biophysics and engineering at the University of Maine, cell biology at the Maine Medical Center Research Institute, and genetics and genomics at The Jackson Laboratory.
“The IMB is an interdisciplinary leap into the future,” says IMB co-director Barbara B. Knowles, Ph.D. “It is the forum for the integration of newly developed instrumentation that will allow the application of optical physics and nanotechnology to genome structure. The ultimate goal is to understand precisely how genes control both normal development and human diseases and disorders.”
On May 5, the IMB will celebrate a milestone with the opening of the new 3,400 square-foot research area at The Jackson Laboratory. Representatives of the three institutions will be on hand to describe the mission of the IMB, lead tours of the newly constructed laboratory facilities, and introduce members of the research team.
Initial funding for the IMB was provided by the National Science Foundation’s EPSCoR program.