Grant renews and expands biomedical network integral to UMaine research
To increase the faculty and research base in biomedical sciences and engineering, the University of Maine has been a research institution partner in the Maine IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (Maine INBRE) and a source of graduate students for the future of biomedical research. As a partner, UMaine biomedical faculty have also benefited from INBRE funding undergraduate research in labs and providing authentic research experiences to undergraduates.
MDI Biological Laboratory recently announced a $19.4 million federal award that will propel INBRE into its next five years of success. Led by MDI Bio Lab, the network provides training, research experiences and financial support to help young Mainers play a bigger role in today’s biomedical revolution, qualifying them for careers in a high-paying field that is making rapid advances in human health.
Formally announced by Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) in a celebratory event on Tuesday, Aug. 13 at MDI Bio Lab, the award was made by the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS). It renews the network’s funding for five years, while enlarging its scope to a total of 17 institutions.
“In a state like Maine with a small population and a vast geography, it’s our willingness to work together that makes us competitive in the global biomedical world, that helps us to punch above our weight,” said Hermann Haller, MDI Bio Lab’s president. “The Maine INBRE is our connective tissue, an extraordinarily collaborative network that is significantly raising the biomedical research and training capacity of the entire state.”
The Maine INBRE:
- supports early-career bioscience faculty in Maine with research grants, staff, lab equipment and other resources they need to compete for larger federal grants. More than 60 faculty have been supported by the INBRE;
- has provided more than 2,800 college students with genuine biomedical research experiences and access to state-of-the-art equipment through intensive courses, workshops and paid fellowships, transforming their goals and helping to build a technically skilled biomedical workforce for Maine;
- invests in shared, state-of-the-art science infrastructure at participating institutions, from advanced gene editing and data science systems to leading-edge 3D microscopy, building the state’s overall research capacity and standing as a home for world-class science.
“You don’t need to be in Silicon Valley, the Research Triangle, or Boston to make a difference. Remarkable research is taking place right here in Maine,” said Collins. “The Maine INBRE is helping to make it possible.”
New network members include the University of Southern Maine, the MaineHealth Institute for Research, and the University of Maine at Augusta. It already includes the University of Maine, UMaine Honors College, UMaine system campuses in Fort Kent, Presque Isle, Farmington, Machias, Southern Maine Community College, College of the Atlantic, the University of New England, Colby, Bates and Bowdoin colleges, The Jackson Laboratory and MDI Bio Lab.
The program so far has directly invested $87+ million in Maine, with early-career faculty it’s supported winning $100+ million more in other research grants. 90% of INBRE undergraduates have gone on to pursue higher education and careers in health-related fields, and 21% stayed in Maine to do so. Over the last five years, the number of science majors at participating schools has increased by 65%.
Contact: Fred Bever, fbever@mdibl.org