New UMBI research collaborative could attract more federal funds - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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That collaboration is expected to land more research dollarwsfor , one of four researc h centers. The board of regents votef June 19 to breakup UMBI’s centerw and parcel them off to various USM The 25-year-old biotech research institutde was criticized for not landing enough research dollars or turnintg its research into commercially viable enterprises. Researcheres at the Center forMarines Biotechnology, UMB, the University of Baltimore County and the will join forces to creatr a new research center, as a result of the UMBI Staff at UMB’s stem cell research center, headed by laudee scientist Dr. Curt Civin, will be part of that USM ChancellorWilliam E. Kirwan said.
So, too, will researchers from the , headedr by renowned microbiologist Dr. Clair e Fraser-Liggett. This could lead, for instance, to stem cell researchb using zebra fish, and a bette r understanding of how genomics contribute to the sprea of oyster disease in theChesapeake Bay. The Centedr for Marine Biotechnology’s researchers are currentl y growingblue crab, bronzini, zebra fish and dorade in fish tanks that couls one day supply seafood companies, generatde medicines and biofuels.
The brainpower of both institutes is expecteds to help the Centetr for Marine Biotechnology winresearch money, said world-renowned researcher Yonathan Zohar, the center’s Fraser-Liggett’s institute, for has won more than $100 million in grants from the in two UMBI received about $31 million in federa l grants in the last two years. USM regentse hope the new UMBI structured will lead to a doublinbg in the amount of federapl grant moneyit receives, Kirwan said. Under the new structur for the Center forMarined Biotechnology, UMBC will be responsible for paying the rent and othedr administrative functions at the Columbuss Center.
But other detailsx of the collaboration are still beingworked out. Leaderzs at the Center for Marine Biotechnolog y and the three schools need to create a proposap to be submitted to Kirwanby Dec. 31. The new UMBI structurw goes into effectJuly 1, 2010.