History
The joint Rensselaer-Wadsworth Center for Bioinformatics (CB) formally came into
being during the summer of 2000 with the signing of a memorandum of agreement
between the two institutions. The primary goal of the CB is to synergize research,
i.e., to combine the strengths of the two institutions in order to pursue an
aggressive joint research program in bioinformatics. Because this is a highly
interdisciplinary field, the success of the CB should translate into enhanced
funding for research across a wide range of complementary fields, along with
expanded training opportunities for doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows.
Furthermore, it is expected that the bioinformatics research agenda of the CB
members will lead to such practical applications as the development of new
therapeutic and diagnostic products.
Bases of Operation of the CB
In keeping with the interdisciplinary and interinstitutional nature of the
Center for Bioinformatics, it is a distributed (as opposed to centrally localized)
entity. The faculty and staff are located at several sites on the Rensselaer (Troy)
and Wadsworth (Albany) campuses, as are the computing resources. Rensselaer has
outstanding facilities for bioinformatics, including a high-performance 36-node web
server (obtained in 2001 through an IBM SUR grant and maintained by the Academy of
Electronic Media), and an interactive computer laboratory for bioinformatics training
and distance learning, located in the Johnsson-Rowland Science Center. Expanded
bioinformatics facilities are planned as part of Rensselaer's new Center for
Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, scheduled for completion in 2004.
The Wadsworth bioinformatics laboratory, currently located at the Empire State Plaza,
will move in Fall 2003 to the Center for Medical Sciences, currently under construction
adjacent to Wadsworth's David Axelrod Institute. The new 11,000 square foot
bioinformatics facility, funded in part by a $1.4 million grant from NIH, will
include a large, state-of-the-art collaboratory for computational biology,
with distance learning and high performance computing capabilities.
Press Release: Bioinformatics Constellation Formed
8/28/2000 by Patrick Kurp
Two renowned scientists mathematician Michael Zuker and computer
scientist Charles Chip Lawrence 67 will lead a new research constellation
in bioinformatics at Rensselaer. more info
