Biomedical Science Tower 3
Overview
The University of Pittsburgh’s Biomedical Science Tower 3 (BST3) is evidence of the region’s growing biotech industry. Built in 2005, the $205.5-million, state-of-the-art research facility houses some 50 laboratories and approximately 500 scientists, graduate students, and technicians engaged in such fields as molecular genetics, cellular biology, and biochemistry. Their research will result in new advanced medical therapies that are destined to help patients for years to come.
Highlights:
- The Drug Discovery Institute (DDI)—Led by John Lazo, the DDI is one of only a few university-based pharma programs and has the technology to rapidly screen tens of thousands of small molecules and compounds in the hunt for better drugs. Of particular interest in the DDI are the so-called orphan diseases that affect smaller numbers of people but are often highly prevalent in the developing world.
- The Pittsburgh Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases (PIND)—Led by J. Timothy Greenamyre, PIND aims to apply cutting-edge research to the burden imposed by neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease).
- Department of Structural Biology—Led by Angela Gronenborn, Pitt’s structural biologists combine nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy with biophysics, biochemistry, and chemistry to determine the architecture of important proteins and to examine the molecular and cellular processes that underlie a host of diseases.
- A look at a whole-body, 7-tesla magnetic resonance imager. It’s one of the strongest such imaging devices available anywhere in the world used for clinical research.
Contact: Anita Srikameswaran, senior manager, UPMC Media Relations, 412-578-9193, srikamav@upmc.edu