The University of Miami is investing more than US$30m into “basic science research” targeting links between neuroscience and ageing.
The investment over the next five years will create a new programme in computational biology within the Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine and build collaborations across multiple university departments and institutes.
While translational medicine, the providence of many academic health institutions, works to translate discoveries from basic science research into clinical applications, basic science research makes those fundamental discoveries.
The university believes an increased focus on basic science research a the potential of findings that revolutionise science and shape the future of clinical interventions.
Computational biology has emerged as a key area that would help advance neuroscience and ageing research, with the Nobel Prize in Chemistry being awarded recently to researchers using computational biology to define protein structure and advance drug discovery, among other benefits.
The programme will advance neuroscience and ageing research at the university by providing insight into the biological properties of proteins and cells that play a role in ageing and neurodegenerative disorders.
Investing in an advanced computation infrastructure and scientific expertise will help university researchers create models from biological, genomic, and clinical findings, the university says.