Biofacilities

Translating Research into Clinical and Business Sectors

The past is filled with individuals attempting to understand,treat and cure sickness: tribal medicine men,alchemists,herbalists and apothecary purveyors to name a few. The modern scientist continues in the tradition,but with more elaborate technology,equipment and specialized laboratory space. Today,the goal is to translate laboratory results into clinical treatments to cure disease.

The Memphis Bioworks® Foundation is at the center of supporting the efforts of local scientists to advance discoveries into clinical and business successes. There is a critical need for laboratory space for researchers. The Foundation is hard at work creating incubator space to fulfill the need for state-of-the-art facilities and will provide more opportunities for laboratory facilities as the UT-Baptist Research Park develops.

The UT-Baptist Research Park began when Baptist Memorial Health Care Corporation donated 1.3 million square feet of land in the medical center district. The first building to be complete in the new research park will be the $25 million Regional Biocontainment Laboratory,a National Institute of Health and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease supported facility. This Level III Biosafety Laboratory will study infectious disease,focusing on vaccine development and diagnostic applications to address the potential for bioterrorism and emerging infectious diseases.

It will take nearly 10 years to complete all phases of the research park. When completed it will offer an integrated campus of research,incubator and commercial centers dedicated to the bioscience industry. The economic impact of the completed 6.5-acre bioscience center is projected to be $2 billion a year,creating 500 new jobs and $250 million in annual salaries.