Research

Ingenious Projects

The Brain Research Centre at UBC Hospital was officially opened January 22, 2004. The superb new research facility is a testament to extensive collaboration between generous donors, community partners, government, and visionary researchers.

The Centre is home to more than 150 leading researchers, including 14 Canada Research Chairs, who are breaking new ground in the pursuit of treatments for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, neurotrama, and mental illness. Their efforts have helped UBC become a global centre for neurological expertise -- its neuroscientists recently ranked first in Canada and fourth in the world in terms of citations per published paper.

The Centre's advances in treatments for brain diseases are possible because of the extraordinary support of 900 donors, and grants from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the B.C. Knowledge Development Fund.

Graduate student Ivan Cepeda uses a variety of tests at the Brain Research Centre to characterize the effects of transplanted retinal pigment epithelial cells as a promising new therapy for Parkinson's disease.

Related Links

• Brain Research Centre

Milestones

Research at UBC and its affiliated teaching hospitals. Last year, research funding awarded to UBC and its teaching hospitals from government and industry sectors totalled $343 million, a growth of 133% in the last six years, in support of 5,576 projects.

UBC's University-Industry Liaison Office consistently ranks among the top 10 in North America for translating university research into viable commercial technologies. Last year, it dealt with a record 145 UBC invention disclosures, leading to 61 patents. To date, it has helped university researchers create 115 spin-off companies, which are helping make B.C. a world force in biotechnology, green technology and high technology.

A Life Sciences Centre for B.C. UBC's Life Sciences Centre is newly completed this fall. The 40,000-square-metre research and learning facility, funded via $110 million from the B.C. government, is the hub of a new distributed medical education program, with the University of Victoria and the University of Northern British Columbia. The program is increasing the number of first-year students to 200, up from 128 last year.

The Armed Group Project. This initiative of the Centre for International Relations, in the Liu Institute for Global Issues, brought together policymakers, academics, and UN and development agency representatives last November to find ways to stop violations by the world's deadliest armed groups. Co-led by researchers Pablo Policzer and David Capie, the conference assessed a variety of strategies to help the international community deal with groups like Al-Qaeda and Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army.

New Michael Smith Laboratories. Named after the late Nobel laureate, the ultra-modern, 7,400-square-metre facility is set to wow Canada's research community. It is one of several projects made possible by an unprecedented gift of $50 million from Stewart and Marilyn Blusson, and matching funds from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and B.C. Knowledge Development Fund. The building houses the Biotechnology Laboratory, home to some of the world's top researchers applying genome science in areas like cancer, plant and forestry studies.