In addition to contributing to advances in human health and quality of life across the globe, the Biodesign Institute plays a vital role in education and has a significant economic impact in Arizona. Fewer than five years ago, the Biodesign Institute was just a big, bold idea.

Today, the Biodesign Institute is:

  • The Valley’s single largest generator of federal biomedical research funding
  • A team of nearly 600 people working together to tackle urgent problems
  • A 350,000 square-foot facility that was named 2006 Lab of the Year by R&D Magazine in an international competition and received Arizona’s first platinum-level LEED certification from the US Green Building Council for environmental excellence
  • A training ground for 200 undergraduate and graduate students per semester, with an average of 25 students entering the workforce each year armed with advanced degrees
  • The largest single investment in research infrastructure in Arizona

 The Biodesign Institute has: 

  • Generated research funding totaling $105 million from June 2002 to December 2007
  • Recruited 58 new faculty to ASU and created more than 500 jobs since inception
  • Filed more than 335 invention disclosures since inception (via AzTE)
  • Filed three new patent applications in FY 2007 and has had 10 new patents issued in the past two years
  • Formed more than 200 collaborations with clinical, industrial and research organizations.
  • Spawned several spinoff companies:
    • NanoBiomics (acquired by the Molecular Profiling Institute--MPI--in 2005
      MPI was acquired by Caris Diagnostics in 2007)
    • Arizona Engineered Therapeutics (acquired by OrthoLogic Corp. in February 2006)
    • AdveNsys
    • In addition, Biodesign Institute faculty member Stuart Lindsay founded this spin-out company in 1993, which was acquired by Agilent Technologies in November 2006

Funding Awards of $1 million and greater:

2007 & 2008 to date

$45 million initiative to develop personalized diagnostics. Philanthropic investment from the Virginia G. Piper Trust ($35 million) and the Flinn Foundation ($10 million) provided to the Biodesign Institute and TGen. Nobel laureate Dr. Lee Hartwell, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, is leading the effort.

$18 million for a Center of Excellence in Genomic Science to understand cell growth and decline in cancer, stroke and heart disease. Award from National Institutes of Health (NIH) to Dr. Deirdre Meldrum

$6.9 million to develop a breast cancer vaccine. Innovator Award from the Department of Defense to Dr. Stephen Albert Johnston

$3.2 million to develop a rapid test for urinary tract infections. Award from NIH to Dr. Joseph Wang of the Biodesign Institute and the UCLA Veteran's Administration

$2.5 million to generate hydrogen fuel using photosynthetic bacteria. Philanthropic investment from Brian and Kelly Swette to ASU cross-departmental team

$2.2 million to develop a biodiesel fuel from photosynthetic bacteria. Award from Science Foundation Arizona to Drs. Bruce Rittmann (Biodesign) and Wim Vermaas (School of Life Sciences); matching contribution from BP

$6.1 million to develop an improved integrated micro-fluidic device. Industry award to Dr. Frederic Zenhausern

$1.5 million to tackle West Nile virus using plant-based therapeutics. Award from NIH to Dr. Qiang Chen

$1.2 million to develop a vaccine against multiple types of cancer. Philanthropic investment from the W.M. Keck Foundation to Dr. Doug Lake

$1 million to improve the detection of explosives. Funding from Motorola to Dr. Joseph Wang

2006

$2.7 million for plant-based production of nerve agent antidotes. Award from NIH to Dr. Tsafrir Mor

$1.2 million to study impact of space flight on human health. Award from NASA to Dr. Cheryl Nickerson

$1.1 million to pursue nanotechnology improvements to solar energy. National Science Foundation award to Dr. Stuart Lindsay (Biodesign) and Dr. Rudy Diaz (Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering)

2005

$14.8 million to develop pneumonia vaccine for newborns. NIH Grand Challenge in Global Heath Initiatives Award to Dr. Roy Curtiss; funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

$9 million for Biodesign and TGen to lessen dirty bomb threat. Award from NIH to Drs. Frederic Zenhausern (Biodesign), Jeff Trent (TGen) and Michael Bittner (TGen)

$3.2 million for vaccine against Tuleremia, a possible biothreat. Award from NIH to Drs. Stephen Albert Johnston and Kathryn Sykes

2004

$7.4 million for plant-based HIV research. Award from NIH to Dr. Tsafrir Mor
$5.5 million for safer smallpox vaccine. Award from NIH to Dr. Bertram Jacobs

2007 Honors and Highlights 

  • Dr. Roy Curtiss named “Bioscience Researcher of the Year” by the Arizona BioIndustry Association. Dr. Curtiss was also honored as a finalist for Governor’s Innovation Awards for his pneumonia vaccine project
  • Assistant professor Hao Yan receives the Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship for chemistry.  This prestigious two-year, $45,000 award to enhance the careers of the very best young faculty members in specified fields of science.
  • Charles Arntzen named 2007 Fellow of the American Society of Plant Biologists and contributed to the U.S. President’s Council of Advisers on Science and Technology report on biofuels.
  • Joseph Wang named the most-cited researcher in chemistry for 2007 with more than 14,500 citations by Essential Science Indicators. Dr. Wang also received honorary doctorates from Complutense Univeristy of Madrid and the National Institute of Chemistry in Slovenia for his ongoing contributions to the field of chemistry.
  • Stuart Lindsay and Joseph Wang received 2007 ASU Faculty Achievement Awards
  • Guy Cardineau appointed to the USDA Advisory Committee on Biotechnology and the 21st Century
  • Drew Endy, of MIT, and James Rothman, of GE Healthcare and Columbia University, added to the Biodesign Institute Advisory Board
  • Biodesign hosted and mentored 26 high school interns in the largest bioscience internship in the Arizona
  • Biodesign helped to launch a PhD program in biological design
  • Assisted in successfully attracting 10 Flinn Scholars to ASU
  • Hosted the National Postdoctoral Association for their first visit to Arizona
  • Launched the Center for Ecogenomics, headed by Deirdre Meldrum, dean of the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering

 Publication Highlights: 

  • Dr. Sudhir Kumar: landmark fruit fly DNA study advancing genetics: Nature
  • Dr. Cheryl Nickerson: Space shuttle experiment results demonstrating that space flight alters the ability of bacteria to cause disease: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
  • Dr. Brian Verrelli: Insights into the evolution of color vision: Molecular Biology and Evolution
  • Dr. Joseph Wang: Advances in a new portable method to rapidly detect biochemicals and proteins used as indicators of patient health: The Analyst
  • Dr. John Chaput: published how to make proteins from scratch: PLoS ONE
  • Dr. Brenda Hogue uncovered clues behind the coronavirus illness: Journal of Virology
  • Dr. Neal Woodbury revealed a new view of photosynthesis: Science
  • Biodesign received high profile coverage as part of an article on ASU: Nature

 

Use-inspired Research

Among hundreds of projects underway at the Biodesign Institute are those aimed at preventing, diagnosing and treating the following diseases:

>Autism
>Alzheimer’s disease
>Breast cancer
>Esophageal cancer
>Food- and water-borne illness
>Hearing loss
>HIV/AIDS
>Influenza
>Leukemia/Lymphoma
>Lung cancer
>Pandemic threats
>Prostate cancer
>Pneumonia

This use-inspired research is one of eight design imperatives outlined in ASU's strategic plan.

Read More »