UC Unveils Biomedical Institute
The University of California on Monday launched the California Institute for Quantitative Biomedical Research, or QB3, which is intended to facilitate collaboration between UC scientists and private companies to commercialize products more quickly, Knight Ridder/Contra Costa Times reports.
QB3 officials said they will work with companies such as General Electric to develop a device that tracks changes in metabolism, and Nikon to develop new microscopy technologies, software and imaging methods.
QB3's main site in San Francisco will be a five-floor building with space for drug development and design, new diagnostic tools and conducting clinical trials. The institute also will have two buildings in Santa Cruz for engineering and physical sciences, and one building in Berkeley that will house 40 laboratories for biological sciences, physical sciences and engineering.
Critics of the project say the arrangement creates a conflict of interest for faculty and may place too much focus on projects with commercial potential (Krieger, Knight Ridder/Contra Costa Times, 11/29).