The
University of Kansas 
An Official Employee
Publication From the Office of University Relations
Biology center opens
KU dignitarties cut a ribbon at the dedication of KU’s new Structural Biology Center Oct. 15. Pictured from left are David VanderVelde, director of KU’s Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Laboratory; Vice Provost Lindy Eakin; Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor David Shulenburger; Dale Seuferling, president of the KU Endowment Association; Chancellor Robert Hemenway; Jim Roberts, vice provost for research and president of the KU Center for Research; Reggie Robinson, president and CEO of the Kansas Board of Regents; Robert Hanzlik, professor of medicinal chemistry; and Laura Lucas, postdoctoral researcher in pharmaceutical chemistry. R. Steve Dick/University Relations
State-of-the-art facility to support bioscience studies
KU dedicated its newest research facility, the Structural Biology Center,
on Oct. 15. The center is west of the Simons Biosciences Research Laboratories
on west campus.
“The Structural Biology Center represents a major step forward in
KU’s strategic plan for continued bioscience research success,”
said Jim Roberts, vice provost for research and president of the KU Center
for Research. “The state-of-the-art instrumentation in the center
is without parallel in the region and rivals the holdings of major pharmaceutical
companies.”
The primary instrument of the 17,000-square-foot center is the 800-megahertz
nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer, which will allow researchers
to learn more about how proteins interact with the human body and how
those interactions can be used to develop new drugs. The center was designed
around the environmental requirements to operate the spectrometer, Roberts
said.
The center cost $7.4 million to build, including the cost of the spectrometer
and other instruments. Bonds authorized by the Kansas Legislature provided
$5 million of that total. The remaining $2.4 million was provided directly
by the KU Center for Research, a nonprofit foundation designed to facilitate
and increase research on the Lawrence campus, and the provost’s
office at KU. The KU Endowment Association donated land for the building.