Bringing together life science departments and centers and a
major research and teaching hospital, the Ph.D. in Integrative
Life Sciences has available the full array of research facilities
of a Carnegie Doctoral/Research-Extensive university. The program
is housed in the new, state-of-the-art Trani
Center for Life Sciences, located on the science quadrangle
of the university’s Academic Campus. Modern research laboratories
and high-end technology support faculty and student research
ranging from molecular biology to ecosystem dynamics. Two vibrant
university centers, the Center
for the Study of Biological Complexity and the Center
for Environmental Studies, as well as the Department
of Biology, also are housed in the Trani Center and are
closely allied with this degree program.
Core Research
Facilities
The Nucleic
Acids Research Facilities provides a broad range of support
to molecular biology research. It consists of five shared-use
core laboratories: Gene Synthesis Core, the DNA Sequencing
Core, the Real Time PCR Core, the MicroArraying Core, and
the Molecular Interactions and Genetic Analysis. The Mass
Spectrometry Center, located adjacent to the Trani Center,
provides additional support for proteomics and biotechnology
research. The Molecular Modeling and Pharmacogenomics Core
maintains a variety of hardware, software and instrumentation
for computational chemistry, molecular modeling, NMR and X-ray
crystallography. The Massey
Cancer Center has a wide array of research facilities
and programs, ranging from those focusing on cancer cell biology
and immune interactions to developmental therapeutics and
radiation biology, which together are inherently highly interdisciplinary
in nature.
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Bioinformatics Computational
Core Laboratory and Environmental Technologies Laboratory
The Bioinformatics
Computational Core Laboratory and the Environmental Technologies
Laboratory are both critical to the delivery of the computational
technology component of this program. The BCCL supports a
BEOWOLF supercomputing cluster, a distance learning and videoconferencing
classroom, and a research laboratory that together provide
access to state-of-the-art genomics and proteomics software
and databases for both research and instructional applications.
The Environmental Technologies Laboratory in the Trani Center
provides students and faculty access to the latest hardware
and software for environmental remote sensing, geographic
information systems and other ecoinformatics applications.
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Virginia BioTechnology Research
Park
The Virginia
BioTechnology Research Park, located adjoining to the
VCU
Medical Center, is home to many biotechnology, bioscience
and related companies and research institutions. It is a technology
center dedicated to fostering development of Virginia’s
bioscience industry. Students in the Ph.D. in Integrative
Life Sciences program will enjoy the benefits of having this
life science research incubator available to them, particularly
as it allows them to connect their research to private and
government concerns.
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Rice Center for Environmental Life
Sciences
VCU’s
Rice Center for Environmental Life Sciences, located about
30 minutes from campus, consists of 342 acres of aquatic and
terrestrial ecosystems along the James River. The focal point
of the mission of the Rice Center is to support research associated
with the environmental and ecological sciences. As such, it
will provide an outstanding resource for those students in
this degree program with field-based research interests. The
university has recently completed a site development plan
that outlines the future development of the Rice Center and
fosters the use of the site for this degree program.
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