Clark School faculty will team up with faculty at the University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute (UMBI) to design and implement educational and research programs in the areas of nano-biotechnology and molecular bioprocessing.

The cooperative endeavor will also seek to accelerate the commercial development of inventions and other intellectual property that result from this collaboration.

“This cooperative program furthers the goals of the College Park nano-bio community in at least three ways,” said Clark School dean Nariman Farvardin. “First, it will enrich the educational and research opportunities offered to students through the interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Bioengineering, based in the Clark School. Second, it will enable development of new nano-bio continuing education and professional development programs that will produce a trained workforce and help make nano-bio a successful new industry. Third, it will further stimulate the creation of new nano-bio discoveries and companies for our M-TECH technology entrepreneurship unit to grow and support. The cooperative program adds even greater depth to our already strong nano-bio capability, and we are extremely pleased to participate in it with UMBI."

Potential topics for cooperative research include the development of new systems for elucidating the function of biological molecules, the creation of smart materials for virus and protein recognition, and the development and construction of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) for assessing and controlling biochemical interactions and, eventually, pathways in vitro.
June 17, 2005