Press Releases

Loyola University Chicago Joins New Biopharma Hub Funded by the National Institute of Health

Partnership to help deliver innovative treatments and technologies to patients faster

Loyola University Chicago students work on research projects at the Health Sciences Campus

CHICAGO – November 14, 2023

 

Loyola University Chicago is one of nine Chicagoland academic institutions partnering with 27 industry, venture capital, and community organizations to form the Chicago Biomedical Consortium Hub for Innovative Technology and Entrepreneurship in the Sciences (CBC-HITES). The new collaboration empowers Chicago’s academic inventors to partner with biopharma leaders and transform their research into commercial products.

 

The CBC-HITES is one of 13 hubs now part of the National Institute of Health’s Research Evaluation and Commercialization Hubs (REACH). It is funded by a $10.4 million investment which includes $6 million in support from the Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust, a $4 million NIH grant, and $400,000 by the Walder Foundation.

 

“It is an honor for Loyola to be part of the Chicago REACH award,” said Elaine Morrato, DrPH, MPH, founding dean of the Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health at Loyola University Chicago. “Many will benefit from the hub, which promises to spark novel research projects, propel the creation of life-altering medical treatments, and amplify Loyola’s impact as a driver of innovation and improved human health.”

 

CBC-HITES leverages talent, methodologies, networks, and infrastructure developed by the Chicago Biomedical Consortium (CBC). The hub will provide expertise and funding to advance the discoveries of medical scientists from Loyola University Chicago and various Chicago area peers, including: Northwestern University, University of Chicago, University of Illinois Chicago, Discovery Partners Institute, Illinois Institute of Technology, Northern Illinois University, Rosalind Franklin University, and Rush University.

 

“I am very excited about Loyola’s membership in the new hub,” said Meharvan Singh, PhD, vice provost for research at Loyola University Chicago. “The REACH program offers the promise of helping fundamental discoveries get translated to those solutions that solve the complex, contemporary challenges that plague our society.”

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About Loyola University Chicago

Founded in 1870, Loyola University Chicago is one of the nation’s largest Jesuit, Catholic universities, with nearly 16,600 students. The University has four campuses: three in the greater Chicago area and one in Rome, Italy, as well as course locations in Vernon Hills, Illinois (Cuneo Mansion and Gardens), and a Retreat and Ecology Campus in Woodstock, Illinois. The University features 15 schools, colleges, and institutes. Ranked a leading national university by U.S. News & World Report, Loyola is also among a select group of universities recognized for community service and engagement by prestigious national organizations including AmeriCorps and the Carnegie Foundation. To learn more about Loyola, visit LUC.edu or follow us on Twitter via @LoyolaChicago.

About the Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health

Loyola University Chicago launched the Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health in fall 2019 to educate the health entrepreneurs of the future and impact health care accessibility and equity nationally. The Parkinson School offers 19 degree programs and three certificate and internship programs in four areas of study: Public Health Sciences, Healthcare Administration, Health Informatics and Data Science, and Applied Health Sciences. The School builds on the foundations of Loyola’s nationally recognized Stritch School of Medicine and its Biomedical Programs, Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing, and Loyola’s partnership with Trinity Health (known in the Chicago area as Loyola Medicine). To learn more about the Parkinson School, visit LUC.edu/Parkinson or follow us on Twitter or Instagram.