The California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI) at UCLA today announced a partnership with the integrated global biopharmaceutical company Abraxis BioScience Inc. to collaborate on nanobiotechnology research for the advancement of new technologies in medicine.
Abraxis BioScience will collaborate with the institute and its team of leading researchers to capitalize on the recent explosion in nanoscience and to chart the future of nanotechnology within biotechnology. Abraxis has agreed to contribute $10 million over 10 years to fund collaborative projects at UCLA's new CNSI building. The Abraxis/CNSI Research Collaboration Lab will focus on translational science, quickly translating scientific discoveries into practical applications.
Abraxis BioScience has joined the CNSI Partners Program and is the institute's first partner in the area of pharmaceuticals and biotechnology. The partnership provides CNSI and Abraxis researchers the opportunity to jointly pursue innovative approaches to the diagnosis and treatment of life threatening diseases, leveraging the complementary resources and skills of both organizations. To further support the partnership, visiting scholars from other institutions will also participate in the collaborative research programs.
"We are eager to collaborate with Abraxis BioScience. Cross-disciplinary collaboration is vital to our research efforts," said Fraser Stoddart, CNSI director and UCLA's Fred Kavli Professor of Nanosystems Sciences. "The exciting thing about nanosystems research is that it is bringing about a sea change in the academic environment — it is breaking down the barriers between disciplines to achieve a seamless integration between chemistry, physics, biology and engineering in all of their different forms."
"We are very excited about this research collaboration with the CNSI and believe this type of relationship emphasizes our commitment toward pursuing innovative research and forging new paradigms of drug discovery and personalized drug development," said Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, chairman and chief executive officer of Abraxis BioScience. "This relationship allows both organizations to gain access to important research that may have the potential to change the way diseases are treated."
"Abraxis has an established history of developing innovative technology," said Dr. Leonard H. Rome, CNSI associate director and senior associate dean for research at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. "We are confident they will be a strong and committed partner in furthering important research and the development of drugs to treat life-threatening and debilitating illnesses."
About Abraxis BioScience Inc.
Abraxis BioScience Inc. is an integrated global biopharmaceutical company dedicated to meeting the needs of critically ill patients. The company develops, manufactures and markets one of the broadest portfolios of injectable products and leverages revolutionary technology, such as its proprietary nab (nanoparticle albumin-bound) platform, to discover and deliver breakthrough therapeutics that transform the treatment of cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Abraxane, the first product approved by the Food and Drug Administration to use the nab platform, was launched in 2005 for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer. Abraxis trades on the NASDAQ Global Market under the symbol ABBI. For more information about the company and its products, please visit .
About the California Nanosystems Institute
The CNSI is a multidisciplinary research center at UCLA whose mission is to encourage university–industry collaboration and to enable the rapid commercialization of discoveries in nanosystems. CNSI members include some of the world's preeminent scientists, and the work conducted at the institute represents world-class expertise in five targeted areas of nanosystems-related research: renewable energy; environmental nanotechnology and nanotoxicology; nanobiotechnology and biomaterials; nanomechanical and nanofluidic systems; and nanoelectronics, photonics and architectonics. For additional information on the institute, visit .
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