Media Contact:
Dave Green, 919/513-6662

April 27, 2005

NC State College of Veterinary Medicine Dedicates Research Building

North Carolina State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine will dedicate a $35 million, 100,000-square-foot building specially designed for basic and clinical research in veterinary medicine at 11:30 a.m. Friday, April 29, on the college’s campus located at 4700 Hillsborough Street. Media coverage is invited.

As the first structure created for the planned Centennial Biomedical Campus (CBC), the CVM Research Building signals a new era in scientific discovery and biomedical research at NC State. The four-story building contains 33 state-of-the-art laboratories plus two BioSafety Level 3 labs for infectious disease research. Some 180 faculty researchers, research technicians and graduate students will occupy the facility, which also includes 74 offices and seven conference rooms.

Researchers who previously operated in leased satellite facilities have relocated to the new building, and other scientists with laboratories in the main college building have also moved into the structure to maximize the interaction among basic and clinical research programs.

The facility – which will anchor the CBC – will house leading-edge research efforts in genomic sciences, gene therapy, vaccine development, creation of diagnostic tests, new cancer immuno-therapy, and genetic research to prevent inherited and acquired diseases in livestock and companion animals.

A 20-year CBC master plan projects that another 25 buildings – totaling some 1.6 million square feet of space – will be developed for additional laboratories, offices and animal care facilities. The CBC is designed to attract industry and government researchers, entrepreneurs, clinical trial companies, and collaborators from other universities who will work with college faculty and students. The first CBC partner, The Iams Company, joined the campus last year when it opened its Magnetic Resonance Imaging Center.

The CVM Research Building reflects the growing emphasis on genomic science and biomedical research throughout NC State, particularly in the areas of animal and human health care. The facility was made possible by the $3.1 billion educational bond referendum approved by North Carolina voters in 2000.

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