New Research Center Changes New York City Skyline

Newswise — The largest and most dramatic addition to midtown Manhattan's eastern skyline in half a century will be officially unveiled on May 24 and 25, 2006, when NYU School of Medicine's Joan and Joel Smilow Research Center is dedicated. The 13-story, state-of-the-art research facility is the first major addition to the campus of NYU Medical Center in more than a decade.

Beginning at 1:30 PM on May 24th, at Farkas Auditorium at NYU School of Medicine at 550 First Avenue (bet. 30th and 33rd Street), distinguished scientists including Nobel Laureate David Baltimore, Ph.D., President of California Institute of Technology, Nobel Laureate Paul Greengard, Ph.D., the Vincent Astor Professor and Head of the Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience at The Rockefeller University, and Eric S. Lander, Ph.D., Director of the Broad Institute of MIR and Harvard, will give lectures at a scientific symposium in honor of the center's opening. A dedication ceremony will follow on May 25 at the Smilow Research Center.

Located at the southeast corner of the campus, near 30th Street and the FDR Drive, the Smilow Research Center will house some 40 multidisciplinary research teams, a mix of current investigators and new recruits, dedicated to such fields as cancer, cardiovascular biology, neuroscience, dermatology, genetics, and infectious diseases.

With more than 230,000 square feet of laboratory space, the Smilow Research Center is designed to enhance the interdisciplinary pursuit of translational medicine, which seeks to shorten the journey from laboratory bench to the patient's bedside by fostering collaboration and synergy among researchers that, in turn, accelerate the development of new treatments. The labs are separated by neither walls nor doors, promoting interaction and the sharing of equipment and ideas.

More details including a detailed schedule and additional photos in be provided on a full press release on Monday, May 22. Journalists are invited to attend both symposium and dedication ceremony.