Basic Science Departments
Biochemistry and Biophysics
The Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics is comprised of over 40 faculty with well- funded and active research programs in many diverse areas. Our graduate education programs are affiliated with other departments, including Biology, Chemistry, Immunology , Microbiology and Vaccine Biology, and Cancer Biology. Graduate students in our Ph.D. programs, therefore, have a great deal of flexibility to rotate through many different types of research labs.
Biomedical Engineering
Our mission is to create and disseminate knowledge in engineering related to basic biomedical sciences and health care applications, and to provide students with the foundational knowledge and skills in biomedical engineering that they will need to become and remain leaders in their chosen field.
Biomedical Genetics
Research in the Department of Biomedical Genetics is focused onto two main areas: I) The role of signaling networks and small molecule metabolites in normal cell regulation and organ development as well as in diseases with a genetic basis, such as cancer II) Stem cell research in association with tissue repair paradigms
Biostatistics and Computational Biology
The department, located in the School of Medicine and Dentistry, has three primary objectives: methodological research, collaborative research, and education. The Department administers masters, doctoral and postdoctoral programs in statistics and biostatistics.
Cardiovascular Sciences
Cardiovascular diseases continue to be the leading cause of death worldwide, and are predicted to be the leading cause of all disability by 2020. The interdisciplinary and internationally recognized faculty of this cluster provides an outstanding training environment which includes state of the art facilities and techniques that span genetic, molecular, cellular and systems investigation of both vascular and cardiac diseases. We are committed to training the next generation of cardiovascular scientists who will further elucidate mechanisms and potential therapeutic targets for these debilitating diseases.
Environmental Medicine
Our mission is to increase scientific understanding of the health risks posed by contaminants at home, in the workplace, and in the ambient environment.
Microbiology and Immunology
The Department of Microbiology and Immunology is focussed on research and educational programs which relate to microbial pathogens (viruses and prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbes ) and the host immune defenses which protect against these organisms. Current research emphasizes cutting-edge molecular techniques and includes, but is not limited to, studies on: autoimmunity, biodefense, bioinformatics biofilms, cancer biology, gene therapy, genetics, HIV/AIDS, immunologic mechanisms and vaccine development. Predoctoral training is supported in part by five NIH-funded training grants, and the faculty comprise approximately fifty researchers (primary and joint). According to NIH data, the Department presently ranks 11th (out of 98 comparable Departments) in the nation in terms of extramural grant support.
Neurobiology & Anatomy
The Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy is recognized for its excellence in research programs and for its commitment to teaching and leadership in both graduate and medical education. Over thirty faculty (primary and joint) are actively engaged in research on the structure and function of the nervous system across several levels of inquiry. Areas of interest cover a broad spectrum, including sensory, motor and integrative systems, cell signaling and transmission, development and aging, neurobiology of disease, learning and plasticity, neuro-engineering, and computational neurobiology.
Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Investigators in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine are active in exploring the cellular and molecular pathology of bladder, prostate, and breast cancer, blood group antigens, bone diseases, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hematopoiesis, immune disorders, lipid metabolism, neurodegenerative diseases, kidney diseases, lymphomas, and leukemias. Educational programs include graduate studies leading to the Ph.D. degree, postdoctoral fellowships, year-out medical student fellowships, residency training, and clinical fellowships. As manager of the Strong Health Clinical Laboratories, the Department is uniquely poised to support basic, translational, and clinical research. It is establishing a full-service clinical trials central laboratory, slated to open in summer 2007.
Pharmacology and Physiology
The Department of Pharmacology and Physiology consists of faculty, fellows and students who are dedicated to cutting-edge scientific research, in order to work towards a better understanding of how the human body functions and to alleviate human diseases.
Public Health Sciences
The Department of Public Health Sciences, in its graduate education and research programs, emphasizes the epidemiology of disease and disability, the evaluation of health services and their outcomes, and the development of interventions to prevent disease and disability. The Department consists of four divisions: Epidemiology, Healthcare Management, Health Services Research and Policy, and Social and Behavioral Medicine. Three degree programs are offered: a Masters Degree in Public Health, a PhD in Health Services Research and Policy, and a PhD in Epidemiology.
Centers
Aab Cardiovascular Research Institute
The faculty of the CVRI focus on five areas of research in the cardiovascular system. 1) Vascular and developmental biology; 2) response to ischemic injury; 3) electrophysiology and ion channels, 4) molecular pharmacology and signal transduction; and 5) genetics of cardiovascular disease. The overall goal is to understand how the cardiovascular system develops and responds to physiological and pathological changes.
Aab Institute of Biomedical Sciences
The Aab Institute of Biomedical Sciences enhances the University’s strong biomedical research program by creating an organizational structure and professional environment that foster outstanding interdisciplinary research.
Cancer Center
The James P. Wilmot Cancer Center at the University of Rochester Medical Center is a state-of-the-art clinical Cancer Center. Our focus is to provide outstanding care for people with cancer by offering the latest and most effective therapies in a compassionate setting. We conduct significant interdisciplinary cancer-related research, translate advances in the basic sciences into meaningful cancer treatments, and provide superior education and training programs for students and fellows in areas related to cancer research and clinical care.
Center for Ethics, Humanities and Palliative Care
The Center for Ethics, Humanities and Palliative Care is a unique trio of interdisciplinary programs devoted to promoting humanistic, ethical, patient-centered care throughout the life cycle through their educational, research and clinical initiatives.
Center for Musculoskeletal Research
Center for Navigation & Communication Sciences (CNCS)
We have established the Center for Navigation and Communication Sciences, supported by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), that is specifically dedicated to research on the sensory, motor, and integrative mechanisms underlying these essential functions. Key topics of research focus on two general areas: multi-sensory interactions and sensorimotor integration underlying communication and navigation, and plasticity, learning and recovery of function. These are not mutually exclusive, and are indeed synergistic. Our integrated approach recognizes that no sensory or motor modality evolved alone, but rather in tandem to support the complexities of daily activities.
Center for Neural Developmental and Disease
The Center will build upon existing programs in systems, toxicological, and cognitive Neurosciences at the University of Rochester with the long term goal of developing effective therapies for neurological dysfunction associated both with disease and normative aging.
Center for Neurodegenerative & Vascular Brain Disorders
The Center for Neurodegenerative and Vascular Brain Disorders focuses on studies of neuronal and vascular mechanisms in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and other chronic neurodegenerative disorders such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis (MS), Parkinson’s disease (PD), Huntington’s Disease (HD) and others, as well as on brain ischemia and neuroprotection mechanisms in stroke.
Center for Oral Biology
The Center for Oral Biology consists of several interdisciplinary research teams which integrate and blend aspects of biochemistry, developmental biology, genetics, immunology, microbiology, physiology, pharmacology and structural biology to explore important problems of craniofacial, dental and oral biology.
Center for Pediatric Biomedical Research
Research in the Center has as its ultimate aim the improvement in children's health through the study of stem and progenitor cell biology and the development of new technologies to investigate protein structure and function on a genomic scale.
Center for Translational Neuromedicine
The Center for Translational Neuromedicine leads a pioneering effort in stem cell biology of the CNS that is pointed towards therapeutic application in a variety of conditions. Center researchers are playing leading roles in understanding the underlying principles of neurogenesis in the adult nervous system, in the development of cellular therapies for pediatric disorders in which normal myelination is compromised, for adult disorders such as Parkinson's disease and Huntingdon's disease and also for treatment of spinal cord injury. Researchers are also working in the field of cancer research to provide new insights into the cellular origin and potential treatment of tumors of the CNS.
Center for Vaccine Biology and Immunology
Building on the existing strong programs in Immunology, Microbiology and Vaccine Biology at the University of Rochester, the Center for Vaccine Biology and Immunology focusses on basic research into immunological mechanisms, and also on the long-term goal of helping to design the next generation of vaccines.
Primary Care Center
115 Primary Care Providers 28 locations in Monroe, Livingston and Wayne Counties. All with a reputation for delivering exemplary patient care...
Rochester Center for Biomedical Ultrasound (RCBU)
The Rochester Center for Biomedical Ultrasound (RCBU) was created at the University of Rochester to unite professionals in engineering, medical, and applied science communities at the University of Rochester, Rochester General Hospital, and the Rochester Institute of Technology. Since its founding in 1986, the RCBU has grown over the years to nearly 100 members, with several visiting scientists from locations around the country.
Rochester Center for Brain Imaging (RCBI)
The Rochester Center for Brain Imaging (RCBI) provides researchers at the University of Rochester, as well as neighboring institutions, with access to a state-of-the-art 3T magnet for research using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).Although the primary use of the Center is to gather functional MRI data from the normal adult brain as participants perform a variety of tasks, it is capable of providing structural images of many anatomical structures.
Business Opportunities
Facilitating the transfer of URMC science and technology from the laboratory to the realm of medical advancement.
