BOSTON, May 21, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — Just one year after launch, IPI has relocated to the Harvard Institutes of Medicine at 4 Blackfan Circle, Boston. The 12,000-square-foot lab space represents a dramatic expansion and cements IPI’s foothold in the Longwood biomedical hub for the foreseeable future.
“The new lab space enables IPI to employ about two dozen researchers and administrators and will accommodate state-of-the-art equipment acquired through a Massachusetts Life Sciences Center capital grant,” said Chairman and Co-Founder Timothy Springer, Ph.D. “This will allow IPI to more rapidly develop open-source antibodies for all human extracellular proteins. Antibodies are incredible tools that drive biomedical research and themselves can be developed into therapeutics.”
IPI was awarded $5 million by the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) in 2017 to establish a cutting-edge antibody discovery pipeline. The setup costs for a comparable pipeline is a significant barrier for small companies and academics. Thus, IPI and its resources make Longwood an attractive area for startups to launch.
“IPI’s efforts help contribute to the growth of Massachusetts as the pre-eminent center for biopharma and advanced research in the world,” said Travis McCready, President & CEO of the MLSC. “As we look ahead toward new ways to strengthen our ecosystem, the MLSC remains committed to supporting scientific advances that drive economic activity, spur startup formation, and advance Massachusetts’ competitive edge as the world leader in life sciences innovation.”
“Institute for Protein Innovation has been a welcome addition to the Longwood Medical Area, which is home to world-class researchers at Harvard Medical School and four of our affiliated hospitals—Boston Children’s Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute— and Merck,” said George Daley, dean of Harvard Medical School. “We are committed to cultivating collaboration with our neighbors and will support IPI in enhancing the protein science research landscape in Longwood Medical Area and beyond.”
About IPI
IPI is a non-profit research organization whose mission is to foster innovation in protein research and bridge the missing link between genomics and therapeutics. IPI has built a high-throughput antibody discovery platform for developing open-source antibodies targeting the entire human extracellular proteome. This resource will produce critical tools, lead therapeutics, and technologies that empower academic and industry scientists, catalyze entrepreneurship, and accelerate drug discovery.