Excitement tangible as researchers prepare for BRC

Relocating labs proves to be worthwhile challenge

BY JESSICA STARK
Rice News staff

The phrase “like a kid in a candy store” could easily be replaced by the phrase “like a research scientist in a new lab.” Excitement, wonder and wide-eyed grins played across the faces of Rice University researchers as they toured their new spaces in the BioScience Research Collaborative (BRC) two weeks ago.

From left, Robert Kester, Mark Pierce and Tomasz Tcakzyk size up their new labs in the BRC. Photos by Jeff Fitlow

Though parts of the BRC are still under construction, the Rice researchers had no trouble imaging the possibilities within the innovative building, which will bring Rice University and other Texas Medical Center (TMC) institutions together to perform leading research that benefits human health and medicine.

As they walked through the area that will become their lab space, Tomasz Tkaczyk, assistant professor in bioengineering, and his graduate student and research technician, Robert Kester, talked excitedly about what would go where.

“Well, three can go here,” said Tkaczyk, visualizing the lab’s workstations. “And three can go there or there. Either way, we’ll have plenty of space.”

“But how will we get the diamond turner in?” Kester asked of the 6,000-pound diamond-turning machine used in their modern optical instruments and bio-imaging lab.

“We’ll find a way,” Tkaczyk replied. “Through a door, through a window — we’ll get it here.”

Planning the logistics of a lab move is only part of the challenge researchers face when moving into a new space. To relocate, many experiments need to be temporarily shut down and items packed away.

“I think the main challenge is to minimize downtime for experiments and get everything back up and running properly as soon as possible,” said Mark Pierce, a faculty fellow in bioengineering. “We’ve been aware of this move for some time though, and people have been planning experiments with this in mind.”

Moving on up

The move itself will take more time than a typical change of address: Several large pieces of scientific equipment will need to be carefully moved and recalibrated upon arrival. Fragile parts and materials will also be on the move and, though it’s just a quick trip across campus, extra precautions and time will be needed to transport cells, tissues and other biological materials.

Some Rice researchers tour the BRC for the first time. The first group of pioneering researchers will move into the new space later this summer.

“Of course, the actual act of moving is a challenge both in terms of preparation, setup and execution,” said Denise Benoit, a graduate student who works in the lab of Vicki Colvin, the Pitzer-Schlumberger Professor of Chemistry and professor in chemical and biomolecular engineering. Benoit said that a current difficulty her team is facing is going through old supplies and deciding what should be thrown out.

“By moving the lab, though, we are getting a chance to set up a workspace designed to fit the needs of the current group without all of the old baggage,” she said. “Our current lab is too small for all of the graduate students and postdocs. There is not enough bench space or hoods for everyone to work simultaneously.”

More space isn’t the only thing Benoit is looking forward to. The proximity of biological research experts will be advantageous for Benoit, a chemist who is trying to uncover the nature of nanomaterial interactions with proteins found in the blood to facilitate their use in safe and effective therapies.

“The layout of the BRC seems conducive to collaborative work — the labs are big and open with a lot of workspace,” Benoit said. “We will learn a lot about biological labs and, I hope, be able to share some of our chemical knowledge. Simply housing all of these groups in the same building will spark interest in what each group has to offer in terms of collaborations and ways to approach research problems.”

Interinstitutional collaborations

The knowledge-sharing among Rice researchers is just the tip of the iceberg for the collaboration the BRC will foster. Thoughtfully designed to facilitate and encourage interdisciplinary interactions among interinstitutional researchers, the BRC is equipped for cutting-edge laboratory, theoretical and computational investigations.

“I think it’s a good thing for Rice to establish a strong presence directly within the medical center,” Pierce said. “As researchers, our proximity really is an advantage that our peers at many competing institutions don’t have. I think too that the BRC demonstrates Rice’s strong commitment to interdisciplinary, translational research.”

Tomasz Tcakzyk (right) gets a look at his still-under-construction office for the first time.

Pierce sees the BRC as a draw to recruit and retain high-caliber faculty members and students. Benoit agrees.

“The BRC will expose Rice students to people from the medical center and vice versa,” she said. “For some of us, it will make our research more real to see real people who work with or need the knowledge that we are developing today.”

Rice researchers will begin moving this summer into the 10-story BRC, which features eight floors of research labs, a visualization center, classrooms, auditoriums and an entire floor dedicated to biomedical informatics. The first group of pioneering researchers includes faculty and labs in the departments of Chemistry and Bioengineering, including Colvin; John McDevitt, adjunct professor in bioengineering; James McNew, associate professor of biochemistry and cell biology; and Michael Stern, professor of biochemistry and cell biology.

Over the next several months and into January, more Rice research teams will make the move including the rest of the Bioengineering Department, the Institute of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Beyond Traditional Borders, Rice 360°, the Texas-UK Collaborative Research Initiative and the Center for Biological and Environmental Nanotechnology. The Gulf Coast Consortia, which represents researchers in six TMC institutions, will also move to the BRC early next year. A full list of Rice researchers relocating to the BRC can be found at http://www.rice.edu/brc/researchers.shtml.

Negotiations are under way with several TMC institutions about leasing space in the BRC. To learn more about the BRC, visit www.rice.edu/brc.