Important Announcement
It is with a great sense of accomplishment and some sadness that we announce the Board of Trustees has voted to close AMDeC’s doors.
This marks the end of an initiative that was critical to sustaining the vibrancy of the biomedical research community in New York. Fifteen years ago, AMDeC was founded to facilitate and encourage collaboration among the major medical research institutions in the NY region. We are proud to say that we have achieved this – and much more.
Our record of bringing together the brightest minds to achieve what was once considered impossible is stellar. Among our many programs and accomplishments, we would like to recall several that made a real difference:
1999- New York Cancer Project (NYCP)
This groundbreaking study of 18,000+ ethnically diverse NYC residents allowed researchers to better understand how factors such as environment, diet, family history, and genetics affect the development of cancer; each volunteer participated in a lengthy on-on-one interview and donated blood samples for gDNA samples, which are still being leveraged for new research today - New York Early Lung Cancer Action Program (NY-ELCAP)
AMDeC brought together researchers from 11 affiliated institutions to use state-of-the-art CT screenings to study more than 6,000 smokers. The project determined that annual CT screening is an effective diagnostic tool for detecting early-stage lung cancer in smokers; among the cases diagnosed with lung cancers, 98% of cancers were screen detected
- Stem Cell Advocacy
Prior to any state-enacted stem cell legislation, AMDeC advocated for and won state support for stem cell research; this high-profile effort resulted in New York’s Empire State Stem Cell Program (NYSTEM) and $600 million in support - Five-Year Plan for Genomics
AMDeC envisioned a five-year plan to assemble the building blocks for a world-class genomics center that could be accessed by all research institutions. The plan included such elements as the Bioinformatics Core and Microarray Resource Center that are described below. - BioInformatics Core
Housed at Columbia University’s Genome Center, this Core facilitated the integration of bioinformatics and computational biology into biomedical research at AMDeC-affiliated institutions and extended crucial computational resources that would otherwise be unavailable to large portions of the research community
- Northeast Biodefense Center
AMDeC, through its Center on Bioterrorism, unified nearly 30 pre-eminent biomedical research institutions into a single grant proposal to go after a coveted NIH regional biodefense grant – which they won; the grant was for more than $9 million per year, and the funds have been leveraged into several hundred scholarly publications, breakthroughs in infectious disease research on everything from influenza to AIDS, and increased funding
- Microarray Resource Center (MRC)
Managed by 17 AMDeC institutions, the MRC supports scientists who are employing gene expression technologies by producing and analyzing gene expression data, developing protocols and technologies, and assisting in the facilitation of large-scale studies
- BioResource Network (BRN)
Completed as a pilot in 2003, the first generation of BRN was a one-time snapshot of biomedical research being conducted in the New York region; the next generation is slated to be a dynamic resource for accessing statewide research resources, gathering funding, and developing regional and global collaborations
- Reduce Obesity and Diabetes – ROAD
This five-year, $5 million Starr Foundation-funded study examines the effects of supervised exercise and education on Type II diabetes and obesity risk factors among a diverse adolescent population
- Genomic Analysis and Technology Excellence – GATE
Provides the analytic infrastructure required to unlock the full value of the enormous libraries of data generated by AMDeC’s existing programs
- AMDeC F.I.R.S.T. (Facilities Instrumentation Resources Services & Technologies)
A real-time registry of more than 1000 research services, instruments, and technologies located in 90+ Core facilities across the AMDeC Member consortium creates a ‘virtual laboratory’ that can be leveraged by researchers for collaboration and shared use
- Vendor Partnership Program
Secured preferred pricing on products, services and instruments critical to life science research today
- Core Benchmarking Initiative
Much needed initiative to identify best practices in operation and management of Core facilities
We thank the many organizations that supported our work over the years. We look forward to seeing the fruits of our labors continue to bloom through the combined research efforts of the world-class institutions that comprised the membership of AMDeC.
- Maurice R. Greenberg
Co-chairman of the Board - John C. Whitehead
Co-chairman of the Board - Maria K. Mitchell
President