|
and
Chancellor I. Dodd Wilson, M.D., announced the latest corporate gift
to UAMS Arkansas BioVentures at a groundbreaking celebration for the
BioVentures building.
“UAMS
has a proven track record for turning research and development into
entrepreneurial opportunities, and we are pleased to add Entergy’s
support to the BioVentures project because we believe it will enhance
the climate for business development, attract capital investment and
create skilled jobs for Arkansans,” McDonald said. “The project is
consistent with Entergy’s objectives of supporting economic
development and education and increasing the per capita income of
central Arkansans.”
Calling
Entergy’s gift “historic,” Chancellor Wilson noted, “UAMS and
Entergy have been partners for more than 20 years, together building a
world-class academic health center that serves the people of Arkansas
with excellent patient care; education for the sons and daughters of
many Arkansans in all of the health care professions; dozens of
outreach programs around the state; and of course groundbreaking basic
and clinical research.”
SBC
Southwestern Bell earlier gave $250,000 to the project; Fifty For The
Future, a local civic and business group, contributed $100,000. The
program also has received $1.6 million from the federal Economic
Development Administration (EDA) and $900,000 from the State of
Arkansas. Timothy O’Brien, Ph.D., is director of UAMS Arkansas
BioVentures.
U.S.
Rep. Vic Snyder spoke at the groundbreaking event, along with Pedro
Garza of Austin, regional director of the EDA, and Carl Rosenbaum,
chief executive officer of Safe Foods.
“UAMS
Arkansas BioVentures is bringing together scientists, economic
development leaders, and entrepreneurs in new projects that will lead
to better health care and more jobs for Arkansans,” Rep. Snyder
said.
BioVentures
fosters scientific inventions and creation of Arkansas companies to
manufacture the new products and services. The program’s first
graduate, Safe Foods, will produce an antimicrobial product to treat
poultry and other foods. Some of the other companies will manufacture
prostheses for women who have had mastectomies; a new, more effective
treatment for common warts; and a home test kit for ovarian cancer.
“We
are very pleased that these agencies and corporations have shared our
vision of public-private partnership and a new era of economic
development in Arkansas,” Dr. O’Brien said.
# # #
Contact:
Leslie W. Taylor
Phone: 501-686-8998
Wireless: 501-951-7260
E-mail: TaylorLeslieW@uams.edu
|
