Bio-innovation means saving more lives, sooner.

It’s about accelerating world-class biomedical research and innovation to develop lifesaving new treatments and technologies for everything from COVID-19 to cancer, to the pandemic threats of the future.

With expertise in genomics, machine learning, data science, biomedical engineering and more, UBC researchers are working together across disciplines and with partners in the private and public sectors to advance a world-class biomanufacturing ecosystem. We are fueling a new wave of innovation and creating pathways to more healthy, resilient communities at home and around the world.

With national and global leadership in key areas — such as lipid nanoparticle technologies, regenerative medicine, nanomedicine, precision medicine, immuno-engineering and more — BC’s bio-innovation community is transforming the future of medicine.

Together we are accelerating the translation of research into solutions to the most urgent health challenges of today and tomorrow — bringing new hope to patients and families everywhere.

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illustration of three scientists ,with one pipetting, encircled by illustrated medical icons

 

How to accelerate biomedical innovation, explained.

Biomedical innovation is a six-step process from scientific discovery through to the development of patient-ready medicine. Learn more about the six steps and how we can accelerate them to bring lifesaving treatments to patients, sooner.

 


Explore Stories of UBC Biomedical Innovation


  1. Cells treated with the compound (right) showed reduced infection from the Omicron variant compared to untreated cells (left). Photo credit: Dr. Selvarani Vimalanathan, Molecular Biomedicine
    December 14, 2022

    From COVID-19 to the common cold: UBC scientists identify broadly effective, infection-halting compound

    Researchers at UBC’s Life Sciences Institute have identified a compound that shows early promise at halting infections from a range of coronaviruses, including all variants of SARS-CoV-2 and the common cold. The findings, published this week in Molecular Biomedicine, reveal a potential path toward antiviral treatments that could be used against many different pathogens.

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  2. Two scientists standing in a wet lab watching a third, seated, pipetting
    December 7, 2022

    $33.8M gift to transform multiple sclerosis research and save more lives, sooner

    A $33.8 million gift has been donated to the UBC Faculty of Medicine and VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation for multiple sclerosis (MS) research and care — the largest known donation ever for MS research worldwide. At UBC, $29.85 million will be used to establish the B.C. MS Cell Therapies Translational Research Network, or MS Research Network, a world-class research and patient-care hub that will use the latest advances in cell and gene engineering to develop, manufacture, and test next-generation cell-based therapies.

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  3. Finger pointing to part of digital image on a screen
    October 20, 2022

    Artificial intelligence enhances ovarian cancer diagnostics

    Ovarian cancer impacts over 3,100 Canadian women each year, making it the most lethal of all female reproductive cancers. A new study led by Dr. Ali Bashashati, a UBC and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute researcher, reveals how artificial intelligence (AI) can aid in the diagnosis of ovarian cancer to improve patient outcomes.

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  4. snapcyte
    September 20, 2022

    AI cell analytics app aims to supercharge biotechnology research

    Transformative technology developed at the Vancouver Prostate Centre is putting cell analytics into the hands of scientists around the globe. The technology — an artificial intelligence-driven smartphone app called SnapCyte — produces data for cell growth medical research faster and at a fraction of the cost compared to current technology.

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  5. Dr. Fidel Vila-Rodriguez
    July 25, 2022

    Mapping the brain

    Using advanced neuroimaging, UBC scientists are changing how we understand and treat mental health disorders.

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  6. two healthcare providers with covid hospital patient
    May 30, 2022

    How to build better health care technology

    Last year, an interdisciplinary team led by UBC Nursing professor and Canada Research Chair in Senior Care Dr. Lillian Hung set out to help make ventilators more accessible. What they created is an effective, affordable ventilation device that costs only $100 to produce and weighs in at just six kilograms — ideal for use in remote care settings and patient transports like ambulances.

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  7. Dr. Poul Sorensen
    May 17, 2022

    Hope, accelerated

    Dr. Poul Sorensen’s breakthrough cancer research has saved countless lives. But he thinks we can cut the time from discovery to treatment by 50% — or more.

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  8. Alexandra Williams
    May 16, 2022

    Meet Dr. Alexandra Williams

    Dr. Alexandra Williams, a postdoctoral fellow in clinical cardiovascular physiology at UBC’s International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries (ICORD), is studying the link between the cardiovascular and nervous systems to understand how we can use innovative treatments that target the heart to improve outcomes among individuals with spinal cord injury.

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  9. vanessa porter
    May 16, 2022

    Meet Vanessa Porter

    Vanessa Porter, a PhD candidate in UBC’s department of medical genetics, is using a cutting-edge DNA sequencing technology to understand how cervical cancers evolve and how this knowledge can inform future treatments for individual patients.

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  10. Soh Ishiguro
    May 16, 2022

    Meet Dr. Soh Ishiguro

    Dr. Soh Ishiguro, a postdoctoral fellow at the UBC School of Biomedical Engineering, is working on new genome editing tools that could one day cure rare and debilitating diseases from blood disorders to heart disease.

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  11. person showing a hydrogel ionic smart skin to camera
    April 28, 2022

    Engineers at UBC get under the skin of ionic skin

    "How hydrogel sensors work is they produce voltages and currents in reaction to stimuli, such as pressure or touch — what we are calling a piezoionic effect. But we didn't know exactly how these voltages are produced," said the study's lead author Yuta Dobashi, who started the work as part of his master's in biomedical engineering at UBC.

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  12. AnnaBlakney
    August 4, 2021

    How mRNA technology could transform how we treat disease

    UBC scientists are turning their attention to the future of mRNA technology, which could transform how we treat and prevent a wide range of diseases, and positioning British Columbia as a global biotech hub for cutting-edge vaccines and therapeutics.

    Learn more

  13. researcher looking at printed biological material
    February 23, 2018

    Printing Parts

    New discoveries in tissue engineering present 3-D-printed options for skin, organs, joints and ligaments. School of Engineering researchers are exploring processes to improve patients’ chances for successful tissue transplants.

    Learn more


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