SBC Teleconference Center

The state-of-the-art SBC Teleconference Center was made possible by a generous $1.8-million grant from the SBC Foundation, who also donated $5-million for a virtual UTHSCSA campus network. The teleconferencing facility, located on grounds adjacent to the South Texas Centers for Biology in Medicine and the Institute of Biotechnology, provides interactive connectivity between the Texas Research Park and the South Texas Medical Center campuses.

High-bandwidth communications enable researchers, students and faculty to collaborate as if they were in the same classroom or laboratory. The virtual campus will communicate with research peers both nationwide and worldwide, strengthening the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio's partnership with the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force, the University of Texas at San Antonio, the Cancer Therapy and Research Center, the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research, the Southwest Research Institute, and institutions in Laredo, Corpus Christi, and the Lower Rio Grande Valley.

South Texas Centers for Biology in Medicine

In November 1996, University of Texas System Regent Tom Loeffler announced that former Gov. Dolph Briscoe, Jr. would lead the $19-million fund raising campaign for the South Texas Centers for Biology in Medicine (STCBM). The mission of the STCBM is to “study disorders particularly associated with the South Texas/Border Region, to complement the existing U.T. Institute of Biotechnology in the collective search for cures for diseases that disproportionately affect people of this region.” (UTHSCSA Office of Public Affairs)

After approving the design, the UT Regents announced the appropriation of $6-million, adding to the $12-million, raised in record time through May of 1997, by Gov. Briscoe and San Antonio business community leader Sam Barshop. Another $1-million came from the National Institutes of Health, and by February 2000, the Regents approved an additional $3-million in funding for the Centers. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in December 1998, on property donated by the Texas Research Park adjacent to the UTIBT.

Francisco Cigarroa, M.D., President of the UTHSCSA dedicated the 87,000 square-foot, three-story building in December 2000. Housing laboratories and offices for scientists studying infectious diseases, the building has a capacity for 200 faculty researchers and students. The facility received national recognition as a research laboratory model.

Sam and Ann Barshop Center for Longevity and Aging Studies

The University of Texas System Board of Regents has named a major research center in the Texas Research Park in honor of former U.T. Regent, Sam Barshop and his wife Ann. The Barshop gift of $4-million is the latest contribution to this $20 million project, which will provide one of the nation's premier research facilities in the field of aging studies. The Sam and Ann Barshop Center for Longevity and Aging Studies will be based upon the philosophy that the frontiers of aging research are best advanced when the leading investigators in a field are gathered in one place and can focus their efforts and the latest research methodologies on a specific problem/goal. While other universities and research institutes are just starting to develop programs in aging, over the last two decades, the UTHSCSA has developed one of the nation's preeminent research programs in aging and geriatrics.

Currently, more than 150 faculty members are involved in aging research projects ranging from molecular biology to the management of healthcare. UTHSCSA faculty has contributed significantly to the understanding of aging through major discoveries in the effects of nutrition on aging, the molecular genetics of aging, and healthcare issues of Mexican-American elderly. Many faculty members are internationally recognized for their research on the disease processes associated with aging (e.g., osteoporosis, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes).

The center is located adjacent to the Institute of Biotechnology on the UTHSCSA campus inside the Texas Research park. Arlan Richardson, PhD., Director of the Center, stated, “The wonderful Barshop gift will serve South Texans for generations to come.”

Recently, three top U.S. scientists have agreed to join the highly successful aging research program.The scientists, recruited from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, are Drs. James R. Smith, Olivia M. Pereira-Smith and Peter J. Hornsby. As the faculty grows, research funds from the National Institute on Aging are expected to double.

The UTHSCSA is in the enviable position of having a strong research program and aging research facility at a time when research funding for this area must increase significantly. While other institutions develop programs in aging, the UTHSCSA will expand its nationally recognized programs to remain competitive in obtaining external funding for research and to maintain its leadership position. The Sam and Ann Barshop Center for Longevity and Aging Studies will become a premier research institution that will improve the quality of life for our aging population.