University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
Institute of Biotechnology

The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UTHSCSA) Department of Molecular Medicine is located in The University of Texas Institute of Biotechnology (UTIBT) at the Texas Research Park. The Institute, which was dedicated in 1990, resides in the Hayden Head Building, named after a Corpus Christi lawyer at the request of H. Ross Perot who donated $15-million for the Institute and another UT research facility. Mr. Perot's gift, a $5-million donation from the Houston Endowment, and additional University funding created the 60,000-square-foot facility that is directed by Dr. Dave Sharp.

The Department's faculty is composed of both basic and clinical scientists from the Departments of Biochemistry, Molecular Medicine, Cellular and Structural Biology, Medicine, Microbiology, Pathology, and Physiology. Research faculty appointments were initiated at the UTIBT in early 1991. At that time, an application was submitted to the Board of Regents and Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board for an innovative Ph.D. training program in Molecular Medicine for the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at the UTHSCSA. A class of approximately twenty students enrolled after its approval in 1993. Currently, with fifty students, this program is the largest in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, and today, graduates are working in top laboratories around the world.

In addition to the Graduate Program, the Department of Molecular Medicine faculty direct research efforts carried out by the approximately 100 students, post-doctoral fellows and support staff. During its first decade, these events completed the administrative and programmatic actions required to attract top scientists for the second phase of the UTIBT's growth.

Significant scientific events marked the UTIBT's next decade. Landmark research papers documented the role of tumor suppressor genes in human cancers, fundamental mechanisms of DNA repair and the development of animal models of human cancers. While some of these papers were focused on basic science, there were a number that reported on the use of tumor suppressor genes in pre-clinical studies and of their efficacy in treating malignancies. These pre-clinical studies were possible because of the extraordinary initiative of UTIBT investigators to develop mouse models of human cancers. Recognition of these achievements came with the receipt of a grant from the National Cancer Institute of the NIH, making the UTIBT a member of an elite Mouse Cancer Model Consortium. By sharing animal models in collaborative experiments, it is anticipated that advancements in new cancer therapies will be even more rapid. This prestigious program at the UTIBT was strengthened when a world-famous expert in the development of animal models joined the faculty.

After results showed that tumor suppressor genes regulated this important cellular activity, UTIBT research included DNA repair and its role in cancer development. Collaboration between DNA-repair researchers and those working on tumor suppressor genes resulted in the receipt of a large Program Project Grant from the NCI. Designed to promote interactions and collaborations between investigators at the UTHSCSA, a new research program centered on the DNA repair-cancer cell relationship was added to those supported by the San Antonio Cancer Institute. Four UTIBT faculty and two graduate students successfully competed for a total of $1.8 million in grant support from the Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program.

Over the next ten years, research at the UTIBT will remain focused on DNA repair and the role of tumor suppressor genes in its regulation. This field of research is fundamental to understanding cancer and the development of effective strategies for treatment and prevention. Research will increase greatly during the coming decade. New faculty will be recruited to concentrate on the detailed biochemical mechanism, as well as the cellular, molecular and genetic mechanisms of this vital activity. There will also be a significant effort to attract talented scientists to join those already working here who are applying these fundamental mechanisms to benefit patients.

Graduate students provide the intellectual and motivational energy that research demands. Over the next ten years, a primary objective of the UTIBT and Department of Molecular Medicine will be to increase the applicant pool of these talented young investigators. The solicitation of private and public research funding will also be sought for the Graduate Program in order to remain competitive for young scientific talent. Per Dr. Lee, “As we go forward into the new millennium, working in the laboratory and transferring biomedical knowledge to cure patients at the bedside, our greatest challenge will be to attract and retain the very best people who share our commitment.”

The impact of the UTIBT on bioscience research is twofold. The Graduate Program in Molecular Medicine trains future scholars to become independent genetic researchers in cellular and molecular medicine, while cancer research is advanced and broadened.