Press Release
Governor Patrick Meets With Leading
Scientists On Life Sciences
Scientific Review Board Chaired by Dr. Harvey F. Lodish Holds First Meeting Wednesday in Governor’s Council Chamber
BOSTON (May 7, 2008) – Governor Deval Patrick today convened a meeting of leading scientists to discuss ways that Massachusetts can create new economic opportunity and spur new discoveries in the life sciences sector. The Governor welcomed the new 10-member Scientific Advisory Board to the State House and urged them to guide the investment decisions of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC).
The Scientific Advisory Board was created by the MLSC to provide scientific and technical advice and oversight, and to ensure scientific credibility and transparency for funding decisions. The Board will be chaired by Dr. Harvey F. Lodish, Founding Member of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research and Professor of Biology and of Bioengineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
“Working with Senate President Murray and Speaker DiMasi, we established the Life Sciences Center to make investments that create new jobs and lead to scientific breakthroughs that will improve people’s lives in Massachusetts,” said Governor Patrick. “We appreciate the contributions of some of our state’s top scientists as we continue to establish the Commonwealth as the global leader in life sciences.”
The ten members of the Scientific Advisory Board bring vast experience in life sciences from a diverse range of leadership positions in industry and academia. Members of the new Board include:
- Harvey Lodish, Chair, Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research
- James J. Collins, Boston University
- James J. Collins, Boston University
- George Q. Daley, Children’s Hospital and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute
- Patricia K. Donahoe, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
- Lila Gierasch, University of Massachusetts at Amherst
- Richard A. Goldsby, Amherst College
- Jeffrey Leiden, Managing Director, Clarus Ventures
- David T. Scadden, Director of the Massachusetts General Hospital’s Center for Regenerative Medicine
- Alan E. Smith, Chief Scientific Officer of Genzyme Corporation
- Lydia Villa-Komaroff, Chief Executive Officer of Cytonome
- Philip Zamore, University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester
The creation of the Board underscores the Life Sciences Center’s commitment to scientific peer review as the basis of its decision-making and provides a strong foundation for the new $12 million matching grant program, which funds research at public and private universities and colleges and affiliated research institutions.
“The strong support from the Governor and Legislative leaders for the work of the Mass. Life Sciences Center has not gone unnoticed by our scientific community. With the help of these experts, the Center is poised to support innovation, job creation, and exciting breakthroughs in science that will enhance our quality of life,” observed Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Daniel O’Connell, Chair of the MLSC Board of Directors.