At MBL, a Regional Destiny Emerges | Travis McCready, Mass. Life Sciences Center

Travis McCready, President and CEO of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC), testifies to the value of the MBL, including as a major site for convergent innovation in imaging technologies.

After a (not so) brief hiatus, I am back!  Much has transpired since my last post, not the least of which being Governor Baker and the state legislature have renewed funding to the MLSC.  The new package, which translates into up to $623 million in capital and tax incentive authorization over five years, will allow us to execute our ‘2.0 strategy’ for supporting the life sciences ecosystem in Massachusetts.  On behalf of the Center, the industry, and the patients and families that count on the fruits of our endeavors, I offer our deepest and sincerest gratitude.

There is much to do and many opportunities to advance with the reauthorization going forward, but I confess that one project has piqued my interest down on the Cape and the Islands region of the state.

If one were to guess where the largest gathering of biologists in the world takes place, Woods Hole might not be on your list, but it is, in fact, the case.  Every summer, the activities, academic resources, and research facilities available at Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) in Woods Hole attracts hundreds of scientists and biologists from institutions all over the world.  At 130 years young, MBL has embraced a mission well beyond marine biology, bringing together scientists for an experience that has no equal to explore fundamental biology, understanding biodiversity and the environment, and informing the human condition through research and education.

One of the little-known areas of expertise that MBL focuses on is digital imaging and diagnostics.   Often an underappreciated enabling technology, digital imaging has powered the modern biopharma revolution by making the unseen visible and illuminating cellular function to explore biological mechanisms of action.