New Facility Fosters Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research

^{Pictured from left: Glen Cove Mayor Pamela Donaldson Panzenbeck; New York State Assemblymember Charles Lavine; Empire State Development Board Chairman Kevin Law; Nassau County Commissioner of Health Irina Gelman; President Henry C. Foley; Chairman of the Board of Trustees Peter Romano; Provost and Executive Vice President Jerry Balentine; Vice Provost for Research Jared Littman; Brookville Mayor Daniel Serota; NYITCOM Associate Professor and BRIIC Scientific Director Randy Stout.}

On May 16, members of the New York Institute of Technology community, including trustees, university leaders, deans, faculty, and staff, as well as elected officials and community representatives, gathered on the Long Island campus for a ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the opening of the Biomedical Research, Innovation, and Imaging Center (BRIIC).

As first announced at a sledgehammer ceremony in September 2023, the reimagined 20,000-square-foot space is now open. It will provide New York Tech researchers, as well as scholars from other institutions, with new opportunities to advance discoveries and potential treatments for heart disease, cancer, and Parkinson’s disease, among many other pressing health conditions. The state-of-the-art facility aims to expand the institution’s research footprint and further its strategy to become a Carnegie-classified Research 2 university.

“Today marks a transformative milestone for New York Institute of Technology and the Long Island scientific community that has been years in the making,” said New York Tech President Henry C. Foley, Ph.D. “The opening of our state-of-the-art BRIIC facility underscores the university’s commitment to research excellence and fills a critical need for high-resolution microscopy in our region. Moreover, it opens new doors for faculty and student research across multiple disciplines, symbolizing the kind of innovation and discovery that will help propel us toward becoming an R2 research institution.”

Among other cutting-edge imaging equipment, the BRIIC houses a new, super-resolution 3-D STED (stimulated emission depletion) microscope, allowing scientists a more precise view of cellular structures and processes. The facility also features a 2,000-square-foot functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) suite, offering a new, non-invasive solution for analyzing brain abnormalities, cognitive function, and treatment efficacy.

The BRIIC’s interdisciplinary setting will allow researchers across various scientific fields, schools, and colleges to sync their expertise. Among others, New York Tech researchers include neuroscientist Randy Stout, Ph.D., and brain cancer researcher Haotian Zhao, M.D., Ph.D., associate professors in the College of Osteopathic Medicine (NYITCOM); bone biology expert Hesham Tawfeek, Ph.D., research associate professor in the College of Arts and Sciences; and tissue engineering researcher Karrer Alghazali, Ph.D., assistant professor in the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences.

The event’s notable speakers included Kevin Law, board chair for Empire State Development. The agency contributed significant funds towards the development of the BRIIC project, which supported the purchase of the super-resolution 3-D STED microscope and its associated costs.

“This cutting-edge research center enhances Long Island’s standing as a biomedical innovation leader. Through the Long Island Regional Economic Development Council, we’re investing in New York Tech’s vision to attract top scientific talent, cultivate industry-academic collaboration, and stimulate economic development in high-growth fields that will benefit our communities for decades to come,” said Law.

In addition to its high-tech imaging equipment, the BRIIC includes 48 lab benches designed with flexible infrastructure to accommodate additional researchers, core labs, fume hoods, tissue culture rooms, a freezer room, and an autoclave. The building also features study and conference rooms, a postdoc area, and researcher offices.

An investment totaling $31 million (including costs to renovate the former 500 Building, furnish the space, and obtain new imaging equipment), the innovative facility exemplifies New York Tech’s commitment to fostering and advancing faculty research.