The Center for Biotechnology & Interdisciplinary Studies at Rensselaer

The Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies (CBIS) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute interweaves life sciences, physical sciences, and engineering into the fields of biotechnology and medicine, opening exciting new pathways to innovation and discovery. From complex biological networks to nanoscale assemblies that mimic biological processes, CBIS is a powerhouse of academic and research advancement. More than 200 CBIS scientists and engineers are working here to uncover the molecular basis of biological mechanisms and disease, using biological systems as the basis for new therapeutics, and developing new cellular niches critical in tissue regeneration. More about CBIS

Over Ten Years

  • 40 Faculty
  • 200 Ph.D.s Granted
  • 1,000 Undergrads Trained
  • 2,000 Peer-Reviewed Publications
  • 30,000 Citations (ISI)
  • $130MExternal Grant Funding

News & Events

NIH Training Programs at Rensselaer Annual Retreat

Renssealer's NIH Training Programs will host an Annual Retreat on November 6th at the Hilton Garden Inn Troy. Registration is open to the first 70 responses. The day's events will include guest speaker Prof. Tim Griffin (University of Minnesota) Trainee research presentations, a CapSci scientific communication panel, and poster session. Breakfast and lunch will be provided to the attendees. Register here: https://forms.gle/a327JjLQxMasXWnWA

Novel Compound is Promising Drug Candidate for Alzheimer’s Disease

A newly identified compound is a promising candidate for inhibiting the production of amyloids, the abnormal proteins that form toxic clumps, called fibrils, inside the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease. As published in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Chemical Communications, the compound — known as “C1” — uses a novel mechanism to efficiently prevent the enzyme gamma-secretase from producing amyloids.

Rensselaer Announces New Degree Program in Biological Neuroscience

A new degree program in biological neuroscience at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute explores the structure and function of the brain and nervous system. The major, which was recently approved by the New York State Education Department, will be offered beginning in the spring 2020 semester through the Rensselaer Department of Biological Sciences.

Structurally Designed DNA Star Creates Ultra-Sensitive Test for Dengue Virus

By folding snippets of DNA into the shape of a five-pointed star using structural DNA nanotechnology, researchers have created a trap that captures Dengue virus as it floats in the bloodstream. 

Research Aims To Make Technologies for Controlling Blood Sugar More Accessible

Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have been working on two fronts to perfect continuous blood glucose monitor and insulin pump technologies: they are developing algorithms to create a closed-loop system that can effectively operate similar to a healthy pancreas, and they are working to make that system more accessible and understandable for users with diabetes.

Research & Constellations

 

Our Center

  • 150 PhD Students
  • 50 Postdoctoral Fellows
  • 33 Principal Investigator Laboratories
  • 25 Visiting Research Scientists
  • 218,000 sq ft modern facility
  • 31, 240 sq ft of open research labs
  • 13,009 sq ft of support labs
  • 27,350 sq ft of core facilities
  • 5,830 sq ft conference and seminar space

In the News

  • For healthier lakes, rivers, and drinking water, hold the salt

     February 6, 2019 -

    Rick Relyea, an environmental scientist at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, is tackling similarly thorny questions in upstate New York’s Lake George, which has been called the Queen of American Lakes. Relyea leads the Jefferson Project, a collaboration among RPI, IBM, and the FUND for Lake George, a nonprofit focused on conserving the lake. The project has outfitted the lake with more than 500 “smart” environmental sensors during the past four years to monitor human influence on it. Over the past four decades, according to data from the Lake George Offshore Chemical Monitoring Program, chloride levels have tripled in Lake George, adding to other environmental effects on the lake. These effects include the rise of invasive species and the delivery, through stormwater runoff, of pollutants and nutrients that can stimulate algal blooms. Because it’s hard to tease apart the impacts of these various stressors on the lake’s water quality and wildlife, Relyea’s team has done a bevy of experiments in the lab and in large outdoor tanks to isolate and examine the consequences of increasing salt.

  • Freshwater Is Getting Saltier, Threatening People and Wildlife

     December 21, 2018 -

    Salts that de-ice roads, parking lots and sidewalks keep people safe in winter. But new research shows they are contributing to a sharp and widely rising problem across the U.S. At least a third of the rivers and streams in the country have gotten saltier in the past 25 years. And by 2100, more than half of them may contain at least 50 percent more salt than they used to. Increasing salinity will not just affect freshwater plants and animals but human lives as well—notably, by affecting drinking water.

  • Brain Scans Can Detect Who Has Better Skills

     October 3, 2018 -

    To gain new insight into how highly specialized workers learn skills or react to stressful situations, researchers are leveraging advanced scanning technologies to look at what’s happening inside the brain.