Imperial College London Breaks Ground on Biomedical Research Facility

Imperial College London, in partnership with Imperial College Healthcare NHS, broke ground on a £99 million biomedical research facility in April of 2009. Slated for completion in late 2011, the six-story building will be part of the planned Academic Health Science Center in London. Housing 450 researchers, the facility will provide laboratories for translational research in cardiovascular disease, arthritis, diabetes, and obesity. The British Heart Foundation’s Centre of Research Excellence at Imperial will be headquartered in the building, with 300 cardiovascular scientists and physicians occupying three floors of labs and offices. The ground floor will house the Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Facility, including a Translational Medicine Imaging Unit with MRI, PET, and CT scanners. The development will be partly funded by the Medical Research Council and the Wellcome Trust.