The new NUI Galway human biology building. Image: Niamh Connolly
NUI Galway aims to seriously bolster its human biology research with the opening of a new €34m building to house undergraduate and postgraduate teaching.
The new human biology building at NUI Galway was officially opened today (2 July) by Minister for Health Simon Harris, TD. The centre aims to bring together the existing disciplines of anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology and therapeutics at the university.
The new building is funded by the Higher Education Authority and NUI Galway.
Home to both undergraduate and postgraduate teaching, the centre will carry out research by academics throughout the campus in the areas of science, engineering and medicine. It will also look to tie in with the university’s cluster of biomedical research groups in areas such as regenerative medicine and stem cell research, cancer biology, and biomechanics and biomaterials.
The building will house academics from various research groups on campus such as Cúram, Remedi, the School of Psychology and the Galway Neuroscience Centre.
It consists of five storeys with a gross floor area of 8,200 sq m and is located on a previously developed site upon which stood the former National Diagnostics Laboratory building.
There are also PhD students working in the three disciplines of anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology and therapeutics, through research funded by the Irish Research Council, the Health Research Board, Science Foundation Ireland and industry partners.
Making the west coast a healthcare ecosystem
The opening of the human biology building follows on from recent expansion of the NUI Galway campus to include a new engineering building, a new biomedical sciences building, and a clinical and translational research facility.
NUI Galway said that with these three buildings and the recently added human biology building, the west coast of Ireland can be considered an ecosystem of education, research, innovation and healthcare.
“By having access to the best facilities, our students will be supported to realise their potential and make a real impact in their chosen field,” said the university’s president, Prof Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh.
“Investment in education is vital for our regional development and continued funding is imperative so that our new buildings can be great places to learn, teach and research in. Our students compete with the best of the world and so must we.”
