Philanthropist donates $120 million to UCLA for new research center
The gift designates $100 million to establish two research entities within a new institute, each funded by $50 million.
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UCLA has received a $120 million commitment from surgeon, inventor and philanthropist Dr. Gary Michelson and his wife, Alya, to kick-start the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy, a public-private partnership aimed at spurring breakthrough discoveries that prevent and cure diseases.
Michelson, a spine surgeon and inventor who holds nearly 1,000 individual patents, is cofounder and chair of the board of the institute, which will be housed at UCLA's research park.
The gift, distributed via the Michelson Medical Research Foundation, designates $100 million to establish two research entities within the institute, each funded by $50 million. One will focus on rapid vaccine development, and the other on harnessing the microbiome to advance human health.
The microbiome research will be conducted in collaboration with the new UCLA Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center, placing it among the largest microbiome research enterprises in the world, UCLA said.
In addition, the foundation, a part of the Michelson Philanthropies network of foundations cochaired by the Michelsons, is funding a $20 million endowment to provide research grants to young scientists using novel processes to advance immunotherapy research, human immunology and vaccine discovery.
WHAT'S THE IMPACT?
The institute was cofounded by Meyer Luskin, Dr. Eric Esrailian, Dr. Arie Belldegrun, Michael Milken and Sean Parker. At 360,000 square feet, it will be the primary occupant in the 700,000-square-foot UCLA Research Park, which is on the site of the former Westside Pavilion.
UCLA's January acquisition of the property, two miles from the Westwood campus, was made possible in part by a $200 million appropriation from the state of California.
The institute will operate as a nonprofit medical research organization governed by an independent board that includes UCLA representatives. The recipient of the $120 million gift from the Michelsons is the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, which will use the funding to support research at the institute.
The institute is designed to be an "agile, interdisciplinary, highly collaborative network of research facilities" that, in concert with private industry, will accelerate the development and delivery of new pharmaceuticals and treatments for patients, UCLA said.
It will recruit leading scientists from around the world, create an integrated ecosystem of biotechnology startups and train the next generation of leading-edge medical researchers, according to UCLA.
THE LARGER TREND
This gift is the Michelsons' single largest donation to date. Among other projects, they fund the annual Michelson Prizes for immunology and vaccine research.
In 2016, the Michelsons signed the Giving Pledge, a campaign launched by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett that encourages the wealthiest individuals and families to contribute the majority of their fortune to philanthropic causes.
Jeff Lagasse is editor of Healthcare Finance News.
Email: jlagasse@himss.org
Healthcare Finance News is a HIMSS Media publication.
