HWI officially joins UB

It’s official. Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute (HWI) formally joined UB on Jan. 2 after the two entities finalized the legal transfer of HWI assets to the university.

The move, which commenced in May, places the nearly 70-year-old institute and its building on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus within the university’s research and educational ecosystems. Specializing in structural biology research that is critical to understanding and treating disease, the institute is now known as the University at Buffalo Hauptman-Woodward Research Institute (UB-HWI).

Jason Benedict, professor of chemistry who specializes in materials chemistry and X-ray science, will serve as UB-HWI’s interim director.

In advance of the transition, President Satish K. Tripathi recently welcomed HWI scientists and staff members to the university.

“By harnessing the enhanced capabilities of UB-HWI, we will be able to greatly enhance our shared mission of excellence,” Tripathi said. “In so doing, we will expand our impact in research, education and community engagement — all for the benefit of our region and world.”

The agreement cements a long-standing partnership between UB and HWI, and builds upon HWI’s expertise while leveraging UB’s world-class strengths in drug discovery, artificial intelligence, computational chemistry and other fields. It also will strengthen the legacy of Nobel Prize winner Herbert A. Hauptman, who led HWI for decades while serving as a UB faculty member.

“We are excited to welcome HWI’s accomplished scientists and staff to UB to continue their groundbreaking research and educational programs in the science and application of structural biology,” said Provost A. Scott Weber. “The new UB-HWI will enable new collaborations with faculty and staff across the university, accelerate important advances in structural biology, and further enhance UB’s existing strength and impact in this important research area.”  

“UB is the ideal partner for HWI to accelerate its impact for generations to come,” said HWI Board Chairman Sam Russo. “It was clear from initial conversations with President Tripathi and Provost Weber that an expansive vision and even more compelling future could exist for HWI as part of the UB ecosystem. Our HWI directors and benefactors look forward to seeing the next phase of groundbreaking scientific research and transformative collaboration catalyzed by UB-HWI.”

HWI was founded in 1956 as the Medical Foundation of Buffalo by George Koepf, a Buffalo physician who believed basic research was critical to improving human health, and Helen Woodward Rivas, one of Koepf’s patients, who provided generous financial support on behalf of his vision.

In 1985, Hauptman and Jerome Karle received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for discovering new methods to visualize pharmaceuticals and proteins, and how they interact. These techniques have been adopted worldwide in the development of pharmaceuticals. In recognition of Hauptman’s achievement and to honor Woodward Rivas, the foundation was renamed the Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute in 1994.

UB-HWI researchers continue to make critical advancements in structural biology, studying, among other things, the structures of the body’s proteins. This work allows scientists to see what proteins look like when functioning properly, and what they look like in cancer, cardiovascular disease and other diseased states.

The work has applications in medicine, biotechnology, agriculture and other fields.