Senator Collins Announces $19.4 Million Award for Biomedical Research Network at MDI Biological Laboratory

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Bar Harbor, ME - Today, U.S. Senator Susan Collins announced $19.4 million in federal funding for the Maine IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) at the MDI Biological Laboratory in Bar Harbor. The grant was awarded through the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS). The funding will support the network for five years, while expanding its scope to include three additional partner institutions.

The Maine INBRE, which is led by the MDI Bio Lab, promotes the development and coordination of research institutions, providing expanded research opportunities for undergraduate students, financial support for early career scientists, and infrastructure investments at participating institutions. The network includes a majority of the University of Maine (UMaine) campuses and the UMaine Honors College, as well as Colby, Bates, and Bowdoin Colleges, the University of New England, Southern Maine Community College, College of the Atlantic, and the Jackson Laboratory. The new award will expand the network to include the University of Southern Maine, UMaine Augusta, and the MaineHealth Institute for Research, bringing the total number of participating institutions to 17.

"The renewal and expansion of the Maine INBRE through a new $19.4 million, five-year NIH IDeA grant begins a new chapter in a 24-year success story of collaborative biomedical research that improves lives around the world and creates opportunity here at home," said Senator Collins. "You don't need to be in Silicon Valley, the Research Triangle, or Boston to make a difference. Remarkable research is taking place right here in Maine, and the Maine INBRE is helping to make it possible."

"Senator Collins is making sure that Maine continues to be a home for world-class science," said Hermann Haller, M.D., President of the MDI Bio Lab. "She is a tireless champion for biomedical research, and her efforts have improved millions of lives. We thank her for her longstanding support of the IDeA program and the many essential initiatives funded by the National Institutes of Health."

In 2001, Maine was among the first states to be tapped for an INBRE program. Today's announcement marks the sixth consecutive renewal of the Maine INBRE program, bringing total awarded to this network to approximately $106 million in federal funding and more than $110 in additional grants. Over the past two decades, the INBRE program has provided more than 2,600 Maine students with hands-on biomedical research experience, with 90 percent of them going on to pursue advanced education and careers in medical and other scientific fields, and 21 percent staying in Maine to do so.

As a longtime member and now Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Collins has continuously advocated for funding for biomedical research. In the Fiscal Year 2024 funding bill, she secured a $300 million increase for the NIH, including a $5 million increase for the IDeA program.

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