The Institute for Applied Life Sciences (IALS) translates fundamental research into innovative product candidates, technologies, and services that deliver benefits to human health and well-being. Our specific objectives are to: (1) Become a catalyst and resource for ‘applied’ and ‘translational’ R&D activities; (2) Establish industry engagement models and industry collaborations; (3) Contribute to workforce development; and (4) Participate in the innovation & entrepreneurship culture on campus.

Upcoming Events

Tuesday, October 8
10:00 am to 12:00 pm
with Matt Whitehead, Partner, Feinberg Hanson LLP.
Virtual
Monday, October 14
Tuesday, October 15

Recent News

Wouter Hoogkamer

With the track and field events in the 2024 Paris Olympics taking over the media, the study provides a timely answer to the question of how large the impact of super spikes on running performance is.

Sarah Perry

Sarah Perry, associate professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering, CBD, M2M, has been chosen as one of two national recipients of the 2024 American Chemical Society (ACS) Young Investigator Award for her contributions to the field of polyelectrolyte self-assembly and the incorporation of proteins into these assemblies.

Connected Hydration

CH2P researchers partnered with Epicore Biosystems to validate Connected Hydration, a new wearable sweat and hydration monitor by Epicore. Connected Hydration is designed for “industrial athletes,” or people in occupations that require a lot of intense, physical activity, often in hot, humid conditions while wearing personal protective equipment.

Translational Research

The Institute for Applied Life Sciences (IALS) will transform life science discoveries into candidate products and services in collaboration with industry to improve human health and well being. IALS extends specific identified research strengths at UMass through its three centers:

Models for Optimized Drug Delivery

Center for Bioactive Delivery

CBD creates new ways to deliver “The right drug to the right place: by creating novel delivery platforms for small and large molecules.”  Developing a wide range of delivery platforms matched to bioactive molecular delivery needs based on fundamental design principles, including nanoemulsions, nanoparticles, hybrid particles, bacteria, and hydrogels.

Wearable Sensors for Precision Healthcare Delivery & Biometric Monitoring

Center for Personalized Health Monitoring

CPHM seeks to tackle real-world problems in the emerging field of digital healthcare, wearable sensor technologies, and personalized, precision healthcare delivery, interfacing closely with provider networks, hospitals, and industry across the Massachusetts Commonwealth, and the world.

Translating Fundamental Biology into New Targets, Leads & Disease Models

Models to Medicine Center

M2M leverages mechanistic insights into molecular pathways implicated in cell health and in disease pathology to identify novel drug targets and therapeutic candidates.

IALS Virtual Tour

In this tour you will discover all of the great resources that are available at the Institute for Applied Life Sciences.

Poster for the IALS virtual tour

Shared Resources

UMass Amherst Core Facilities

We work together with researchers toward a singular goal: advancing applied science and technology to address the world’s most pressing challenges. We offer expertise and resources that create new opportunities, not only for scientific achievement, but also for establishing new models of collaboration.

mHealth facility

mHealthLab

Develops algorithms and processes for large scale wearable sensor networks to support the development of novel hardware.

Raman, IR, and XRF Spectroscopy

Advanced Spectroscopic Analysis of Versatile Organic and Inorganic Samples

Nanofabrication Facility

Nanofabrication Cleanroom

Device design, modeling and prototype testing in functional architectures taking best advantage of the specific hierarchical nanomanufacturing capabilities.

Advance your idea from concept to commercialization

Innovation & Entrepreneurship

IALS Venture Development programs are here to help you! Our programs support development of startups and industry partnerships by UMass researchers based upon their technologies and product concepts.

 

Training the next generation workforce

Student Engagement

Providing students from Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) hands-on training and experience in the use and operation of a state-of-the art research equipment, experience gathering data and data analysis, and the development of team science.