Advancements in Medical Laboratory Science and Life Sciences Research at BYU

The new building — home to the Life Sciences department — is located on the hillside near the well-known duck pond and has more than 200,000 square feet dedicated to teaching and research. Rodney J. Brown, dean of the College of Life Sciences at BYU, stated that "the new building is a lot better designed for student/faculty interaction, making it possible for mentoring and doing research together."

World-Class Facilities and Academic Departments

After only a little over two and a half years of construction, the five-level and 265,000 square-foot building was ready for school to start. The facility houses 24 teaching labs, three auditoriums, four conference rooms and more than 70 academic offices. It is home to several Life Sciences departments, including:

• Biology
• Microbiology and molecular biology
• Physiology and developmental biology
• Exercise science, nutrition, dietetics and food
• Plant and wildlife science

The building is student friendly, with common areas for the students to meet, study and learn. "This building moves us right to the edge of the future," Brother Brown said, describing it as a "temple of learning."

Breakthroughs in Cancer Research

BYU researchers discover, then find way to attack 'cancer driver' gene. Dr. Josh Andersen, head of BYU's Fritz B. Burns Cancer Research Laboratory, noted that "cancer has impacted all of us," and described the work as a personal mission. Six years ago, Andersen discovered how the gene TNK1 mutates and becomes a cancer driver, and the research was just published in Nature Communications. Through a unique academic/industry partnership, scientists at SDP Oncology designed and refined a drug to treat TNK1 called TP-5801. This drug is now ready for a phase 1 clinical trial — a rigorous process that takes years.

Student Innovation and Patent Success

The efforts of Brigham Young University students helped the Provo school place 86th on the National Academy of Inventors’ top 100 list for most U.S. patents by universities. Graduates or undergraduates were listed as co-founders on 10 of the 18 BYU patents issued in 2024, or 56%. This level of participation is significant, as only 4% of STEM Ph.D. students nationwide even appear on patents. Dave Brown, BYU Technology Transfer Director, explained that "our professors really do work to mentor the students, so they don’t just want them to be in the lab watching them do things."

Utah University Patent Rankings

Based on the provided reports, BYU is one of three Utah schools to land on the top 100 list for patents:

As Dave Brown noted, BYU is far more focused on undergraduate students than most campuses, and these student inventors really want to serve the world with these inventions.