Bellaire - Meyerland - West University | June 2023

CONTINUED FROM 1

2023 HEALTH CARE EDITION

program. The U.S. government’s s- cal year 2023-24 budget includes $2.5 billion that will go toward research and operations at ARPAH facilities, a funding infusion that could benet other research already underway. Wenshe Liu is the director of the Texas A&M University Drug Discov- ery Laboratory and a professor of chemistry at Texas A&M University— one of two Texas organizations that expressed interest in working with the ARPAH programs. He said if the hub doesn’t come to Texas, it would be a big economic loss. “ARPAH is supposed to bring in a lot of research funding,” Liu said. “It will support research activity here and increase job opportunities for people in Texas. Long term, it’s a huge economic impact to the local [econ- omy] because if you bring an ARPAH hub and develop novel techniques, they will be commercialized locally and create spin-o companies.” Three parts, one location If Houston is chosen for the ARPAH facility, McPhail said it would be located within the Texas Medical Cen- ter’s Helix Park, located o Old Span- ish Trail. The rst phase of Helix Park will open this fall, McPhail said. The rst phase of Helix Park includes three parts. The rst is a col- laborative research building, a four- story building on the western side of the campus that will host research ini- tiatives for MD Anderson, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, The University of Texas Health Science Center and TMC. The second, which will open to the public this fall, is the rst tower of the Dynamic One building. At least 368,000 square feet of commer- cial and institutional research space toward the north of the campus will be anchored by retail and restaurants. The Baylor College of Medicine will occupy three oors of Dynamic One with two oors dedicated to academic scientic research, ocials said. “Having a place where our clinical programs are located, where our data scientists are, next to a biotech devel- opment center, and having our med- ical students all integrated into that environment will allow them to be ready in the future for where health care is going,” Baylor President Paul Klotman said in a news release. The third piece of Phase 1 is the TMC Helix Gardens, 300,000 square feet

of public green space formed in the shape of a DNA helix down the center of the campus. The gardens will have ve public parks, each approximately the size of a football eld. Roughly 1,700 new trees were installed in May across Helix Park, which stretches 11 city blocks in total, connected by streets, sidewalks and bike lanes. With the economic and environ- mental additions emerging in Hous- ton as TMC Helix Park makes its way, existing facilities like the TMC Inno- vation building also contribute to the comprehensive ecosystem, McPhail said. The TMC Innovation building, located nearby o Holcombe Boule- vard, hosts more than 300 health care startups fueled by entrepreneurs and Ocials with ARPAH announced a national site selection process would occur to choose three dierent U.S. hubs where ARPAH agencies would be located. The agency designated Washing- ton, D.C., as hub site No. 1 on March 15. It will focus on stakeholder opera- tions since it is located in the nation’s capital with regulatory and legislative partners, ARPAH ocials said. The locations of the second and third hubs are out for bid. Hub No. 2 is where ARPAH researchers would use a proactive approach to enhance clinical trials by reaching a variety of patient populations to capture data for future research. Hub No. 3, called an “investor catalyst,” would help researchers navigate business and regulatory landscapes and connect with investment dollars to bring new innovations to market. “The idea is to dream big, recogniz- ing that most big ideas are going to fail,” said Thomas Graham, a spokes- person for the Coalition for Health Advancement and Research, a group formed after Biden’s announcement with the goal of bringing the facility to Texas. “But those big ideas, when they do succeed, they succeed big.” innovators in health care. An ambitious recognition Houston is seeking consideration for Hub No. 2, McPhail said. TMC’s unique ecosystem, research, talent, faculty, commercialization and diversity all serve as reasons for why the city would make a good spot for the hub, she said. With the goal of improving patient outcomes, having a diverse popula- tion of patients to draw from—one

FALL OPENINGS A 37-acre life science campus called TMC Helix Park will bring together professionals in medicine, science, academia and commerce in order to make new research breakthroughs. Three elements are slated to open in the fall.

Dynamic One: The rst tower will oer leasable space for tenants that will include pharmaceutical rms, biotech companies and investment partners. Dynamic One is the rst of four industry buildings planned at the site. 1 Helix Gardens: The rst-of-its-kind green space will feature 1,700 new trees, 30 unique species of plant and retention space that can hold 8.5 million gallons of stormwater. 2 building: A four-story, 250,000-square-foot building will house MD Anderson, Texas Medical Center oces and academic institutions such as Texas A&M University. 3 TMC3 Collaborative

TMC HELIX PARK

Hotel

Retail and garage

Industry building 3

Industry building 2

Member institutions

Industry building 4

Future industry site Future industry site

FANNIN ST.

SOURCE: TEXAS MEDICAL CENTERCOMMUNITY IMPACT

THREE-PHASE PROCESS

Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health announced the intention to establish sites in three geographic areas across the U.S. to form the foundation of a nationwide health network that seeks to advance ARPA-H’s mission to accelerate better health outcomes in the country. All hubs will maintain a light physical footprint and house a small number of ARPA-H team members and key personnel.

Phase 2

Phase 3

Phase 1

March ARPA-H announced the intention to establish three sites across the country

summer White House to narrow down cities considered for ARPA-H hubs

September-October White House to announce designation of Hub No. 2, Hub No. 3

SOURCES: TEXAS MEDICAL CENTER, U.S. WHITE HOUSECOMMUNITY IMPACT

that mirrors the vast range of dierent socioeconomic situations across the U.S.—can be helpful to researchers, Liu said. The TMC has a unique geoloca- tion, he said, that covers a large area with a mixed population of Cauca- sians, Hispanic people, African-Amer- icans and Asian people. “A diverse population of patients will help understand disease develop- ment in dierent ethnic groups that can help devise dierent approaches in

treatment,” Liu said. As of press time, May 30, a decision on which cities would make it to the next round of ARPAH consideration was expected to be announced some- time in early summer. Shawn Arrajj contributed to this report.

For more information, visit communityimpact.com .

BELLAIRE MEYERLAND WEST UNIVERSITY EDITION • JUNE 2023