A MESSAGE FROM THE CHIEF RESEARCH AND CHIEF INNOVATION OFFICERS
This edition of Tufts Research and Innovation focuses on our contributions as a nationally prominent research university, highlighting the programs and people behind our discovery enterprise. It is dedicated to the broad set of stakeholders whose excellence places Tufts in the top tier of research institutions.
As a member of the Association of American Universities the group of the 70+ leading public and private research universities in the U.S. and Canada Tufts is pressing beyond boundaries with transdisciplinary research and entrepreneurial innovation. Tufts has seen 54-percent growth in research expenditures over the past 10 years, increasing from $163M in 2014 to $247M in 2023. This trajectory is a testament to the scholarship of our faculty, the dedication of our staff, and the excellence of our student body.
Whether the research is conducted in the field, on campus, or virtually, Tufts researchers are addressing the most pressing issues of our time. Our exceptional transdisciplinary research programs range across policy and civic engagement, climate and sustainability, brain health, infection and immunity, and cellular agriculture, to highlight just a few. Tufts innovators continue to translate their research into applied solutions for societal good.
The breadth and depth of excellence across our campuses illustrates Tufts’ shared purpose in moving the research and innovation mission of the institution forward. We are honored to support our researchers at all career levels and to showcase the creativity and scholarly productivity of our institution on a national stage.
With thanks to Tufts researchers for all they contribute to our impact on the communities we serve, we hope you enjoy this issue.
Bernard Arulanandam Vice Provost for Research, Professor, Department of Immunology, Tufts School of Medicine
William Shaw Vice Provost for Innovation
TUFTS RESEARCH (FY23)
By
the Numbers
$247M Research expenditures
521 Awards
82 Invention disclosures
6 Tech startups
A Focus on One Health
Human, animal, and environmental health are interdependent and interconnected, a delicate balance that impacts everyone. This observation known as One Health drives collaborative, transdisciplinary research at the local, national, and global levels. The goal: to achieve optimal health outcomes for us all.
Tufts has played a groundbreaking role in introducing the One Health approach. With deep expertise across human and veterinary medicine, engineering, nutrition, and policy, Tufts draws on strengths in infectious disease forecasting, surveillance, risk reduction, prevention, and eradication to lead numerous One Health projects.
Chief among these projects: Strategies to Prevent (STOP) Spillover, a USAID-funded project led by Tufts. STOP Spillover brings together a global consortium of experts in human, animal, and environmental health to understand and address the risks posed by known zoonotic viruses that have the potential to spill over and cause pandemic crises.
Working in six countries in Africa and Asia, STOP Spillover enhances global understanding of the complex drivers of viral spillover. It strengthens sustainable national capacities in risk analysis, mitigation, and spillover intervention.
Central to Tufts’ ability to do such essential work are our world-class facilities, including the Tufts New England Regional Biosafety Laboratory (RBL). One of only 14 such facilities nationwide, the RBL is a 41,000 square-foot resource available to researchers in industry, academic, government, and not-for-profit sectors. The facility is dedicated to the study of existing and emerging infectious diseases, pandemic preparedness, toxin-mediated diseases, and medical countermeasures important to biodefense.
Tufts’ Economic and Community Impact
With a stellar reputation for top-tier education and research, Tufts makes a lasting impact at the local, regional, and national levels. According to an economic and community impact study conducted by Tripp Umbach in 2023, Tufts’ national economic impact exceeds $3.1 billion per year.
Providing world-renowned academic and research programs at Massachusetts campuses located in Boston, Grafton, Medford and Somerville, Tufts is a major engine of economic change in the communities we serve. Tufts faculty, staff, and students also engage with the community on their own throughout each year. These efforts come in the form of volunteer hours, financial donations, and other community engagements, furthering Tufts’ national impact.
$3B
National economic impact
$45B
Income generated by Tufts alumni
$2B
Tufts’ economic impact in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts $293M Research impact
$49M
Tufts’ charitable giving and volunteerism in United States
$22M
Economic impact of Tufts Athletics
17,406
Jobs supported and sustained in the United States
109,730 Alumni across the United States
Tufts Research Spotlights
Food and Nutrition
Tufts’ work in policy is what makes us unique in Food and Nutrition. Tufts is bringing together biomedical, social, political, and behavioral scientists to improve the nutritional health and well-being of populations throughout the world
Cellular Agriculture
Tufts is solving global challenges in food shortages and environmental and animal welfare through sustainable protein sources
Brain Health
Tufts is advancing the collective knowledge of neurological and behavior disorders and discovering ways to improve cognition and optimize human performance
Infection and Immunity
Tufts is addressing global problems related to infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance, how infections can drive cancer, and the nature of the immune responses through diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines
TUFTS SPRINGBOARD Catalyzing Discovery Through Internal Investment
Tufts Springboard, an intramural grant program, catalyzes high-impact research, scholarly endeavors, and educational initiatives.
Materials
Tufts is enabling discoveries in the next generation of materials for scientific and technological advancements in engineering, chemistry, and biomedicine
Climate and Energy
Tufts is fighting climate change through research and civic engagement to build healthier communities and enable an affordable clean energy transition
Through Springboard, Tufts invests in projects designed to lead to extramural funding or other outcomes that significantly influence research, scholarship, education, and policy. Preliminary data demonstrates that the program has led to extramural awards worth nearly double the investment.
Since its inception in 2019, Tufts Springboard has awarded 106 grants, totaling $3.2 million and supporting a wide spectrum of impactful research across diverse disciplines.
The program also fosters collaboration, aligned with Tufts’ commitment to multidisciplinary research. From innovative approaches to health and wellness (such as exploring novel treatments for cardiac injury), to educational initiatives like the Tufts Educational Reentry Network Program, and transformative civic engagement projects like the Civic Education Consortium, Tufts is dedicated to cultivating a socially responsible research environment.
Tufts Springboard has advanced our research priorities, strengthening Tufts’ standing as a Carnegie R1 research institution and solidifying its membership in the Association of American Universities (AAU).
FOOD AND NUTRITION
Changing Health Care through Nutrition
Launched in 2023, the Food Is Medicine Institute is a first-of-its-kind initiative aimed at transforming health care through scalable food-based interventions. The goal: addressing a glaring gap in the medical system by working to integrate food-based nutrition interventions into health care to treat disease and advance health equity.
The institute will lead the way in Food Is Medicine research, patient care, and community and policy engagement nationwide, educating the next generation of professionals in this space.
Poor diets are estimated to cause more than 500,000 deaths each year and are the top driver of poor health outcomes in the United States. Poor nutrition disproportionately affects historically marginalized groups, rural communities, and people with lower incomes.
Research has shown that food and nutrition interventions incorporated into a patient’s treatment plan can lead to improved health outcomes and lower healthcare costs.
In addition to bringing together faculty and students from the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy and the Tufts University School of Medicine, in collaboration with the Tufts Medicine health system, the institute will also engage with the private and public sectors.
Among the organizations the institute has convened are Kaiser Permanente, John Hancock, and Google, each of which is engaged in Food Is Medicine efforts to prevent and treat health disorders and reduce health disparities.
Transforming Health Care
Some of the institute’s scalable food-based interventions include:
» Medically tailored meals
» Prescriptions for produce
» Nutrition education for doctors
» Clinical care, electronic health record, and reimbursement pathways for nutrition-based tools to help treat or prevent diet-related illnesses like:
› Heart disease
› Diabetes
› Certain cancers
› Complications during pregnancy
CELLULAR AGRICULTURE
Toward the Food of the Future
“Empowering undergraduates to foster innovation in the field, our first-in-the-world minor in cellular agriculture offers a unique intersection of disciplines, welcoming students from both the School of Engineering and from the School of Arts and Sciences. Minors like this one help students recognize the importance of an interdisciplinary lens when addressing global challenges.”
— Cigdem Talgar Vice Provost for Education
The Tufts University Center for Cellular Agriculture (TUCCA) the world’s first university-wide cellular agriculture program brings together expertise from across Tufts’ schools and centers to tackle an immense challenge: building a healthy, sustainable food system to meet the nutritional and food security needs of a global population expected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050.
Cellular agriculture the cultivation of agricultural commodities from cells rather than from whole animals is still a very young field. Awarded $10M by the USDA to establish the first-ever National Institute for Cellular Agriculture, TUCCA is leading the effort to overcome fundamental technical hurdles, develop standards, and share knowledge.
A Tufts team of scientists is driving advances in tissue engineering and related biotechnologies that underlie this work. TUCCA unites this effort with other critical areas of Tufts’ expertise, including in nutrition innovation and livestock research.
Led by Tufts alumni and world-renowned experts in the field, the Cellular Agriculture Commercialization Lab fosters early-stage, high-impact technologies from proof-of-concept through to commercial deployment.
Key efforts focus on technical development and de-risking via intellectual property, regulatory, and commercial strategies.
What is taking shape today at Tufts is the start of an entirely new agricultural industry. We are placing the building blocks of a strong foundation for a food system that is secure, sustainable, and equitable for generations to come.
Undergraduates Adham Ali and Olivia Calkins are among the first Tufts students to enroll in the world’s first minor in cellular agriculture.
BRAIN HEALTH
At the Frontiers of the Mind
Tufts researchers are at the forefront of neuroscience, working to understand and advance brain health. Tufts Neuroscience leverages basic science discoveries in synaptic and glial biology to develop novel therapies to treat neurological and psychiatric disease.
Established with funding from the National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the Tufts Center for Neuroscience Research provides core research services to neuroscientists.
The results are clear: Tufts researchers recently discovered a previously unknown function performed by a type of cell that makes up nearly half of all cells in the brain. The discovery might one day lead to treatments for disorders including epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, and traumatic brain injury. Meanwhile, faculty in the Psychology department and at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutritional Research Center on Aging are unlocking keys to maintaining the health of aging minds.
At the Center for Applied Brain and Cognitive Sciences (CABCS), interdisciplinary research teams advance applied brain and cognitive sciences. CABCS works to measure, predict, and enhance cognitive capabilities and human-system interactions for individuals and teams. The work enhances the survival of soldiers, medics, firefighters, and first responders working in high-stakes environments.
Accelerating the Translation of Research to Clinical Care
In June 2023, Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) received a $78.4M Clinical and Translational Science Award from the NIH, the fourth consecutive grant since its founding in 2008.
Tufts CTSI accelerates the translation of laboratory and medical research into clinical use, widespread medical practice, and improved health care delivery and health policy.
$78.4M
NIH grant for Tufts CTSI
The 2023 award will foster new programs to improve clinical care and health while maintaining existing Tufts CTSI resources and services for the research community.
INFECTION AND IMMUNITY
Fighting Back Against Disease
Mycobacterium tuberculosis remains the second-deadliest infectious agent in the world. In the Aldridge Laboratory at Tufts University School of Medicine, researchers are working to understand how the mycobacteria that cause tuberculosis evade antibiotic treatments and to engineer improved therapeutics for treating this dangerous disease.
If the current trend of antimicrobial resistance continues, by 2050, drug-resistant disease could cause 10 million deaths annually surpassing diabetes, heart disease, and cancer as leading causes of death.
The Stuart B. Levy Center for Integrated Management of Antimicrobial Resistance at Tufts (Levy CIMAR) is innovating to protect humanity from the global threat of antimicrobial resistance. The research focuses on developing multidrug therapies, predicting and preventing public health emergencies, optimizing the use of antimicrobials, and raising awareness.
By integrating solutions across human and veterinary medicine, the center is finding novel ways to ensure that humanity’s arsenal of treatments remains effective.
While Lyme disease can often be successfully treated with antibiotics, 10–20 percent of patients experience persistent fatigue, joint pain, and mental impairments that last for months or years. In some cases, it is never clear whether a patient’s longlasting symptoms signal persistent infection, reinfection, or malfunction by the body’s disease-fighting immune system. The Tufts Lyme Disease Initiative is working to understand the underlying causes of chronic Lyme disease, test a promising screening tool to diagnose Lyme disease sooner, show when people are cured of an initial infection, diagnose reinfection, and understand maladaptive immune system responses to the Lyme bacterium.
The aim: to eradicate Lyme disease by 2030.
MATERIALS
Inventing the Building Blocks of Tomorrow
The Tufts Interdisciplinary Advanced Materials Center unifies the work of more than four dozen Tufts researchers whose technical interests include materials science and engineering. Together, they produce highly innovative research that advances basic and applied knowledge in materials. One area of focus: materials for clean tech including smart polymers.
Biomaterials living, sustainable materials for high-technology applications fill the gap between nature and technology. The Tufts Silklab team has developed biopolymer-based sensors that glow when pathogens, toxins, or dangerous chemicals are present, and which can be printed on almost anything.
Through a collaboration between Silklab, the Laboratory for Living Devices, and the Stuart B. Levy Center for Integrated Management of Antimicrobial Resistance, Tufts researchers are investigating the possibility of using silk to stabilize antibiotics in different combinations and doses to collect more specific information about how effective they might be against an infection.
Below: A sheet of silk containing diffractive optical elements, which change the shape of light, made in Tufts Silklab using discarded silk from the fashion industry. Such optical features are used in everything from holograms to lasers.
CLIMATE AND ENERGY
Supporting Responsible Management of Our Oceans
The U.S. is poised for significant offshore wind energy development along its eastern seaboard.
To the challenges and opportunities of the shared use of U.S. coastal waters, Tufts brings its expertise to MOCEAN. Funded by a National Science Foundation Type I Regional Innovation Engines Program, MOCEAN is a consortium that focuses on responsible ocean management, promoting multipurpose offshore wind energy farms and enhancing the marine environment.
This consortium plays a crucial role in the transition to a low-carbon energy economy to combat climate change. To do this, MOCEAN advances marine and material science, engineering practice, economic models, blue tech, policy, and data-driven frameworks to ensure healthy oceans, a strong and diverse new blue economy, and a just energy transition.
Future-Proofing Health Against Climate Catastrophe
Climate-related disasters like floods, typhoons, and droughts create dangerous health outcomes for affected communities. At Tufts, the Center for Climate and Health glObal Research on Disasters (CORD) brings together a team of researchers identifying methods to head off these outcomes, including malnutrition and diseases like cholera and dengue.
Reaching beyond its Tufts home at the Feinstein International Center at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, CORD includes more than 25 researchers and 10 doctoral students at seven universities in the United States, Bangladesh, Lesotho, Namibia, Mozambique, the Philippines, and Uganda.
Researchers will identify pragmatic steps that can be taken ahead of predicted hazards to reduce — and, ideally, prevent — negative health outcomes for communities affected by environmental catastrophes.
IN COMMUNITY
Advancing Institutional Inclusive Excellence
One of Tufts’ marquee programs is Connecting the Community of Tufts Scholars (CCTS), a faculty cluster hiring initiative advancing innovation through research.
“CCTS is one way in which we put resources toward our goal of institutional inclusive excellence. Ultimately, it brings us one step closer to creating more equity in our scholarly community and a better Tufts,” says Caroline Genco, provost and senior vice president.
Faculty “clusters” center around research themes aligned with the university’s goals and are shaped by community input. In 2023, Tufts launched the first of these cluster hiring initiatives, focused on climate.
Each faculty member hired under the CCTS program will join a group of talented scholars to shape relevant dialogues across Tufts’ campuses.
The program is designed to have an impact on the education and research happening at the university today and to shape the institution going forward.
“CCTS puts diversity at the center of our academic pursuits in this first case, our research on climate solutions,” says Monroe France, vice provost for institutional inclusive excellence. “That is the kind of innovation that creates excellence.”
Built into the design of the program is the intention to make strides that extend racial equity beyond Tufts’ campuses. “As we hire these groups in each theme, we are investing in their growth and development and supporting them in their research projects and other endeavors,” France says. “Then, when they are teaching in their classrooms and when they take their research into the world, they’ll be looking at their endeavors through a lens of racial equity. That has a broad impact.”
Shining New Light on Global Public Investments in Energy RD&D
Climate change is the most pressing global policy challenge of our time. Without addressing climate change, other global challenges related to health, security, economic stability, conflict resolution, injustice, and sustainable development cannot be adequately addressed.
The Fletcher School’s Climate Policy Lab (CPL) at Tufts University works to determine which climate policies work, which don’t, and why. The lab conducts independent, evidence-based research and policy analysis, providing objective insights that enhance effective climate-related choices for policy makers across the geographic and ideological spectrum.
In March 2023, the CPL launched a new, expansive global dataset on research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) expenditures to provide a global picture of energy RD&D investments. The goal: improving the accessibility of these important data to deepen our understanding of how much countries spend in this critical area of technological innovation.
Monroe France, Vice Provost for Institutional Inclusive Excellence
Caroline Genco, Provost and Senior Vice President
TUFTS’ INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM
Interconnected and Dynamic — Designed for Positive Impact
Big Data for Democracy
Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life has one of the biggest research teams devoted to democracy in the U.S. today. Through its focus on understanding the challenges — and opportunities — of democracy and civic life, Tisch College drives national conversations about voting and elections, the role of citizens, the health of democratic institutions, and the power of young people.
1
Number of U.S. universities with schools of arts and sciences, engineering, fine arts, global affairs, civic life, and the health sciences
Tufts University is committed to advancing research and innovation to the highest standards. At Tufts, we explore beyond traditional boundaries, fostering collaboration among diverse fields, faculty, and students, bridging the gap between current knowledge and future possibilities. With over 1,600 faculty members, Tufts prides itself on being a hub of innovation and interdisciplinary exploration.
Innovation and collaborative partnerships form the bedrock of discovery at Tufts, where researchers, scholars, students, and staff share a collective dedication to intellectual growth and societal contribution. This commitment is deeply rooted in the institution’s ethos of being a research-driven, student-centered university.
Across various disciplines, from health to humanities, technology to the environment, and addressing policy and nutrition challenges, Tufts’ ecosystem is designed to catalyze future growth and reinforce Tufts’ mission to yield meaningful solutions with global impact.
Creating a Sustainable Path to a Brighter Future
ONGOING RESEARCH ENDEAVORS ACROSS OUR CAMPUSES HOLD THE POTENTIAL TO:
› Explore the connections between broadband and civic participation, where unequal access can exacerbate inequities and social exclusion, preventing full engagement in civic life and democracy
› Dive deeply into the intersection of environmental sustainability, human capital development, and poverty alleviation to address challenges faced by lower-income countries
› Develop tools to help model and better forecast acute hunger crises such as famines
› Illuminate the physiological toll of chronic exposure to racism, examining its impact on maternal and child health, questioning the intersection of race and biology
› Develop drones equipped with AI to aid wildlife conservation
› Provide temporary relief from ongoing pain through virtualreality experiences
› Solve the mystery of aging by studying the biology of aging, keeping our brains healthy, and examining the link between gum disease and Alzheimer’s disease
› Rebuild America’s critical technology infrastructure, including chip manufacturing facilities in the U.S.
› Expand our understanding of how technological innovations can be applied to develop a green-fuel value chain that serves the shipping industry
› Create tiny living robots from human cells that may one day be able to help heal wounds or damaged tissue
› Advance innovative technologies and solutions focused on sustainable practices, resource conservation, and environmental protection in marine and aquatic environments
› Explore the next phase in monitoring wild animals for COVID-19 with stronger surveillance testing of wild animals for SARS-CoV-2
› Detect bacteria, toxins, and dangerous chemicals in the environment using printable biopolymer sensors
SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
GRADUATE SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES
CUMMINGS SCHOOL OF VETERINARY MEDICINE
SCHOOL OF DENTAL MEDICINE
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
THE FLETCHER SCHOOL
FRIEDMAN SCHOOL OF NUTRITION SCIENCE AND POLICY
JEAN MAYER USDA HUMAN NUTRITION RESEARCH CENTER ON AGING
SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
SCHOOL OF THE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS
JONATHAN M. TISCH COLLEGE OF CIVIC LIFE
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE
THE PEOPLE OF TUFTS
An Engine for Research Solutions
Tufts Ranks in the Top 100 U.S. Universities for Utility Patents
In a new ranking announced by the National Academy of Inventors, Tufts places among the top universities for the number of utility patents granted, signaling the vitality of our innovation ecosystem.
Because utility patents give inventors exclusive commercial rights to produce and use the path-breaking technology, they are uniquely valuable. Tufts continues to create new technologies that project the problem-solving impact of our research into the world.
Into the National Academies
Karen Panetta, professor and dean of graduate education for the School of Engineering, was elected to the National Academy of Engineering for her efforts in supporting women in STEM and her research contributions in the field of electrical and computer engineering.
Stern Family Endowed Professor of Engineering David Kaplan was named a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors for his work in biopolymer engineering, tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, and cellular agriculture. He holds more than 150 patents, has supported a dozen spin-out companies and many other technology developments with origins at Tufts.
People make Tufts a world-class research institution with a thriving innovation ecosystem. Our faculty are members of major academies and learned societies. They have won international recognition ranging from Guggenheim Fellowships to the Pulitzer Prize.
Our graduate students and postdoctoral scholars produce knowledge within their chosen fields and engage with scholars and innovators across the university to advance research and scholarship. And our high-achieving undergraduate students benefit from the resources of a major research university coupled with the support of a liberal arts college.
THE PEOPLE OF TUFTS
Inventing for Impact
In 2023 five Tufts faculty have been named as senior members of the National Academy of Inventors, thus recognized as rising leaders in their respective fields who have produced technologies that have brought or aspire to bring a positive impact on society:
AYSE ASATEKIN
Associate professor and Remondi Fellow in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at the School of Engineering, recognized for her research on designing novel membranes for water treatment, pollutant removal, bioseparations, and energy-efficient filtration processes
ALEXEI DEGTEREV
Associate professor in the Department of Developmental, Molecular, and Chemical Biology at the School of Medicine, recognized for his investigations of the molecular mechanisms of regulated cell death
PHILIP HAYDON
Grisard Professor at the School of Medicine, recognized for his leadership in the study of neuroglial interactions
CHARLES SHOEMAKER
Professor in the Department of Infectious Disease and Global Health at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, recognized for his research in collaboration with other academic labs and commercial entities on the discovery of camelid single-domain antibody components and their engineering into therapeutic biomolecules for treating a wide variety of diseases
KRISHNA KUMAR
Robinson Professor of Chemistry in the School of Arts and Sciences, recognized for his leadership of a program at the interface of chemistry, biology, and medicine
Tufts is home to 11 fellows of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) and to a new Tufts University NAI chapter, led by its first president, Professor Karen Panetta. The NAI was founded to recognize and encourage inventors with U.S. patents and enhance the visibility of academic technology and innovation. Election as an academy fellow is the highest professional distinction awarded solely to inventors.
THE PEOPLE OF TUFTS
Innovators of the Year
Celebrating faculty who have achieved milestones toward the commercialization of their disclosed inventions, Tufts recognizes two individuals each year for their contributions and impact: the Rising Innovator of the Year and the Distinguished Innovator of the Year.
Ayse Asatekin, associate professor and Steve and Kristen Remondi Fellow in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at the School of Engineering, was named 2023 Rising Innovator of the Year. This award recognizes Tufts faculty members who received their terminal degree less than 15 years ago, and who have demonstrated an ambitious entrepreneurial spirit by actively developing new innovations and moving them to the market.
Michael Levin, Distinguished Professor and Vannevar Bush Professor in the Department of Biology in the School of Arts and Sciences, was named 2023 Distinguished Innovator of the Year. This award recognizes a Tufts faculty member who displays an exemplary entrepreneurial spirit and service to the institution by not only moving new technologies from the university laboratory to the market, but also broadly supporting innovation at Tufts through mentoring, collaboration, and partnership.
From left to right: Innovator of the Year Event fireside chat with Ann DeWitt, general partner at Engine Ventures; Kathryn Kosuda, co-founder and chief scientific officer at Vaxess Technologies; Fiorenzo Omenetto, Doble Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tufts School of Engineering
THE PEOPLE OF TUFTS
Early-Career Researchers Make Their Mark
Four Tufts School of Engineering faculty received the prestigious NSF CAREER Award in FY2023:
LIPING LIU, Computer Science
New Frontiers in Graph Generation: The goal of this project is to contribute to the probabilistic foundation of graph modeling to serve the long-term development of graph generative models, important tools for modeling graph data, including new molecule structures at the early stages of drug discovery and simulation of large networks for system development and data sharing.
GRESES PÉREZ, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Black-Latinx Resources in Community-Led Engineering Investigating the Role of Language and Culture: The goal of this project is to develop a theoretical model of Black-Latinx language and cultural practices in engineering and a pedagogical approach called community-led engineering.
JIVKO SINAPOV, Computer Science
Learning and Sharing Transferable Grounded Object
Knowledge for Collaborative Robots: The goal of this project is to enable multiple heterogeneous robots to learn and share multisensory object knowledge.
BRIAN TIMKO, Biomedical Engineering
Bioelectronics-embedded Hybrid Brain Tissues: The goal of this project is to use an innovative route toward a hybrid brain tissue model that provides continuous readouts of neural network activity as well as highly localized stimulus inputs to determine if the information stored and transmitted in neural networks can be decoded or reprogrammed via a two-way bioelectronic interface.
“As a postdoctoral scholar at Tufts, I am immersed in a welcoming and collaborative research community that fosters innovation and a sense of belongingness. The mentorship of esteemed faculty and the support from passionate students provided a fertile ground for my research pursuits.
This invaluable experience at Tufts is instrumental in shaping my future orientation as a researcher in developmental science focusing on marginalized populations and individuals.”
— Nan Xiao President, Tufts University Postdoctoral Association
Postdoctoral researchers at Tufts
BY
THE NUMBERS
Tufts’ Research on an Upward Trajectory
Tufts has increased its total research expenditure over a 10-year period by 54 percent, up to $247M in FY2023 compared to $160M in 2014
RESEARCH EXPENDITURE
RESEARCH EXPENDITURE
Source: National Sciences Foundation (NSF) Higher Education Research and Development Survey 2022
BY THE NUMBERS (FY23)
Tufts University researchers are creating innovative solutions for some of the world’s most pressing challenges. Technology Transfer and Industry Collaboration drives the dissemination of Tufts’ technologies for the greater global good, actively fostering the establishment of new ventures through startup initiatives.
82 Invention disclosures
New United States patents filed
58 13 6 $8,543,438
License/options concluded
Tufts Launchpad | Accelerator
At Tufts, we understand that successful technology transfer requires bridging the “valley of death” — the gap between federal funding and commercial interest.
Tufts Launchpad | Accelerator (TLA) closes that gap through active investment in our innovators. With funding of up to $75K per project and business development support, TLA facilitates product development and technology de-risking.
Our goals: attracting follow-on resources and generating licensing interest from existing companies or startups to translate groundbreaking discoveries into useful products.
Technology startups founded on Tufts IP
Total income
SELECTED TUFTS MEDIA PLACEMENTS
Maximizing Our Reach
Inside China’s Tech Boom
PREMIERE DATE: 11/8/2023
Featuring Kelly Sims Gallagher, dean ad interim, professor of energy and environmental policy, and director, Climate Policy Lab, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy
The CHIPS Act: Made in America, Again
PREMIERE DATE: 3/5/2023
Featuring Chris Miller, associate professor, international History, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy
Without a Plan to Fight Superbugs, the Cancer Moonshot Will Never Achieve Liftoff
PUBLICATION DATE: 8/3/2023
Featuring Helen Boucher, dean, School of Medicine, and chief academic officer, Tufts Medicine
Vigilance Urged Against Bird Flu Amid Ongoing Outbreaks in Mammals
PUBLICATION DATE: 7/26/2023
Featuring Jonathan Runstadler, professor and chair, Department of Infectious Disease and Global Health, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine
Tiny Living Robots Made from Human Cells Surprise Scientists
PUBLICATION DATE: 11/30/2023
Featuring Michael Levin, Vannevar Bush Professor of Biology, Distinguished Professor, director of the Allen Discovery Center, and director of the Tufts Center for Regenerative and Developmental Biology, and Gizem Gumuskaya, Ph.D. student, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
FOR RESEARCHERS AND PARTNERS
Resources to Propel Discovery
In addition to more than 45 interdisciplinary centers and institutes focused on topics ranging from medicine, science, and technology to animals and the environment, Tufts has a robust collection of resources, both physical and intellectual, that empower our researchers and partners to do their best work. A small selection of these resources include those listed here.
“Tufts research and IP was foundational to the formation of Vaxess, and over the years, our partnership has enabled the company’s growth in many dimensions. From exceptional student talent to the use of Tufts Comparative Medicine Services to drive our preclinical development, collaboration with the university continues to be central to our progress.”
— Kathryn Kosuda Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer
“The originating academic institution and its ecosystem are critical factors of success to any young startup and even more for deep tech founders solving our world’s biggest challenges. Tufts is one of these incredible ecosystems that supports teams and creates new possibilities. Engine Ventures is delighted to be investors in the ideas, innovations, and companies that Tufts launches.”
— Ann DeWitt General Partner
Core facilities available to external researchers
Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute is a thriving partnership of 39 organizations with nationally recognized strengths in emergency medicine, large effectiveness trials, clinical trials methods innovations, and translational science education.
The Tufts New England Regional Biosafety Laboratory is a 41,000-square-foot resource available to researchers in industry, academia, government and nonprofits, dedicated to the study of existing and emerging infectious diseases, toxin-mediated diseases, and medical countermeasures important to biodefense.
Tufts is home to excellent core facilities, including a high-performance computing cluster, bioinformatics services, digital humanities assistance, and animal-care facilities.
CONNECT WITH US AT vpresearch.tufts.edu/ partner-with-us
