BUCHAREST, MAY 27, 2016 PRESS RELEASE “EXCELLENCE CENTER IN TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE” INVESTMENT OF 9.7 MILLION EUROS AT THE CLINICAL INSTITUTE OF FUNDENI THE FUNDENI CLINICAL INSTITUTE has carried out, starting from December 21, 2012, over a period of 35 months, the project “EXCELLENCE CENTER IN TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE”, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund based on the financing contract concluded with the National Authority for Scientific Research as the Intermediate Body. The total value of the project subject to non-refundable financing is 43,652,966 lei, of which 34,968,118 lei represents non-refundable financial assistance. THE FUNDENI CLINICAL INSTITUTE is a public healthcare unit under the Ministry of Health. Founded in 1959, CIF has accumulated a long tradition in difficult pathologies such as cardiovascular, hepatic, renal, digestive, hematological, etc. Translational medicine represents the close link between fundamental and clinical research, ensuring that the results of new medical technologies developed find support and finality at the patient’s bedside. Through the direct results obtained, the investment made with the support of non-refundable financing will allow the specialists from the Institute to approach these pathologies not only from the perspective of daily clinical practice but also from the perspective of fundamental research. Thus, at the end of the project, we can enumerate the following main results:

• Establishment of the headquarters of the Center of Excellence in Translational Medicine, a building structured on 4 levels, within which 4 Central Laboratories are located – Experimental Surgery, Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Molecular Biology, Pathological Anatomy, supplemented by study spaces, teaching, technical spaces, all totaling an unfolded area of approximately 3,551 sqm;
• Equipping with state-of-the-art technology in biomedical research, over 200 medical equipment pieces, in addition to IT equipment and facilities;
• Educational infrastructure, corresponding to student teaching, PhD students, researchers, resident doctors, attracting highly qualified young specialists from the country and abroad for doctoral and post-doctoral internships by creating new laboratories/training centers based on simulation, hands-on training programs in experimental surgery rooms;
• Increased visibility and attractiveness of CIF as a partner of prestigious international research institutions in competitive research projects within international and national research programs.

The new Center of Excellence within the CIF aims to become a national and international force for implementing the results of preclinical research in clinical practice, in fields such as oncogenomics, transplantation genomics, or cellular therapies. The targeted conditions are digestive and pulmonary cancers, viral and bacterial infections, metabolic diseases, hepatic and gastrointestinal disorders. “The inauguration of this center is proof that Romanian medical research has gained visibility and has begun to articulate some premises that will lead to a coherent and well-structured system, as we still have peaks in the field that can produce results, some of them very important. The main research directions we aim for are primarily the analysis of malignant tumors, in the search for remedies for diseases that still have no solutions, and here we will focus on oncogenomics and proteomics.” declared Mr. Prof. Dr. Irinel Popescu, the director of this project. For additional information, please contact the conference secretariat at 0742.355.773 Laura Sandu / 0748.100.281 Ana Maria Chiriac / cemt@sprinter.ro. CENTER OF EXCELLENCE IN TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE Project 951 / SMIR CSNR 14056 Operational Program for Economic Competitiveness Growth Operation 2.2.1 Development of Existing R&D Infrastructure and Creation of New R&D Infrastructures (laboratories, research centers) Presentation of the CEMT Center