The EBS played a critical role in the development of a University-wide Center for Computational Medicine and Biology (www.ccmb.med.umich.edu).  This Center is responsible for the Bioinformatics Graduate Program, offering both PhD and M.S. degrees.  The CCMB is the home for the NIH Roadmap National Center for Integrative Biomedical Informatics, one of seven National Centers for Biomedical Computing.  The National Center brings together computer scientists and engineers, mathematicians, and statisticians with biologists, chemists, and biomedical investigators.  It generates new informatics tools and algorithms, and explores systems biology studies of cancer progression, diabetic complications, and heterogeneity of diabetes and of bipolar depression, among other applications (http://ncibi.org).  The CCMB is developing a Collaborative Computing and Data Resource, with consultative services and specialized infrastructure expertise.  As of January 2007, it has 101 faculty affiliates, 50 from the Medical School and 51 from the rest of the University.

CCMB is playing a key role in planning for the campus research computing environment under the leadership of the Office of the Vice-President for Research and the Provost. The CCMB has provided key inputs for development of the Biomedical Informatics Program for the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research, which will assist EBS faculty in building ties with faculty in clinical departments and in other parts of the University.

EBS collaborated with the CCMB to create the EBS Computational Biology Initiative.  The aim is to increase our strength in multi-scalar modeling of intracellular pathways and physiological processes and to guide EBS faculty and students in data mining and model building to enhance their experimental protocols and interpretations of results. 

The CB Initiative has three elements:

• Recruitment of faculty for primary appointment in an EBS department or unit, affiliated with the CCMB.  An announcement was placed in Science 1 December 2006, inviting applicants for three positions.
• Enhanced funding for the CCMB Pilot Projects Grants program, with specific encouragement of participation of EBS investigators.
• Targeted support from the CCMB Collaborative Computing and Data Unit for EBS investigators.  

The EBS-CB Initiative will enhance other EBS initiatives, including specifically Genetics and Genomics, Host Pathogen, Stem Cell, and Protein Structure/Dynamics/Design, plus the Metabolomics and Obesity Center and the Brehm Center for Type 1 Diabetes Research and Analysis.