In the twenty-first century, microbial scientists will address biological questions of unprecedented complexity and importance. They will employ technologies and strategies unimagined today. These scientists must be broadly trained, eager to approach research in non-traditional ways and to cross traditional academic boundaries, and able to work as members of multi-disciplinary research teams. Needless to say, they will also need access to the best instrumentation and facilities available.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Microbial Sciences Initiative was undertaken to provide an environment where scientists and students can freely engage in this cutting-edge approach to scientific discovery. To achieve this, UW-Madison’s three core microbiology departments — Bacteriology, Food Microbiology & Toxicology (Food Research Institute) and Medical Microbiology & Immunology — have joined forces to create an international center of excellence in the microbial sciences. At the heart of this bold new initiative is the Microbial Sciences Building, a 330,000-square-foot, $120.5 million complex now under construction, which will house the three departments.

No institution is better poised to take the field of microbial sciences in this new direction than the University of Wisconsin-Madison. For more than a century, microbiologists on the Madison campus have been leaders in education, discovery, and innovation. Our vision for the future is to continue this leadership role.

UW-Madison’s research expertise in the microbial sciences is unsurpassed. It covers the expanse of this very broad discipline. Scientists on the Madison campus study infectious diseases, emerging pathogens, food-borne diseases, food toxicants, parasites, fungal and viral pathogens, and bio-defense strategies. Other researchers study the amazing abilities of microbes to produce alternative energy sources and microbial fuel cells, mitigate global climate change, improve water quality, clean up environmental pollutants and serve as biological control agents in agriculture. Still others study genetic systems, metabolic pathways, communication networks, relationships with microbial communities and between microbes and other organisms, regulatory mechanisms, molecular structure and function, and systems biology.

An essential component of the Microbial Sciences Initiative is to provide a world-class instructional center. To achieve this, the Microbial Sciences Building will house the microbiology instructional programs, giving the core departments the ability to fully integrate and enrich their extensive undergraduate and graduate programs.

A centerpiece of the Microbial Sciences Initiative is the cross-campus Microbiology Doctoral Training Program, ranked first among microbiology programs at public universities. This program, created several years ago by the merger of the Bacteriology and the Medical Microbiology & Immunology Ph.D. programs, now includes 110 students and more than 80 faculty trainers from 20 departments. Outstanding B.S. and M.S. degree programs are also offered in Bacteriology and Medical Microbiology & Immunology.

The Microbial Sciences Building will also be home to two NIH-funded programs, the Biotechnology Predoctoral Training Program—(the largest in the United States) and the Microbial Pathogenesis and Host Responses Training Program, as well as a summer Undergraduate Research Experience in Microbiology program.

The future holds incredible promise of scientific advances in the areas of human and animal health, agriculture, food safety, restoration and preservation of the environment, and understanding fundamental life processes.

Research advances will enable biotechnologists to develop drugs with a high degree of specificity, new antibiotics and vaccines, specialty chemicals, and natural products such as flavorings. Genetically engineered microbes will be able to convert sunlight or waste materials into useful products like hydrogen or biodegradable plastics, to inactivate environmental toxins, and to reduce the level of greenhouse gases in the environment.

The Microbial Sciences Initiative will train tomorrow’s leaders in the field to approach research in novel, non-traditional ways, using and developing modern technologies along the way. The Ph.D. graduates and post-doctoral researchers will make scientific inroads unimagined today. These individuals will provide the well-trained workforce needed for the biotechnology industry, academic institutions, the foods and pharmaceutical industries, clinical laboratories, and government agencies.

The Microbial Sciences programs at the UW Madison will continue to educate the public about the importance of microbiology in their everyday lives and to stimulate young minds to pursue careers in science.