East Tennessee State University Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy is leading a multi-college initiative to strengthen research infrastructure and support scientific discovery across campus.

The $250,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) Institute of General Medical Sciences will support the acquisition of a Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) system. The instrument will serve as a shared resource for investigators across the university, helping researchers identify and measure substances at extremely low levels.

Dr. Stacy Brown

Dr. Stacy Brown, chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Gatton, is the principal investigator of the grant, which reflects the continued growth in the college’s research capacity and momentum.

“This instrument allows us to make a very focused investment in a capability that many researchers across campus need but don’t individually have access to,” said Brown. “It expands what we can measure and understand, from fundamental biological processes to applied work in drug development and environmental health. Over time, that kind of shared infrastructure supports discoveries that ultimately inform real-world health decisions.”

Rather than serving a single laboratory, the new instrument will support researchers across the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Pharmacy, Public Health and Medicine.

“This is a major accomplishment for Dr. Brown as well as the college and university as a whole,” said Dr. Debbie Byrd, Gatton’s dean. “This new instrumentation will enhance collaboration across ETSU, expand opportunities for students and researchers, and provide access to advanced analytical tools that help drive discovery and innovation.”

It’s an investment that aligns with ETSU’s Research Strategic Plan, particularly its emphasis on strengthening research infrastructure and advancing biomedical sciences.

In addition to supporting research across campus, the system will expand hands-on training opportunities for students, reinforcing ETSU’s commitment to research engagement and workforce development, as well as its reputation as a premier health sciences university.

Learn more about Gatton’s commitment to Appalachia at etsu.edu/pharmacy.

NIH Acknowledgment

This project is supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the NIH through the Instrumentation Program for Resource Limited Institutions (RLI-S10) under Award Number S10GM164675. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.

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