Overview

The School of Biological Sciences was established at the University of Missouri-Kansas City on January 1, 1985. It has the primary responsibility both for developing strong research programs in the modern biological sciences and for providing quality instructional programs in life sciences. The School supports the extensive health science thrust of the University through graduate and undergraduate teaching as well as postgraduate and postdoctoral research.

The creation of the School of Biological Sciences brought together existing faculty members in basic life sciences disciplines and was augmented by additional faculty positions and program improvement funds provided by the state of Missouri and private resources. The Board of Curators of the University of Missouri, as part of a development plan for the UMKC campus, has selected the School of Biological Sciences as an area targeted for programmatic eminence. The School will maintain state-of-the-art research instrumentation and will recruit of additional research-active faculty.

An Interdisciplinary Approach to Biological Sciences

Modern biological, molecular and genetic research has altered the course of science. The practical applications of this research to medicine, to agriculture, to business provide new career opportunities for the future. Modern biological sciences is the meeting ground of the converging paths of biology, chemistry and physics, applied to achieve an understanding of the nature and functional behavior of living systems. The spectacular advances of the past decades in methodology and equipment have permitted the research scientist to address questions at the cellular and molecular levels. The techniques of molecular biology and biochemistry provide a means of achieving an understanding of the regulation of gene expression and the modification of macromolecular structure. The structural and functional consequences of such changes, delineated with spectroscopic and other biophysical and analytical approaches of increasing sophistication, provide experimental bases for elucidating the mechanisms of life processes that were literally unimaginable only a decade ago. This knowledge, and the development of reliable techniques for the practical application of this information, has permitted the establishment of biotechnology as a vibrant area for current and future impact.

To prepare an individual adequately for a career in science, our research programs provide ongoing projects in a variety of areas within the broadest boundaries of interest and within a unifying theme of Molecular Recognition in Biological Systems.