An $11 million federal grant will boost the study of antibiotic resistant bacteria and infectious diseases in Kansas, by establishing a new center at Kansas University.

The five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health, announced Thursday by KU, will fund creation of the Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE): Chemical Biology of Infectious Disease at KU.

The grant was awarded to Thomas Prisinzano, professor and chair of KU’s department of medicinal chemistry in the School of Pharmacy. He is joined by Scott Hefty, associate professor in molecular biosciences in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Prisinzano said he hopes, ultimately, to help people through the center’s studies.

“Certainly infectious disease is a problem that we’ve let be dormant for a while, and we’re paying the price for now,” he said. “To help build infrastructure in the state of Kansas to increase knowledge of infectious disease is something that we’re very excited about doing.”

The center will focus on developing “small molecule chemical probes” and strategies to better understand and treat infectious diseases, according to KU.

“These efforts are especially significant with the rampant rise of antibiotic resistant bacteria and the absent treatments for many emerging infectious diseases,” Prisinzano said, adding that one such example that’s been in the news lately is the mosquito-borne zika virus.

The grant emphasizes fostering promising infectious disease research efforts of junior faculty members.

Prisinzano said he expects a few dozen researchers, including students, to be working together on various studies.

The center will be based at KU’s Lawrence campus but involve researchers from KU Medical Center and Kansas State University as well. For example, one project will entail researchers on the KU campus doing some screening and sharing results with a K-State investigator working on a virus research project, Prisinzano said.

“I like to think of it as sort of a one-plus-one-equals-three,” he said. “We’re providing these types of services to help these people do more research then they could by themselves alone.”

The grant can be renewed for additional years.

The Higuchi Biosciences Center at KU hosts two other NIH-funded COBRE centers, both of which were renewed, according to KU. The Center for Molecular Analysis of Disease Pathways, led by Susan Lunte, department of chemistry, is in its fifth year. The Center in Protein Structure and Function, led by Robert Hanzlik, department of medicinal chemistry, is in its 13th year.