The Translational Gene Technologies Competence Centre has officially opened at the Life Sciences Center of Vilnius University, becoming one of the most advanced life sciences research infrastructures in the region. The Centre is equipped with cutting-edge scientific instrumentation, including equipment with no equivalent elsewhere in the Baltic States. The infrastructure was acquired through the European Union-funded Mission-Based Science and Innovation Programmes project, coordinated by the Innovation Agency Lithuania.
The new Centre is one of the flagship outcomes of the Innovation for Health mission. The initiative brought together academia, industry, and the public sector with a shared goal of accelerating the development of innovations and bringing them to market more efficiently.
The Centre's greatest strength lies not only in its technologies but also in their accessibility. The facilities will be available not only to researchers but also to companies and start-ups seeking advanced capabilities to develop new healthcare innovations.
"This was the first initiative of its kind in Lithuania. The science and innovation programmes were implemented across three thematic areas: a safe and inclusive society, a smart and climate-neutral Lithuania, and innovation for health," says Martynas Survilas, Director of the Breakthrough Department at the Innovation Agency Lithuania.
Infrastructure That Opens New Opportunities
Until now, many complex biological analyses carried out by Lithuanian researchers required collaboration with laboratories abroad. This not only prolonged research timelines but also created significant challenges when working with sensitive biological samples.
"This is truly unique equipment. Previously, we had to travel abroad to perform comparable analyses. In some cases, transporting cells or other biological samples is practically impossible or extremely difficult. Now we can carry out even the most sophisticated analyses here in Lithuania," says Julius Gagilas, Vice Director of the Life Sciences Center at Vilnius University.
The Centre's laboratories house one of the most advanced scientific infrastructures in the region. Among its flagship instruments is an ultra-high-resolution mass spectrometer, capable of analysing proteins and identifying disease-specific biomarkers. Such analyses create new opportunities for developing more precise diagnostic methods and advancing personalised medicine.
According to J. Gagilas, the new technologies significantly expand the scope of research that can now be performed.
"We now have much greater sensitivity and analytical speed. We can conduct studies that were previously impossible—examining cellular states in far greater detail, monitoring the effects of different compounds, and gaining a deeper understanding of disease mechanisms," he explains.
Open Infrastructure Driving Innovation
One of the Centre's core objectives is to make high-end scientific infrastructure accessible to industry. For companies working in biotechnology, medical technologies, or healthcare innovation, acquiring such equipment independently is often prohibitively expensive. The new Centre will provide businesses with access not only to state-of-the-art instruments but also to the expertise of leading researchers.
"This infrastructure will be activated to meet the needs of companies and strengthen our start-up ecosystem. Equipment of this calibre is often beyond the financial reach of individual companies, but it will now be open to industry. Combined with the expertise of our scientists, it will significantly increase the potential for healthcare innovation," emphasises M. Survilas.
Open access to the infrastructure will enable companies to test new ideas more rapidly, develop product prototypes, and accelerate their journey from concept to commercialisation and, ultimately, to patients.
Accelerating the Path from Discovery to Patient Care
The Centre's capabilities extend beyond diagnostics and drug discovery. Advanced cell technologies enable many experiments to be performed in laboratory models, reducing the need for animal or human testing during the early stages of research.
"We can perform a wide range of drug studies using cells rather than testing on animals or humans. This allows us to evaluate many more scientific ideas efficiently and significantly speed up the development of new solutions," says J. Gagilas.
The Innovation for Health mission was one of the largest science and innovation programmes ever implemented in Lithuania.
"This consortium received more than €32 million in funding, enabling the development of new products, technologies, and stronger partnerships between science and business," notes M. Survilas.
In total, more than €88 million from the Recovery and Resilience Facility and the Lithuanian state budget has been allocated to the three Mission programmes: Innovation for Health, Safe and Inclusive e-Society, and Smart and Climate-Neutral Lithuania. The initiative was launched by the Ministry of the Economy and Innovation together with the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport, while the Innovation Agency Lithuania coordinates the implementation of the programmes.
According to M. Survilas, these investments represent a long-term commitment to Lithuania's competitiveness.
"This is substantial funding that has reached both businesses and research institutions. We expect it to generate new products, create economic value, and strengthen the future of Lithuanian science and innovation."
Lithuania's investment in advanced research infrastructure and science–industry collaboration will also be reflected on the international stage. On 27–28 April 2027, the Life Sciences Baltics forum in Kaunas will bring together the global life sciences community to discuss the future of medicine, the potential of health data, and how innovations move from the laboratory to the patient.