UCLA receives $120 million donation to create vaccines, cure disease

UCLA received a $120 million donation to kick-start its new immunology research center, which has big goals to create life saving vaccines and cure devastating diseases like cancer.

The funding was provided by spine surgeon and inventor Gary Michelson and his wife Alya. The couple hopes the gift will keep on giving when the center spurs medical breakthroughs in the field of immunology

“Immunology is the mediator of nearly all human diseases, whether we’re talking about cancer or heart disease or Alzheimer’s,” Michelson said. “The vision for this institute is to become a ‘field of dreams’ — the world’s leading center for the study of the immune system to develop advanced immunotherapies to prevent, treat and cure all of the diseases that afflict people today and to end these diseases in our lifetime.”

Michelson is co-founder and chair of the board of the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy, which will be housed within UCLA’s new Research Park.

In January, Governor Gavin Newsom provided the university with $200 million to purchase the former Westside Pavilion Mall and transform it into a cutting-edge center. On Tuesday, he thanked the Michelson’s for their donation to help move the research into action.

“This incredible act of generosity by Alya and Gary Michelson, coupled with Gary’s prolific work over the years as a leading innovator in the medical field, perfectly exemplifies the California spirit and will help ensure our state’s global economic, scientific, and technological dominance for decades to come,” said Newsom.

The immunology center will occupy 360,000 square feet of the 700,000-square-foot research park, which will also be home to UCLA’s new center for quantum computing research. The research hub is slated to open in May 2027, with the talent recruitment and staffing process estimated to take another two years.

Of the Michelsons’ $120 million donation, $50 million will go to rapid vaccine development, $50 million will go to studying how microbiomes such as bacteria, fungi and viruses impact health and $20 million will provide research grants to up and coming scientists.

The immunology institute aims to piggyback on the latest immunology breakthroughs made during the pandemic to help advance the treatment of diseases, strengthen the immune system and increase longevity. Through gaining a deeper understanding of the immune system, researchers hope to develop new treatments for cancer, autoimmune disorders, infectious diseases, allergies, heart conditions and organ transplants.

The Michelsons’ gift also earned kudos from Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, who said “locking arms to make investments like this opens the possibility for groundbreaking research that has the potential to fundamentally change health outcomes around the world and create good jobs in Los Angeles.”

Gary Michelson made his fortune by developing more than 1,000 patents for medical inventions, many of which are related to spine surgery.

In 2016, the Michelsons signed The Giving Pledge, a campaign launched by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett that encourages the wealthiest individuals to contribute the majority of their fortune to philanthropic causes. Gary Michelson has also provided USC with a $50 million donation to open a bioscience research center.

Tuesday’s gift is the Michelsons’ largest donation over more than 30 years of philanthropy and one of the largest single dollar amounts ever received by UCLA.

“I am grateful to Alya and Gary and their fellow co-founder,” said Dr. John Mazziotta, UCLA’s vice chancellor for health sciences and CEO of UCLA Health. “Their vision for and support of the institute is a vote of confidence in our ability to cure some of the most devastating disorders together.”