Tulane University announced on Thursday morning that the Tulane National Primate Research Center in Covington, Louisiana would be renamed as the Tulane National Biomedical Research Center. The new name is intended to reflect the center’s recent expansions.

“As science has evolved through the decades, so have the scope, scale and approaches of the center,” President Mike Fitts said in a university press release. “Clearly the center has entered a new and exciting chapter — one that is part of Tulane’s rise in all aspects — and one that requires a new name, as well.”

The newly named center is home to one of seven National Primate Research Centers in the nation and one of 12 Regional Biocontainment Laboratories, which are authorized to hold highly infectious agents.

Infectious disease research has historically made up the majority of the Tulane center’s output since its founding in 1964, with nonhuman primates serving as models for human diseases. HIV/AIDS, Zika virus, Lyme disease and COVID-19 have been among the investigators’ main targets.

While nonhuman primate research will remain a key part of the Biomedical Research Center’s mission, newly available lab-grown organs, organ-on-a-chip models and computer models that replicate the structure and function of human systems are expected to become a larger part of its investigators’ studies.

“Our new name reflects the full spectrum of work we do, our commitment to using animals responsibly and only when needed to generate meaningful results, and the highest standards of scientific integrity that continue to guide everything we do,” said Jay Rappaport, Tulane National Biomedical Research Center director and chief academic officer, in the university’s statement.

In July, the then National Primate Research center opened a new 10,000-square-foot office space and a 1,000-square-foot biosafety level-2 laboratory, to better accommodate its 350 employees and their growing research operations.