Mclaughlin Research Institute for Biomedical Sciences Inc

What it reported doing in 2024

During fiscal year 2025, the institute scientists and staff continued their efforts to better understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms of neurodegenerative disease processes through innovative genetic approaches in murine models, translational research on treatment advances and expansion of rural health research through education, community engagement, and student training programs. The research focus has expanded to include cellular and molecular mechanisms of misfolded protein propagation in diseases such as alzheimer's and parkinson's diseases, prion diseases and amyolateral sclerosis; extracellular trafficking in macular degeneration; including novel screening and treatment approaches. Further advancement in rural health research, the institute expanded efforts to include early screening for pediatric anxiety and continued plans for future studies in schizophrenia. Such work included partnerships with up to 10 collaborators and 18 projects among investigators with partnerships extending across Montana and nationally to New York and New Jersey, Massachusetts, North Carolina and California which resultant subawards contributed to $803,000 of nih grant funded support and $364,000 in research contracts. Efforts continued towards understanding alzheimer's disease with partners at columbia university and wake forest university; prion diseases with partners at the broad & prion alliance. Investigators continued critical work on novel treatment development screening through ongoing collaborationwith pharmaceutical companies and welcomed new collaborations with silver lake research & boston children's hospital. The institute continued efforts through nih funded grants (awarded 2024) in the amount of $2.9m for the first year and 2.6m/year for following four years launching the novel center for integrated biomedical and ruralhealth research focused on distributed research support for new investigators; $630,000/year for five years of neuroinflammation in alzheimer's disease model research. Additional nih funds through transfer from duke university concluded the investigation of extracellular vesicles in age related macular degeneration. A portion of funds, $196,500 was awarded to the institute from the murdock foundation to support the purchase and implementation of a small animal magnetic resonance imager. The institute received $1.01m in contributions that included $770,250 in research and education support from affiliate, touro university. These funds were utilized to support ongoing research and education as well as fundamental infrastructure support.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 82.6%; rating input score 83
• Program expense ratio: 95.8%; rating input score 96
• Fundraising efficiency: $140.95 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
  • Compensation committee: Missing
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Missing
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 15.2%; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.07; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 13.9%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 8.8% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 2.5% per year; rating input score 100; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: -0% per year; rating input score 0; 12th percentile among comparable filings