SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Dr. Gerold Feuer heads up the Humanized SCID Mouse Center and Stem Cell Processing Lab at SUNY Upstate Medical University. The center is used for research into human viral infections. And thanks to a $6.2 million grant, his center will be expanding to about four times its current size.

"It's a lot of money, I think it puts SUNY Upstate in a very unique position because there's not very many labs such as ours within the entire United States and, moreover, within the entire world," said Feuer, who is also a professor at SUNY Upstate Medical Center.

The majority of the grant money will go towards expanding the SCID Center. The rest will go toward research that focuses on stem cells and leukemia.

In addition to research opportunities, the money will also help create jobs here in Central New York.

"I think this has a lot of potential for increasing jobs within Central New York. Ya know, the technology and sciences is where the future of job creation lies. It doesn't like in manufacturing-based technology, so the state providing money to fund stem cell sciences is a smart move," said Feuer.

The money will help to provide jobs in a range of different fields.

"Initially it will provide jobs just in biomedical research for technicians, for people that help out in the lab. It creates new openings for graduate students. It also overall helps attract researchers to Upstate Medical University," said Feuer.

Feuer says the improvements that this grant money is used for will ultimately put Upstate Medical University in a good position to receive federal and state funding in the future.

This $6.2 million grant is the largest grant the SCID Center has ever received.