The Nobel Laureate, Paul Nurse, is to become the first director and chief executive of a £600-million (US$890 million), medical research complex planned for the centre of London.

Nurse’s appointment was expected. For the past two years he has been in charge of drawing up the science vision for the UK Centre for Medical Research and Innovation (UKCMRI), which will be located near London’s St Pancras International station. He will take up his post on 1 January 2011.

Detailed plans for the building which will house 1,500 staff and cost £100 million per year to operate, were unveiled last month. To encourage collaboration it will have an open plan design and forgo traditional academic departments for multidisciplinary ‘interest groups’ that are set up by the researchers themselves.

The UK Medical Research Council (MRC) will pay roughly half the construction costs and University College London (UCL), which will contribute £46 million to the building. The medical charities, Cancer Research UK and the Wellcome Trust are also partners in the project.

Plans for the new facility will be submitted to local authorities in August and, if approved, construction could begin early next year

The news of Nurse’s appointment has been widely welcomed.

Leszek Borysiewicz, chief executive of the MRC described Nurse as having an “outstanding international reputation” and as director of the UKCMRI “will lead the creation of a truly groundbreaking biomedical research institute.”

Harpal Kumar, chief executive of CRUK said he was “delighted” at the appointment adding that Nurse he is “exactly the kind of inspirational, world-class leader” the institute needs.

Nurse is going to be busy. In April it was announced that be would become the next president of the Royal Society, the UK’s national academy of science. He is expected to take up the role on 30 November.