Paul Allen, the co-founder of Microsoft, has given $5-million to the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, his first grant to a global-health cause, reports The Seattle Times.

The donation will support research into new tuberculosis drugs, and officials at the institute hope it will be the first of many such donations by Mr. Allen.

While Mr. Allen’s former business partner, Bill Gates, has given generously to global health issues, Mr. Allen’s philanthropic interests have been a bit more other-worldly, and have included support for an experimental spaceship and research into alien civilizations, the Times reports.

Mr. Allen’s grant, made by the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, in part requires matching funds from other donors. With the grant money, the institute will hire a new researcher and study innovative approaches to fighting tuberculosis, the paper reports.

See a Chronicle of Philanthropy article about Mr. Allen’s giving and The Chronicle’s annual list of the donors who gave the most to charity, on which Mr. Allen ranked No. 42.

(A paid subscription or short-term pass is required to view the Chronicle article about Mr. Allen’s giving; the list of most-generous donors is free.)