The National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), announced today it will initially provide $9.5 million over three years to launch a Translational Research Network that will increase the opportunity for multi-site clinical and translational research among minority and other collaborating institutions throughout the nation. Investigators at these institutions are focused on cancer, diabetes, renal disease, infant mortality, HIV/AIDS, and cardiovascular diseases, diseases that disproportionately affect minority populations.
Translational research conducted in the network will range from those studies focused on applying discoveries generated during research in the laboratory to clinical trials, and then to developing and implementing best practices in disease prevention and intervention in local community settings.
By providing computer-based tools for analyzing and managing clinical research data, recruiting for clinical trials, and sharing information with patients, the network will enable clinical and translational researchers to collaborate more efficiently with each other and their communities.
The principal investigator leading the network is Keith Norris, M.D., an expert in kidney disease at Charles Drew University in Los Angeles, Calif. Other participating institutions are Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, Ga; University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii; Hunter College, CUNY, New York; University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico; Meharry Medical College, Nashville, Tenn; Howard University, Washington, D.C.; and Jackson State University, Jackson, Miss.
The network will allow investigators to pool resources and expertise as they conduct high quality, collaborative, multi-center research that will increase the productivity and impact of each of the individual centers, said Norris. It also is designed to integrate clinical, biomedical,
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Contact: Lori Mulligan
info@ncrr.nih.gov
301-435-0888
NIH/National Center for Research Resources
24-Jul-2007