PARTNERSHIPS FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH IN ARKANSAS

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This proposal describes plans for the creation of the Arkansas Biomedical Research Infrastructure Network (BRIN). The long-term goals of the BRIN are to build biomedical research capacity in Arkansas; increase the number of faculty with extramurally funded biomedical research programs; and stimulate undergraduate students to pursue graduate studies in biomedical science. The Arkansas BRIN will be built around three academic institutions: the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR), and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR), and the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville (UAF). All activities will be coordinated through the Administrative Core. The three BRIN campuses are connected by high-speed communications lines and will be equipped with Access Grid studios to facilitate group-to-group interactions among campuses. A major feature of the BRIN is the Bioinformatics Core, which will span UALR, UAM, and UAF. The Bioinformatics Core will be a statewide educational and service resource that will give investigators and students access to the computational tools needed for multi-disciplinary biomedical research. The BRIN will also support a Biotechnology Core consisting of three facilities: Genomics, Proteomics, and Digital Microscopy. These facilities will provide investigators with access to instrumentation and expertise in three of the foundation of biomedical science: genes, proteins, and living cells. A critically important activity of the BRIN is to facilitate recruitment and development of undergraduate faculty who have the training and resources needed to compete for research funding. Through the Recruitment & Mentoring Core, BRIN funds will support the recruitment of highly qualified research-trained faculty at selected undergraduate campuses. Established investigators at UAMS, UAF, and UALR, who are organized into Thematic Research Groups will mentor new and existing undergraduate faculty in a summer research program. The summer research program will also enable talented undergraduate students to make part in biomedical research in established laboratories. By exposing these students to research, and by developing undergraduate faculty with active biomedical research programs, the BRIN will significantly improve the research workforce and increase the pool of well-qualified students pursuing graduate education in biomedical science in Arkansas.