RESEARCH CORE

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RESEARCH CORE A. OVERALL GOAL AND OBJECTIVES OF RESEARCH CORE The overall intent of this core is to provide the required research infrastructure to support our program objectives that are threefold: ¿ to conduct original and innovative basic laboratory, behavioral, clinical, and population-based research aimed at eliminating health disparities as they relate to diabetes, HIV/AIDS, and hypertension/cardiovascular disease; ¿ to translate health services research outcomes into improvements for the Winston-Salem's sizeable minority population and the 12 county Piedmont Triad region's population by leveraging WSSU's longstanding community partnerships; and ¿ to create new training opportunities for undergraduate/graduate students and junior faculty to pursue research interests in minority health or health disparities. These objectives are significant and will be the main focus of our programmatic and institutional efforts to eliminate health disparity in our community. Our Biomedical Research Center supported by Research Infrastructure in Minority Institution (RIMI) and other research support programs have been quite helpful in providing a research training ground for faculty development as well as for students to matriculate into leading graduate programs. For example, the number of faculty members engaged in biomedical, behavioral, clinical, and population-based research aimed at eliminating health disparities has increased from an average of six in health-related departments in 2000 to 25 faculty researchers in 2006. Likewise, post-graduate enrollment of under-represented minority graduates of WSSU in medical, dental and PhD programs in biomedical or behavioral sciences has more than doubled, from 8 of 118 graduates from the biomedical / psychology departments in 1999 and 2000 (7% of total minority graduates) to 18 of 179 graduates from those departments (10% of total minority graduates) in the past three years. In the academic year 2005-2006, there were approximately 7 different ongoing biomedical research projects related to minority health for a modest total cost of $1.8 million extramural funding. The amount of NIH funding was over $1.7 million (representing 93% of the total extramural funding for that year). Thus, the environment for research at WSSU is good and significant opportunities exist for training minority students given the size of our student population. The eager, committed team behind these projects in this application is capable of providing a strong research-training environment that will continue to serve the needs of students at WSSU and the larger research community.