Center for Urban Research Excellence in Diabetes and Metabolism

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science (Drew) proposes to continue and enhance its Clinical Center for Research Excellence (CCRE) activities through the specialized "Center of Urban Research and Education in Diabetes and Metabolism" (CUREDM). The purposes guiding the center's activities are to increase the critical mass of research scientists engaged in clinical research and to increase the number of diabetes and metabolic-related clinical research conducted at Drew. Diabetes is one of the key focus areas of Healthy People 2010, the blueprint for the nation's health agenda. In addition, the unique patient population at Drew University-comprised of approximately 54 percent Hispanic, 34 percent African American, 7 percent non-Hispanic white, and 5 percent Asian American-suffers disproportionately from diabetes and metabolic related disorders. To this end, Drew proposes to support four junior investigators committed to establishing a clinical research career in the area of diabetes and to staff an emerging scientist in each of the resource cores. The center will be under the direction of a new principal investigator (PI) who is an established investigator with independent research support and who can provide a high level of mentoring for investigators studying diabetes and metabolic-related diseases. The specific aims for this application are: 1. To increase the critical mass of diabetes and metabolic-related clinical researchers; 2. To promote faculty development through the support of mentored-research pilot projects by pairing dedicated senior investigators with promising junior faculty; 3. To enhance the careers of junior investigators by providing an environment that facilitates scientific discovery and short-term curricula and/or formal degree training at Drew University; 4. To improve diabetes and metabolic disorder patient outcomes in the context of methodologically rigorous clinical research through two innovative research cores: 1) The Translational Research Core, which will collaborate with Drew's research-intensive partner, UCLA; and 2) the Body Composition and Metabolism Core; and 5. To increase the body of knowledge and research activity (grant submissions and procurement, presentations, and publications), especially in diabetes and metabolic disorders as they relate to improving the health care of women, ethnic/racial minorities, and other disadvantaged populations.