Eunice Kennedy Shriver Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center at Vanderbilt University

 描述(由申请人提供)：这份U54申请书寻求为范德比尔特大学位于范德比尔特肯尼迪中心的智力和发育障碍研究中心(IDDRC)提供新的资金。Vanderbilt的IDDRC包括全方位的基础、临床和干预科学家，以实现EKS NICHD IDDRC项目的目标，该项目旨在改善智力和发育障碍(IDD)患者及其家人的生活。我们的IDDRC专注于阐明自闭症谱系障碍、学习障碍、遗传性IDD综合征和获得性IDDS患者的机制和有效干预措施。在每一组中，IDDRC的研究人员发现潜在的疾病机制、治疗目标和模型系统中的异常发育过程；评估认知、社会、情绪和神经表型；并进行创新的治疗和干预研究。这些活动体现在U54研究项目--自闭症的感官和多感官贡献中，该项目符合EKS NICHD焦点主题#2：干预措施的结果衡量标准，并突出了自闭症一个研究不足但日益得到承认的特点。范德比尔特大学的U54 IDDRC包括来自15个学术部门的46名研究人员，他们领导了69个研究项目；其中14个项目由EKS NICHD资助。我们提出了五个特殊的、非重复的IDDRC核心来支持这些研究人员，这些核心也被整合到U54研究项目的每个具体目标中。行政核心A提供科学指导，管理IDDRC治理委员会和活动，并领导创新的培训和教育计划。临床翻译核心B满足了研究人员招募IDDS患者和对IDDS患者进行表型鉴定的迫切需求，同时还协助临床试验，为IDD表型挖掘新的流行病学数据，并建立IDD结果测量的新资源。翻译神经成像核心C协助研究人员进行神经成像和心理生理学数据采集、处理和分析；创建新的实验范式，并为大规模IDD研究提出“大数据”方法。神经科学核心D在小鼠神经行为表型、神经化学、分子神经生物学和基因组学以及设计、建造或维修专门研究设备的科学仪器方面提供基本的和内在的生成性服务。生物统计和生物信息学核心E通过在与IDDS相关的主题上进行专家生物统计咨询和培训来提高研究质量，还开发了独特的IDDS患者电子病历数据的生物信息学数据库，这些数据与他们的DNA有关。因此，IDDRC核心是为了满足我们研究人员的即时需求而定制的，也是为了产生新颖的、前瞻性的技术、工具或资源，以推动旨在了解和改善IDDS的创新发现。

 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This U54 application seeks renewed funding for Vanderbilt University's Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center (IDDRC), based in Vanderbilt's Kennedy Center. Vanderbilt's IDDRC includes the full range of basic, clinical, and intervention scientists necessary to fulfill the goals for the EKS NICHD IDDRC program of translational research that improves the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their families. Our IDDRC focuses on elucidating mechanisms and effective interventions for individuals with autism spectrum disorders, learning disabilities, genetic IDD syndromes, and acquired IDDs. Within each of these groups, IDDRC investigators discover underlying disease mechanisms, treatment targets, and aberrant developmental processes in model systems; assess cognitive, social, emotional, and neural phenotypes; and conduct innovative treatment and intervention studies. These activities are embodied in the U54 Research Project, Sensory and Multisensory Contributions to Autism, which meets the EKS NICHD Focus Theme #2: Outcome Measures for Interventions, and highlights an understudied but increasingly recognized characteristic of autism. Vanderbilt's U54 IDDRC includes 46 investigators from 15 academic departments who lead 69 research projects; 14 are funded by the EKS NICHD. We propose five exceptional, non-duplicative IDDRC Cores to support these investigators and that are also integrated into each Specific Aim of the U54 Research Project. The Administrative Core A provides scientific direction, manages IDDRC governance committees and activities, and leads innovative training and educational programs. Clinical Translational Core B meets investigators' immediate needs for recruiting and phenotyping participants with IDDs, while also assisting with clinical trials, mining novel epidemiological data for IDD phenotyping, and building a new resource of IDD outcome measures. Translational Neuroimaging Core C assists investigators with neuroimaging and psychophysiology data acquisition, processing, and analyses; creates novel experimental paradigms, and proposes "big data" approaches for large-scale investigations of IDD. Neuroscience Core D provides essential and inherently generative services in mouse neurobehavioral phenotyping, neurochemistry, molecular neurobiology and genomics, and scientific instrumentation, which designs, constructs, or repairs specialized research equipment. Biostatistics and Bioinformatics Core E improves research quality with expert biostatistical consultation and training on topics that are relevant to IDDs, and also develops unique bioinformatics databases of electronic medical record data from patients with IDDs that are linked to their DNA. IDDRC Cores are thus customized to meet the immediate needs of our investigators, and also to generate novel, forward-thinking technologies, tools, or resources that drive innovative discoveries aimed at understanding and ameliorating IDDs.