UAB Nutrition Obesity Research Center (NORC)

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UAB NORC PROGRAM SUMMARY/ABSTRACT We request funding to continue and expand on the outstanding success achieved by UAB's Nutrition Obesity Research Center (NORC) in its first four funding cycles and particularly during the past 4+ years. Inaugurated with NIH funding in 2000, our NORC fosters multidisciplinary, collaborative, basic, clinical, and translational research in nutrition and obesity. The NORC's research base grew gradually in number and productivity through the first three funding cycles but has achieved explosive growth in funding during the last funding period. The UAB NORC supports a research base of 95 regular members (up from 63 members) and 11 junior members. Growth came from 1) success of junior researchers; 2) attraction of other UAB researchers into the research base; and 3) recruitment of new researchers. Our research base generates over $41,000,000 (up from $21,000,000) in direct funding for nutrition/obesity research and published 438 peer-reviewed papers over the past funding period. Important contributions were made in 1) obesity and metabolic dysregulation; 2) weight loss and weight loss maintenance: 3) precision approaches to nutrition and obesity; 4) reducing obesity in the community; 5) nutrition, exercise, obesity in individuals with disabilities. Even more impressive has been success of the NORC in facilitating interdisciplinary collaborations that have led to success with large grants (P and U awards). In particular, an application for a Chronic Disease Center (P50) was just funded and an application for a Precision Nutrition Clinical Center (UO1) received a priority score that is likely to be successful in funding beginning in late 2021. Both of these large grants extensively use the NORC cores. Our NORC supports three well-used core laboratories – Metabolism, Animal Models, Behavioral Science and Analytics. The first two cores are well-established, and the third core has evolved from a biostats core to add services to assist with different research designs, complex data analysis and behavioral science. Our NORC leadership oversees three NIH-funded T32 training grants for obesity research. Our NORC funds a successful Pilot & Feasibility program and sponsors a Named New Investigator. Our Enrichment Program has been outstanding in bringing top scientists to our seminar series and in facilitating research collaborations. UAB has committed over $5,000,000 to the NORC over the next 5 years. Backed by exceptional institutional support and academic infrastructure, we request renewed funding to continue our contributions to this important area of research.