Overall: Resource-based Center for Musculoskeletal Disorders Research

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The Penn Center for Musculoskeletal Disorders (PCMD) at the University of Pennsylvania will enhance the research productivity of, and provide critical services, resources and programs to, established and new investigators who represent our Center membership. The overall goal of this Center is to promote cooperative interactions among investigators, accelerate and enrich the effectiveness and efficiency of ongoing research, foster new collaborations and new research, and ultimately, translate our research efforts into better and new therapies for musculoskeletal disorders. This will be done through providing critical research infrastructure, state-of-the-art research resources, study design guidance, and intellectual expertise to musculoskeletal investigators. Importantly, the Center serves as a local and regional resource to expand the musculoskeletal community and recruit new investigators to the field. We have chosen to continue the theme of “Musculoskeletal Tissue Injury and Repair” for the Center. The Administrative Core coordinates all of the necessary leadership, organizational and supervisory activities of the Center. Importantly, the Administrative Core is on the 3rd floor of Stemmler Hall, the same floor/building as the three Resource Cores, defining a clear home for the PCMD overall. The Specific Aims of this Administrative Core are to: Aim 1: Coordinate, integrate, communicate, and monitor the Center components and activities; Aim 2: Advise the Center Director regarding the activities of the Center; Aim 3: Administer the Pilot and Feasibility Grant Program and its associated funding and reporting; Aim 4: Implement an Enrichment Program; and Aim 5: Provide a Resource Sharing Plan. A well organized Administrative Core is essential to accomplish our Aims, and maximize research activity, efficiency, and productivity of the more than 200 Center faculty members. One of the great strengths of our Center is its inclusive approach with a broad spectrum of activities and interactions. Further, it has evolved into a regional technical and intellectual hub for the broader Philadelphia musculoskeletal research community and beyond, attracting and providing resources to faculty from more than 15 other institutions in our region. One more intangible feature to our Administrative Core and Center that should not be overlooked is our unique voice representing the musculoskeletal research community at Penn. The University’s biomedical research community in general is very large and engaged in multiple disciplines and fields. As a result, this P30 supported Center performs an essential role by highlighting the importance, broad relevance, and excitement of musculoskeletal research across campus, and provides our members a strong voice and presence across the University. Having a clear, consistent, and strong voice for musculoskeletal researchers has served, and will continue to serve, our collective and individual research goals. In these ways, the Center - with critical financial support from the P30 - is indispensable for our local and regional research community.