Clinical Translational Research Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders

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Project Summary The University of North Carolina Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center (IDDRC) is an interdisciplinary program with the overarching goal of supporting and promoting research relevant to understanding the pathogenesis and treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders. The UNC IDDRC is a critical component of the new Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities (CIDD), which is the focal point for clinical services, research, and training relevant to intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) on the UNC campus. The UNC IDDRC currently supports 46 investigators from 13 University departments, and includes 89 externally-funded research projects. The broad-based research program of this IDDRC is integrated around 3 themes: (1) Brain and Behavior Development; (2) Autism and Related Neurodevelopmental Disorders; and, (3) Early Detection/Intervention. The UNC IDDRC is a highly collaborative program highlighted by the presence of several NIH-funded, interdisciplinary research centers/programs. This application seeks support for: (1) an Administrative Core; (2) three research cores – the Clinical Translational Core, which includes the Research Participant Registry and Brain-Behavior Measurement Laboratory; the PreClinical Core, which includes the Mouse Behavioral Phenotyping Laboratory, Neuroscience Microscopy Facility, and Small Animal Imaging Facility; the Data Science Core Core; and (3) a pre-clinical/clinical research project entitled “Cerebrospinal fluid abnormalities in neurodevelopmental disorders” that proposes to examine role of CSF pathophysiology in the pathogenesis of selected neurodevelopmental disorders. The three proposed research cores provide cutting-edge, high-quality and cost effective support for this integrated, multidisciplinary, translational program of IDD-relevant research. Overall, this Center has had a major impact on developmental disabilities research and scientific training at the University of North Carolina, and renewal would allow us to continue our support of the truly exceptional program of IDD research conducted at UNC.