Rocky Mountain Regional Center of Excellence or Biodefense and Emerging Infectiou

本申请建议继续设立位于第八区的落基山地区生物防御和新发传染病研究卓越中心(RMRCE)。RMRCE由大学和联邦机构组成的高度整合的联盟组成，与多个商业实体有重要的互动。自资助以来，RMRCE已经完成了三年的时间，对于续签，计划建立在该计划过去努力中产生的优势、协同效应和新开发的专业知识的基础上。新的研究计划将围绕三个综合研究重点(IRF)小组展开，这三个小组的目标是1)免疫调节、佐剂和疫苗；2)细菌疗法；3)病毒疗法。IRF小组的研究和产品开发工作将由五个科学核心推动。研究工作将针对各种NIH A-C类病原体，并将利用该区域内广泛的BSL3设施，以便研究将几乎完全针对毒力形式的病原体进行。RMRCE的培训目标将包括类似于NIH K奖的竞争性职业发展计划，以及针对生物安全和产品开发的集体培训努力。个别项目和核心项目的进展以及整个计划的进展和协同作用将通过一个强有力的评估过程持续监测和管理，评估过程包括NIH计划人员、来自多个机构的RMRCE领导层和外部审查员的意见。为发展研究项目提供资金的一个非常成功的项目的继续，将增加该项目的灵活性。总体而言，RMRCE的目标概括为：1)继续研究人员指导的研究计划，以解决生物防御和新出现的传染病的基础研究和转化研究，包括未被研究的精选药物；2)提供职业发展和团体培训，利用RMRCE的优势；3)利用整合良好的科学核心设施，加快研究和产品开发活动；4)通过强大的项目评估过程和继续开展开发研究项目，使计划具有灵活性和响应性；以及5)建立基于RMRCE资源并由个人管理的应急计划。

This application proposes to continue the Rocky Mountain Regional Center of Excellence (RMRCE) for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases Research located in Region VIII. The RMRCE consists of a highly integrated consortium of universities and federal agencies with significant interactions with multiple commercial entities. The RMRCE has completed three years since funding, and for the renewal, plans to build upon the strengths, synergies, and newly developed expertise that have emerged from the past efforts of this program. The renewed research program will be centered around three integrated research focus (IRF) groups that target the thematic research efforts on 1) immunomodulation, adjuvants and vaccines; 2) bacterial therapeutics; and 3) viral therapeutics. The research and product development efforts of the IRF groups will be facilitated by five scientific cores. Research efforts will be directed at a variety of NIH Category A-C pathogens and will exploit the extensive BSL3 facilities within the region so that studies will be performed almost entirely with virulent forms of the pathogens. Training objectives of the RMRCE will include a competitive career development program structured similar to the NIH K-awards and group training efforts for biosafety and product development. The progress of individual projects and cores, as well as the progress and synergy of the overall program will be continually monitored and managed via a robust evaluation process that encompasses input from NIH program personnel, RMRCE leadership from multiple institutions, and external reviewers. Adding to the flexibility of this program will be the continuation of a highly successful program for the funding of Developmental Research Projects. Overall the goals of the RMRCE are summarized as: 1) continue investigator-directed research programs that address basic and translational research for biodefense and emerging infectious diseases, including understudied Select Agents; 2) provide career development and group training that exploits the strengths of the RMRCE; 3) utilize well integrated scientific core facilities to accelerate research and product development activities; 4) enable programmatic flexibility and responsiveness through a strong project evaluation process and continuation of a program for Developmental Research Projects; and 5) establish an emergency response program that is based on the resources of the RMRCE and that is managed by a single individual.