Tennessee Center for AIDS Research (TN-CFAR)



 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Decades of research have generated knowledge and tools that, in theory, could prevent all new HIV infections and ultimately eliminate AIDS. Reality falls far short, in part due to major pressing unmet needs, many of which fall within two domains: "Continuum of Care" (assuring that all HIV-infected individuals are diagnosed, connected to care, and maintained in care); and "Personalized HIV Care" (assuring optimally safe and effective therapy based on understanding determinants of inter-individual variability). The proposed Tennessee Center for AIDS Research (TN-CFAR) is located in the Southeastern US, the region with the greatest number of new HIV infections, and of persons living with HIV. Under the leadership of Prof. Simon Mallal (recruited to Vanderbilt to lead this Center) we have forged a unique partnership between a research- intensive institution (Vanderbilt University, VU), an academic health sciences center focused on minority and underserved populations (Meharry Medical College, MMC), and an academically engaged state health department (Tennessee Department of Health, TDH). Our vision is to have transformative, local and global translational impact. Guided by this vision, our mission is to coordinate institutional and community resources and focus efforts on high-priority targets to most effectively reduce the burden of HIV/AIDS and generalize these benefits nationally and globally. We will leverage complementary strengths of VU, MMC, and TDH to focus research efforts on unmet needs. This strategy we will also most effectively serve the traditional CFAR roles of institutional leadership, core service, and fosterig career development of junior investigators. We will focus on four specific aims: 1) To foster collaborations between VU, MMC, and TDH that focus resources and research to improve the continuum of care in Tennessee and beyond; 2) To coordinate research into determinants of interindividual variability in response to HIV interventions so as to improve personalized HIV care, outcomes, and resource utilization; 3) To create and act upon new opportunities for HIV clinical/translational research at MMC, and between MMC and VU; and 4) To develop and grow a new emphasis on HIV-focused community engaged research that will pervade this CFAR.