Nine health research centers have received $255 million over 5 years to develop ways to reduce the time it takes for clinical research to become treatments for patients. The funds were awarded by the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR)—part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH)—as part of the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) program.

In its fourth year, the CTSA consortium has generated resources that help transform the research and training environment to enhance the efficiency and quality of clinical translation research. Resources the consortium has developed include a Web-based national recruitment registry that connects researchers with volunteers interested in participating in clinical studies, a portal that connects researchers with potential investigational drugs that may be useful in news ways, and establishing public-private partnerships.

The CTSA’s 2010 expansion grows the consortium to 55 member institutions. When the program is fully implemented in 2011, it will support approximately 60 CTSAs across the country. The nine new institutions are:

  • Children’s National Medical Center, Washington, DC
  • Georgetown University with Howard University, Washington, DC
  • Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee
  • University of California, Irvine
  • University of California, San Diego
  • University of Massachusetts, Worcester
  • University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque
  • University of Southern California, Los Angeles
  • Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond

“The critical goal of biomedical research is to transform discoveries into preventions, treatments, and cures,” said Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD, director of NIH. “By working together, CTSAs are removing barriers to research, training new generations of clinical and laboratory research teams, and providing them with the equipment and resources they need.”

Source: National Institutes of Health