Research Resources
and Environment
From its inception in 1978, the Morehouse School of Medicine
has maintained the tripartite mission of excellence in teaching, research
and service. Over the years of its evolution, it has systematically
built up a research infrastructure that rivals that of more "research
intensive" institutions. Moreover, the institution has pursued
a strategic plan of research development and enhancement that has expanded
the critical mass of talented researchers on its faculty. Despite its
relative youth and size among the nation's medical schools, a recent
National Science Foundation Federal Support Survey has documented that
the Morehouse School of Medicine ranks #166 out of 1564 institutions
in total Federal support for science and engineering. The creation of
the Cardiovascular Research Institute in July 1999 is a natural extension
of the strategic plan to achieve preeminence is discrete areas of research
relevant to the core mission of the Morehouse School of Medicine.
Research Capacity: Within the first two years of its creation,
the CVRI successfully recruited a talented critical mass of investigators
capable of developing a nationally recognized multi-disciplinary research
program in cardiovascular science. The CVRI now includes a faculty of
12 and an overall research team of @ 33 individuals. In addition to
this core unit, the CVRI functions as a collaborative, multi-disciplinary
unit that also has approximately 10 CVRI-affiliated faculty who had
primary appointments in the existing basic science and clinical departments
and well established research interests in the cardiovascular field
prior to the creation of the CVRI.
In a short period of time, the new CVRI recruits have generated a total
annual extramural grant revenue of @ $3.3 million that includes the
receipt of 5 NIH R0-1 awards, 1 NIH K0-8 award, 5 American Heart Association
awards and major research awards from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention. This complements the excellent level of research productivity
of CVRI-affiliated faculty. In addition, the CVRI has played a leadership
role in establishing an exciting training environment at MSM that has
been recognized by the receipt of a NIH-funded T-32 Training Program
in Cardiovascular Science. Overall, these achievements in the level
of grant funding are indicative of a talented faculty and MSM's emerging
stature as a national leader in biomedical research and training.
The research infrastructure is surprising complete for a center of its
size. Laboratories in the Cardiovascular Research Institute suite and
MSM Core Facilities are well-equipped for physiological, biochemical
and molecular biologic studies. Investigators are supported by a full
array of common equipment including: ultracentrifuges, centrifuges,
hybridization ovens, gamma and beta scintillation counters, freezers,
lyophilizers, shaking incubators, densitometers, spectrophotometers,
a ABI 3100 DNA sequencer, gel scanner, two phosphorimagers, three MJ
Research 384 capacity PCR machines, Agilent Bioanalyzer, Agilent Glass
Microarray Scanner, Trangenomic WAVE high-throughput DHPLC polymorphism
detection, Pyrosequencer for highly accurate/high-throughput genotyping
and state-of-the-art Roche-Lightcycler Real Time RT-PCR. In addition
the labs are outfitted with luminometers, spectrofluorimeters and a
fluorescent plate reader. Microscopy capabilities include two stereomicroscopes
for mouse surgery and upright and inverted fluorescent microscopes with
SPOT-CCD camera and Image Pro computerized image analysis station. In
addition, tissue culture facilities and a fully-equipped dark room are
adjacent to the laboratories. The CVRI has facilities and technical
capabilities for constructing adenoviral vectors as well as creating
genetically engineered mouse models. There are MSM core facilities for:
flow cytometry/FACS, monoclonal antibody preparation, nucleic acid sequencing
and DNA synthesis, protein/peptide purification (HPLC), two-dimensional
gel electrophoresis, SELDI-Mass spectroscopy proteomics as well as imaging
core labs for confocal microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and
transmission electron microscopy. The Functional Genomics Core Lab provides
access to several platforms for DNA microarray analyses including glass
slides, nylon filters and Affymetrix as well as bioinformatic software
support. The IUCAC-approved animal care facilities are located in the
BMSB/MEB building and provide a full range of supportive services with
capabilities for isolation of transgenic/knockout mice in barrier-protected
laminar flow facilities. The Cardiovascular Research Institute has state-of-the-art
DataBiosciences telemetry units and software for continuous monitoring
of ambulatory blood pressure with implanted monitors in mice within
the facility as well as noninvasive blood pressure cuff monitoring systems
for mice. There is a dedicated Hewlett-Packard echocardiography unit
dedicated for research purposes. Similarly, there is a Mouse Physiology
workstation for conducting state-of-the-art physiologic analyses of
murine working heart preparations. All offices and laboratories are
equipped with networked, desktop computers and printers that have access
to the institutional LAN intranet or the world-wide web for Genbank
and NCBI searches.
