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Research Partnership: ACTSI receives $31 Million NIH grant renewal
Research Partnership: ACTSI receives $31 Million NIH grant renewal
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded $30.7 million over the next five years to the Atlanta Clinical & Translational Science Institute (ACTSI) for the renewal of its NIH Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA). The ACTSI is an Atlanta research partnership focused on transforming the quality and value of clinical research and translating research results into better outcomes for patients.
Morehouse School of Medicine is one of many health partners within the ACTSI and an integral part to translating research results into better outcomes. Originally established in 2007 through an initial five-year NIH grant of $30.9 million, the research partnership includes Morehouse School of Medicine, Emory Healthcare, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Grady Health System, Atlanta VA Medical Center, the Atlanta Community Physicians Network and Kaiser Permanente of Georgia and Georgia Institute of Technology.
"ACTSI has established strong clinical and research partnerships by leveraging the infrastructure support of the NIH funded Research Centers at Minority Institutions (RCMI) at Morehouse School of Medicine. We are poised to implement innovative patient centered and participatory care delivery models that move us toward the elimination of health disparities," said Dr. Elizabeth Ofili, Associate Dean for Research at Morehouse School of Medicine and ACTSI Senior Co-Principal Investigator."
Leveraging the strengths of our academic partners, the ACTSI is yet another collaboration where Morehouse School of Medicine plays a critical role in addressing health disparities and reaching underserved communities to improve health outcomes.
Key accomplishments by ACTSI include:
• Infrastructure and/or funding support for breakthroughs in clinical and translational research, including
o The first human hand transplant in the Southeast;
o Development of the new immunosuppressant drug belatacept for prevention of transplanted organ rejection;
o The development of non-human primate models for Huntington’s and Alzheimer’s disease at the Yerkes Primate Center;
o Rapid clinical evaluation of the H1N1 influenza vaccine and for steps toward a universal flu vaccine;
o Progress toward therapies for fragile X syndrome; new immune approaches to therapy for type 1 diabetes;
o and new models to address community engagement and health disparities.
• Establishment of a citywide, discovery-focused, integrated home for clinical and translational research with a multi-site clinical research network
• Establishment of an integrated and expanded education and training program in clinical and translational research and the development of new programs in biomedical engineering research design, research ethics and community-based participatory research
• Development of a new city-wide infrastructure and research home for expanded pediatric-focused clinical and translational research with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta
• Development of biomedical informatics resources for ACTSI investigators, including support for patient-related biomedical research, educational offerings, and services to link and analyze large-scale data projects across ACTSI institutions
• Creation of the academic-industry annual forum with Georgia Bio and a strong partnership with the Georgia Research Alliance to accelerate new emerging technologies and discoveries
• Development of innovative new website tools and technologies designed to integrate research partners
“The refunding of this significant grant by the NIH is a recognition of the ACTSI's many accomplishments and Georgia partnerships and demonstrates confidence in our academic, research and health care leadership to continue advancing health care research and clinical care," said Governor Deal.