Poor health outcomes and health disparities are major issues in our society, especially in the Deep South, which faces a disproportionate burden of chronic diseases compared to the rest of the nation. Tulane University is now part of a new $82 million National Institutes of Health effort that will harness the research expertise of academic medical centers to address disparities in the prevalence and treatment of chronic diseases for residents in this part of the country.
The initiative, led by the Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS) based at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, brings together 11 academic health centers, research institutes, and universities across Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi.
The partnership is funded through a seven-year NIH Clinical and Translational Science Award UM1 grant (UM1TR004771) and others awarded to UAB’s CCTS. The new funding will also expand efforts to develop a diverse workforce in translational research, provide research infrastructure, support innovative research methods and strengthen partnerships with local communities.
Other partners include LSU Health Sciences Center, the Pennington Biomedical Research Center, the University of South Alabama, HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Tuskegee University, the University of Alabama, Auburn University, Southern Research and the University of Mississippi Medical Center.