Funding
NIH - UL1TR002489
North Carolina Translational and Clinical Science Institute (NC TraCS)
Funder: National Institutes of Health
PI: John Buse, University of North Carolina
Period of Performance: March 30, 2018 - April 27, 2023
Objectives
Since our inception in 2008, the UNC CTSA affiliate, the North Carolina Translational and Clinical Sciences Institute (TraCS) has transformed clinical and translational science at UNC through interdisciplinary research, training, collaboration with partners and stakeholders, and strong engagement across the CTSA consortium. We have built a dynamic regional network of universities, research institutes, health care providers, and >130 community organizations across our state. In the coming funding period, we propose to add NC State University in addition to RTI International and NC A&T University as full partners in our CTSA hub. Our research infrastructure has engaged 3,234 registered members, resolved 11,147 research service requests, trained 63 faculty in our KL2 program, and supported 705 pilot grants, resulting in >$170M in external research funding, and >600 published manuscripts that have been cited >21,000 times. TraCS developed Join the Conquest, an online engagement tool to increase participation in clinical trials, that includes over 6,000 registered participants and over 200 unique research studies. The TraCS 4D Strategic Initiative and KickStart Program have facilitated 141 invention disclosures, 99 patents, 40 licenses, $57M in SBIR/STTR grants, and the creation of 68 new companies. Over the next five years, we will translate the best science from UNC and across the CTSA consortium into creative, effective, and accessible clinical and community interventions, addressing the public health problems of our state and advancing national CTSA goals by completing our Overall Aims. Aim 1 Workforce Development: Develop and support a skilled and diverse clinical and translational research workforce to advance translational innovations and address healthcare priorities. Aim 2 Collaboration and Engagement: Engage diverse stakeholders as active partners in translational research, and promote innovative approaches to team science. Aim 3 Integration: Integrate translational research across the research continuum, disciplines, populations, and throughout the lifespan; Aim 4 Methods/Processes: Develop and disseminate innovative methods and approaches to address scientific and operational barriers to translating scientific findings. Aim 5 Informatics: Incorporate cutting-edge informatics tools and methodologies in every aspect of translational research. We believe that we have made exceptional strides in engaging our partners and our community in our activities and are well positioned to advance our mission as a public university CTSA. Going forward, we will further engage our stakeholders in the research process; train the next generation of translational researchers to flourish within interdisciplinary teams; effectively synergize clinical research with health care to identify unmet needs and implement solutions, particularly for populations at risk for poor health outcomes; and rapidly disseminate our findings to our patients, our community partners, and the CTSA Consortium.