Over the past century, mean life expectancy in the United States has increased more than 50% (from 47 to 75 years), primarily through the elimination of lives lost due to premature death. Among those 65 years and older, chronic diseases are the leading cause of death and impose a major burden on longevity and quality of life. There have been limited efforts to attenuate the impact on quality of life that these diseases have ? leading to decrease in mobility and development of frailty that lead to acceleration of the aging process. This proposed program project, ?Skeleton and Joint Degeneration with Aging?, will be conducted by the Johns Hopkins Center for Musculoskeletal Research and will be focused on improving our understanding of cellular mechanisms in normal aging that lead to decreased mobility and increased pain and frailty. To support the Center goals, we will establish the infrastructure, resources, and expertise that are required to support interdisciplinary basic, clinical and translational research to investigate our central hypothesis that uncoupled remodeling of subchondral bone and endplate porosity through cellular senescence leads to joint and spinal degeneration and the development of pain, frailty, and mobility disorders during the normal aging process. To ensure efficient operation and communication, the Administrative Core will provide the necessary infrastructure and resources to achieve the program objectives through coordination of communication and efforts among the four projects and three cores. The Administrative Core will achieve these goals through four aims.
The first aim will establish the administrative framework to support the individual scientific projects and cores through several mechanisms of oversight, including establishment of Steering and Advisory Committees.
The second aim will provide the administrative support necessary for the successful operation of the program project grant through monitoring and management of the project and core budgets, provision of a centralized web and communication platform to support regularly scheduled meetings.
The third aim will support outreach and education efforts of the Center investigators within the larger research and medical communities at Johns Hopkins University and beyond.
The fourth aim will provide common data management and statistical analytic support for the Center investigators. In summary, the Administrative Core will establish the necessary infrastructure and resources to promote a collaborative environment to ensure the success of the Center projects and cores to further our understanding of the cellular mechanisms that lead to limited mobility, pain, and frailty during the normal aging process.
