This renewal application for the Oklahoma IDeA Network for Biomedical Research Excellence (OK-INBRE) proposes to further enhance the statewide research infrastructure and biomedical research capacity in Oklahoma by: i) building on our established OK-INBRE research network with a scientific focus to strengthen the lead and partner institutions' biomedical research expertise and infrastructure, ii) increasing the research capacity of Oklahoma by providing support to faculty, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students at OK-INBRE network partner institutions, iii) providing research opportunities for students from primarily undergraduate institutions (PUI), community colleges (CC), and minority serving institutions to serve as a pipeline for new students to enter into health research careers, and iv) enhancing the science and technology knowledge of Oklahoma's workforce. The OK-INBRE Network is comprised of two research intensive institutions, the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center (OUHSC) and the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation (OMRF). These institutions are integrated and aligned with six PUIs and four CCs that are essential to the success of the OK-INBRE network. The statewide OK-INBRE network includes Langston University, the only Historically Black University in Oklahoma, and Northeastern State University, a PUI with the highest number of American Indians of any four year college in the nation. Additionally, Oklahoma's only accredited tribal college, along with four other PUIs and three additional CCs are included that educate large numbers of students from underrepresented groups. The scientific themes are multi-disciplinary and span the areas of Cancer, Developmental Biology, and Infectious Diseases. OK-INBRE will provide significant research resources to eight Research Project Investigators (RPIs), four from OUHSC/OMRF and four from the network PUIs. Specific career development and mentoring committees for each scientific theme will help the RPIs achieve scientific independence. In addition, smaller developmental grant awards for research and equipment will be provided to PUI faculty annually. Support for 35 undergraduate students also will be provided each year to provide a vibrant and dynamic summer undergraduate research program. OK-INBRE will support Bioinformatics and Proteomics Core facilities that will serve as statewide research and educational resources to provide faculty, trainees, and students throughout the state with access to the computational tools needed to enhance multidisciplinary biomedical research in Oklahoma. Uniquely, the Proteomics Core will not only play a central role in training the next generation of researchers in Oklahoma, but it will also be used as a resource for investigators in all IDeA-eligible states. Through workshops, seminars, research training, mentoring, and access to state-of-the-art core facilities, the OK-INBRE program will continue to enhance infrastructure and research capacity while increasing the overall science and technology knowledge of the Oklahoma workforce.
The Oklahoma INBRE (OK-INBRE) program supports biomedical research in Cancer, Developmental Biology, and Infectious Diseases. OK-INBRE allows researchers in Oklahoma to be more competitive for federal research funding that leads to better medical diagnostics and novel therapies to treat human disease. OK-INBRE also enhances the pipeline of undergraduate and graduate students choosing careers in biomedical research to ensure there will be well-trained biomedical scientists in Oklahoma and throughout the country for future generations.
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