This is a 5 year competitive renewal application of the Hawai'i EXPORT Center (NEC;P20 MD173) which seeks to establish a new Center for Native and Pacific Health Disparities Research. The proposed Center will serve as a regional focal point for research, research training and community engagement aimed at cardiometabolic health &health disparities among Native Hawaiians (NHs), Alaska Natives (ANs) &other Pacific Peoples (PPs) including Filipinos, Samoans, &Tongans, etc. Cardiometabolic risk encompasses the clustering of risk factors, such as dyslipidemia, hypertension, hyperglycemia, central adiposity &insulin resistance, which predisposes individuals to cardiovascular disease (CVD) &Type 2 diabetes (DM-2). Among NHs, ANs &PPs, cardiometabolic morbidity &mortality exceeds rates in the general U.S. population &recent studies suggest that racial/ethnic misclassification or aggregation may even be masking the magnitude of cardiometaboliclifornia. The Center's specific aims are to: 1) Refine the Center's administrative &fiscal infrastructure to synerqize research studies, research training and community partnerships focused on NHs, ANs &PPs cardiometabolic health and health disparities. 2) Conduct hypothesis-driven research on cardiometabolic disparities of high scientific merit &community priority to NHs, ANs &PPs. 3) Mentor investigators to conduct innovative research studies &embark on careers that will contribute to reducing cardiometabolic disparities in NHs, ANs &PPs. 4) Use CBPR approaches that foster co-learning processes for conducting scientific research on cardiometabolic health &health disparities in NHs, ANs &PPs. The Center will feature three 5-yr studies: 1) The HULA Study: is a randomized control trial comparing a hula intervention to usual care in patient's post-CABG surgery. 2) The Metabolic Syndrome (MS) study in Filipino, NH and Samoan Youth: is an epidemiological study that will charactern triglyceride &apo-B lipoprotin regulation using in vivo animal models. A robust program of Research Training and Mentorship will serve to 'incubate'new &emerging investigators pursuing careers in health disparities research. Community engagement projects in Hawai'i &California will assess optimal strategies for health information dissemination &participation among NH, AN &PP communities to improve cardiometabolic health &eliminate health disparities. In summary, the Center for Native and Pacific Health Disparities Research proposes to build on the success of the HEC &will improve and expand its partnerships with Alaska &California using CBPR approaches that combines both community wisdom &scientific rigor to advance the evidence-base on cardiometabolic health &health disparities among NHs, ANs &PPs. The public health impact of the Center's activities is the potential to add new insights into the growing epidemic of obesity, DM-2 and CVD risk.
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