We will establish a center to promotethe study of cardiovascular diseases in South Carolina. Our COBRE focus oncardiovascular disease is significant because the citizens of our state aremore prone to cardiovascular disease than anywhere else in the nation. Forthis reason, the two medical schools in the state have united to develop theSouth Carolina COBRE on Cardiovascular Disease. This COME will significantlyaugment joint efforts in South Carolina to recruit, train and retain acritical mass of investigators with multidisciplinary skills and adequateinfrastructure to: (1) collaborate effectively in fundamental mechanisticstudies of cardiovascular diseases, and (2) compete successfully at thenational level for NIH and other merit-reviewed funding required to supportand extend their research endeavors. Five scientific projects proposed bytalented, newly recruited tenure-track faculty from five differentdepartments, three high tech scientific cores (transgenics, imaging,microarray/proteomics) directed by outstanding investigators with proven trackrecords in their area of expertise and an administrative/mentoring corecomprise the proposed center. The overarching theme is that cardiovasculardiseases derive from final common pathogenic pathways: proliferation,remodeling, apoptosis, transdifferentiation and vasculogenesis, each of whichis the focus of one or more projects. While the thematic focus iscardiovascular, the operant theme for implementation is mentoring. In statesthat are less competitive for research funding at the national level,effective mentoring of new investigators is an essential element of a researchdevelopment plan. This proposal addresses this need directly by: (1) pairingtargeted investigators with established NIH-funded researchers who haveexceptional mentoring track records as well as relevant critical expertise;(2) developing structured activities for skills acquisition and enhancement,such as seminars, journal clubs, retreats and special courses; (3)guaranteeing access to essential core resources with sufficient scientificexpertise and technical support to optimize their use; and (4) implementing aregular schedule (checkpoints) of progress reports and evaluation withcritical assistance from an External Advisory Committee of nationallyrecognized scientists.
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