The overarching goal of this P30 application is to enhance research capacity in the understanding and treatment of cardiovascular, pulmonary, and blood diseases through the development of stem cell resources. To accomplish this, we propose to recruit and hire Dr. In-Hyun Park as tenure tract faculty in the newly formed Department of Developmental Biology, in direct response to RFA-OD-09-005 """"""""Recovery Act Limited Competition: Supporting New Faculty Recruitment to Enhance Research Resources through Biomedical Research Core Centers"""""""" (P30). Dr. Park possesses a wealth of experience in stem cell research and has generated some of the first induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells from patients with a wide range of diseases. The successful recruitment of Dr. Park, and later, other highly qualified tenure tract faculty will be augmented by the development of a new Stem Cell Core. Hence, the three specific aims of this P30 proposal comprises: 1. Recruit new tenure track faculty in the field of stem cell biology, 2. Create a Stem Cell Core to support and enhance stem cell research via a university-wide shared resource for the production and distribution of stem cells, and 3. Create through the Stem Cell Core, a pipeline for personnel training and development of new stem cell technologies to enhance stem cell research. Dr. Park will serve as the Director of the Stem Cell Core, providing scientific oversight for the Core. He will be assisted by an assistant director who will manage the day to day activities of the Core. An advisory committee comprised of faculty from different departments/divisions of the University will be assembled to assist with establishing policies for running the core. This will include guidance on ethics issues related to human stem cell research. In addition, an overlapping mentoring committee will be assembled to assist Dr. Park with a faculty development plan and to provide guidance on balancing and prioritizing Dr. Park's research needs with other demands of the Core. This administrative and leadership structure will enhance the research productivity of the new faculty recruit, and at the same time, facilitate the work of other faculty interested in stem cell research. Overall, the recruitment of Dr. Park, the establishment of this Stem Cell Core, and the creation of the Dept of Developmental Biology reflect the University's multidisciplinary approach to biomedical research, and fills a gap that exists with respect to stem cell resources. Placement of the Stem Cell Core in the new Department at the Ranges Research Center will encourage the integration of basic science investigation into developmental mechanisms with clinical investigation into disease mechanisms. Together, the successful implementation of these endeavors, will promote interdisciplinary stem cell based translational research and the development of new, innovative therapies.

Public Health Relevance

Overall, the recruitment of Dr. Park, the establishment of this Stem Cell Core, and the creation of the Dept of Developmental Biology reflect the University's multidisciplinary approach to biomedical research, and fills a gap that exists with respect to stem cell resources. Placement of the Stem Cell Core in the new Department at the Ranges Research Center will encourage the integration of basic science investigation into developmental mechanisms with clinical investigation into disease mechanisms. Together, the successful implementation of these endeavors, will promote interdisciplinary stem cell based translational research and the development of new, innovative therapies.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Type
Center Core Grants (P30)
Project #
1P30HL101322-01
Application #
7860752
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZHL1-CSR-E (O1))
Program Officer
Mondoro, Traci
Project Start
2009-09-30
Project End
2011-08-31
Budget Start
2009-09-30
Budget End
2010-08-31
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
2009
Total Cost
$660,467
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Pittsburgh
Department
Anatomy/Cell Biology
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
004514360
City
Pittsburgh
State
PA
Country
United States
Zip Code
15213
Damerla, Rama Rao; Chatterjee, Bishwanath; Li, You et al. (2014) Ion Torrent sequencing for conducting genome-wide scans for mutation mapping analysis. Mamm Genome 25:120-8
Lin, Bo; Kim, Jong; Li, Yanxin et al. (2012) High-purity enrichment of functional cardiovascular cells from human iPS cells. Cardiovasc Res 95:327-35