The Clinical Infrastructure Core is an indispensable component of the SCCOR proposal. It is the unifying link that serves each Project in a very specific manner by providing blood for DNA analysis and assorted biochemistry determinations. Just as importantly, the Clinical Infrastructure Core collects, collates, files and retrieves all clinical data, thereby matching each scientific analysis to key clinical information. Moreover, the Clinical Infrastructure Core is responsible for recruiting patients, controls, and unique families for longitudinal study. It is also responsible for the systematic follow-up of these patients and their families. In reality, this is an enormous task, requiring the multiple interactions with patients, families, physicians, research nurses, scientists, IRBs and administrators. Thousands of samples will be acquired, stored, retrieved and analyzed. An exceptionally large database of clinical, demographic, angiographic, electrocardiographic and echocardiographic material will be generated and maintained. The group at the Cleveland Clinic has already assembled such an organization on site in the form of GeneBank and GeneQuest. We have now several years of experience with these two large and important data repositories, generously maintained by strong institutional support. We have space and a large cadre of research nurses, computers, technicians and some physicians to operate this labor-intensive infrastructure. Over time, its operational aspects have improved, and important new data on genes and coronary artery disease are currently emerging. We now have an opportunity with the SCCOR to expand our research goals and further link our clinical phenotype information in the data banks to the genetic and molecular pathophysiology of coronary artery disease. The Clinical Infrastructure Core is clearly essential to this end. We believe that under the able leadership of Drs. Gary Francis and Stephen Ellis and our many dedicated personnel, that we can leverage our unique experience with GeneBank and GeneQuest to focus on new and tightly integrated SCCOR projects designed to explore and better understand the genetics of coronary artery disease.
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