A. Objectives/Specific Aims In the previous application, separate facility cores handled support for human studies by Center for Environmental Health in Northern Manhattan (CEHNM) members. Biospecimen processing and analysis was provided by the Biomarkers Facility Core, and support for study design, data management and statistical analysis by the Biostatistics Epidemiology and Data Management (BEDM) Facility Core. With the requirement by NIEHS for an Integrative Health Sciences Facility (IHS) Core, these two cores were combined in January of 2006. The overall goal of the IHS Facility Core is to facilitate both patient-oriented and population-based research within the CEHNM. It promotes the strategic goals of the CEHNM by supporting existing research projects and fostering new interdisciplinary activities focusing on environmental health problems. The Core provides the infrastructure to carry out these studies and has several components, including biospecimen processing, DNA extraction, genotyping and laboratory assays. Epidemiologic and biostatistical capabilities include collaboration on study design, power calculations, measurement of exposure, covariates, confounders and outcomes and data management and analysis. The biorepository arm of the IHS Core provides a centralized, efficient and cost-effective resource for collecting or receiving, processing, storing, distributing and analyzing biological samples. The Core also seeks to address the needs of CEHNM investigators as their research focus changes. The addition of high throughput genotyping methods was the result of member requests, as was the development of oxidative stress assays and enhancement of data management capabilities. It also develops and validates new assays to meet the changing needs of CEHNM investigators. In addition, the Core offers pro-bono or low-cost services to new CEHNM pilot projects. Training of students and postdoctoral fellows is an important component of Core activities, allowing methodologies to be exported to other laboratories, providing access to equipment and the expertise necessary to conduct studies requiring DNA adduct detection, measurement of oxidative stress markers, genotyping and other immunoassays of interest. The Core also provides extremely efficient, cost-effective cutting-edge web-based and other database management systems, which are expanding to include a major formal educational component. Finally, the IHS Facility Core works with the Community Outreach and Education Core (COEC) to disseminate research results to the surrounding community;its activities were highlighted in the most recent CEHNM newsletter.
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