- Administrative Core The mission of the Kansas PKD Research and Translation Core Center (RTCC) is to promote PKD research by providing essential reagents, biomaterials, and service to the PKD research community for the advancement of our understanding of disease mechanisms, the discovery of biomarkers and therapeutic targets and the development of clinical trials to improve patient outcomes. The mission of the Center is based on research at Kansas that discovered and characterized many of the key pathways now being considered for PKD therapy, and that ultimately led to the development of Tolvaptan as the first FDA approved therapy for ADPKD. The Kansas PKD RTCC has created three biomedical research cores to support the research programs of external core users in the PKD Research Consortium and the greater PKD research community. These cores are: Core 1. Biomarkers, Biomaterials, and Cellular Models (Darren Wallace, Director), Core 2. Rodent Models & Drug Testing (Pamela Tran and Stephen Parnell, Co-Directors), and Core 3. Clinical Research (Alan Yu, Director). The Administrative Core will be responsible for setting the overall scientific direction of the Kansas PKD Center, overseeing core activities, and for prioritizing the distribution of resources to each of the cores. The Administrative Core will also be responsible for organizing a variety of educational enrichment activities, including a Summer Student Enrichment Program, PKD research methods workshops, professional development sessions, Research Methods and Advanced Technologies Program, research seminars, retreats, patient- oriented activities, and will work with the Central Coordinating Site (CCS) on the annual symposium. The Administrative Core has an Internal Advisory Committee (IAC) comprised of the center directors and core directors and established KUMC scientists outside the PKD field who will bring their expertise to the committee, plus a representative from the PKD patient community to serve as a patient advocate. All PKD Core Center activities will be regularly reviewed and evaluated by the Internal Advisory Committee for communication to the CCS Steering Committee, the External Evaluation Panel (EEP), and NIDDK. The Administrative Core will support the recruitment of new investigators into the PKD field through various mechanisms including an innovative internal pilot grant program in partnership with the KU Cancer Center to support research projects exploring the relationship between PKD and cancer. Finally, the Administrative Core will work to promote strong interactions between the Kansas PKD Center and the institution by interfacing its activities with other programs, centers, and institutes at KUMC, and by integrating the biomedical research cores with existing institutional shared resource centers and biomedical cores; and will encourage open and frequent communication with the CCS and with the other national PKD RTCCs to maximize the benefits offered by our unique, high-value core services to the national PKD community.
