Research at Vanderbilt University has been given a big boost this year, thanks to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). Signed into law by President Obama on Feb. 17, 2009, the so-called Recovery Act committed $787 billion in federal funds to help stimulate the national economy. Over $20 billion was provided for "the support and advancement of scientific research."
As of October 31, 2009, scientists at Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center had received 186 Recovery Act grants totaling over $79.6 million from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the Health Resources and Services Administration and Federal Work Study to support new and existing projects, buy major equipment and hire additional personnel. The goal is to accelerate the pace and achievement of research that will profoundly impact the lives and health of Americans and people around the world.
11/17/09:
New initiative, ScienceWorksForUS, launched - The ScienceWorksForUS Web site highlights Recovery Act-sponsored research in all 50 states, telling the stories of the research and the researchers contributing to America's recovery. (Press Release / Participating Researchers' Media Contacts)
11/6/09:
Federal stimulus funds bolster Vanderbilt's research enterprise - Vanderbilt University scientists have received 182 federal "stimulus" grants totaling more than $79 million to support new and existing research projects, buy major equipment and hire additional personnel.
11/6/09:
Study to focus on lung cancer among minorities - David Carbone, M.D., Ph.D., professor of Medicine, Cell and Developmental Biology and Cancer Biology, has been awarded nearly $1 million in federal stimulus funds to study polymorphisms or genetic variations among minorities with non-small cell lung cancer.
10/29/09:
Preliminary NIH ARRA FY2009 Funding (.pdf) - NIH-released prelimanry report on ARRA funding as of Oct. 26, 2009
10/21/09:
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) at Vanderbilt (.pdf) - October newsletter
10/21/09:
John P. Wikswo, featured researcher on NIH site - National Heart Lung and Blood Institute: Research Focus: In the United States, 250,000 to 450,000 people die each year as a result of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA), a condition that is triggered by an abnormal heart rhythm, or arrhythmia. John Wikswo, Ph.D., and the research team at Vanderbilt University seek to reduce this public health burden.
Summary: Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have received a two-year, $6.4 million "Grand Opportunities" stimulus grant from the National Institutes of Health to test a key aspect of "personalized medicine." The question: can genetic information embedded in the patient's electronic medical record help improve treatment outcomes and avoid adverse drug effects? "If we are able to find a set of genetic variants that reliably predict whether you would get an adverse effect of a medicine ... then we might imagine doing a panel of genotyping on every single person who comes through the door," said Dan Masys, M.D., chair of Biomedical Informatics, who is leading the study with Dan Roden, M.D., assistant vice chancellor for Personalized Medicine. The goal is to determine whether responses to certain drugs detailed in medical records could have been predicted by variations in corresponding DNA samples stored in Vanderbilt's massive DNA databank, "BioVU."
First-year funding: $4,389,204 from the Office of the Director, NIH
$795,408 from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences
$6.4 million over two years
New jobs created: Six
The Office of Federal Relation's Web site includes back issues of "DCbrief," an email digest offering updates on federal research issues as well as other relevant federal higher education news articles. Any Vanderbilt employee can sign up to receive this - to subscribe, email Janelle St. Croix.
