Resource Development Core

SUMMARY - RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT CORE The Resource Development Core (RDC) is a major component of the proposed Northwestern University National Resource Center (NU-NRC), whose mission is to enable transformative kidney research through the application of physical sciences methods and approaches. The goal(s) of the RDC is to develop new and improved research resources that will be shared by the Biomedical Resource Core. Advances in single cell technologies have revealed the diversity of cell types that lie within the millions of nephrons residing within the adult human kidneys and their complex spatial and functional relationships. While this complexity has historically posed challenges in the development and delivery of therapies for kidney diseases, recent advances in physical science platforms and engineering technologies that consider tissue architecture, function and composition in their design provide powerful—yet severely underutilized—solutions to advance kidney research. The Resource Development Core will function as an incubator to advance emerging physical sciences technologies and validate their applicability, quality and impact as solutions for key challenges in kidney research. The RDC not only leverages Northwestern's powerhouse of physical scientists in nanomedicine, bioengineering and chemistry with demonstrated commitment to kidney research, it also brings a robust interdisciplinary approach and strong physical science presence into the kidney community. The goals of the RDC will be realized through the following 4 specific aims: 1. Establish an innovative and dynamic incubator focused initially on three pilot projects that will: advance nanomedicine approaches to deliver short RNAs to the kidney, develop microfluidic-based high throughput genome screens to identify therapeutic targets in the kidney and further develop platforms to allow spatial proteoform mapping of the kidney; 2. Establish a quarterly Incubator Think Tank to spur innovation and provide a forum to promote collaborations between physical scientists and kidney researchers to launch new pilot projects; 3. Foster robust validation of all new and improved resources; and 4. Collaborate with the consortium to prioritize resource availability and impact.