Administrative Core for the Dietary Biomarkers Development Center at Harvard University

PROJECT ABSTRACT/SUMMARY – ADMINISTRATIVE CORE Traditionally, nutrition research has relied heavily on self-reported measures of dietary intake that are often prone to measurement error. To date, only a few recovery biomarkers of nutrient intake have been established, including doubly labeled water for estimating energy intake, 24-hour urinary nitrogen for estimating protein intake, and 24-hour urinary potassium as a biomarker of potassium intake. This highlights the urgent need to identify further objective and robust biomarkers of food intakes. Recent advances in high-throughput -omics technologies and the development of novel bioinformatic tools now enable the unbiased discovery of novel biomarkers that are sensitive and specific to intakes of foods and food groups. The overall objective of the Dietary Biomarker Development Center (DBDC) at Harvard University is to identify and validate dietary biomarkers of important protein and carbohydrate food sources in the US diet by using the state-of-the-art metabolomic techniques and through a combination of well-controlled dietary intervention trials and observational studies. Our objective is to establish an Administrative Core will play scientific and administrative leadership roles by integrating the Intervention Core, Data Analysis Core, Metabolomics Core, and the Biomarkers Project to improve efficiency, enhance innovation, and extend the breadth and depth of the science within the DBDC at Harvard and across the DBDC’s and the Data Coordinating Center (DCC). The Core will be led by Dr. Frank Hu, with co-leadership provided by Dr. Clary Clish. Additional key leadership will be provided by Executive Committee (EC) members, including the Core PIs and Directors and the Project Director, Dr. Shilpa Bhupathiraju. The DBDC at Harvard Center brings together investigators of diverse backgrounds and expertise to identify novel biomarkers of several important carbohydrate and protein sources in the US diet. The expertise in our research team is wide-ranging, covering dietary assessment, population science, nutritional biochemistry, bioinformatics, and biotechnologies. The stimulating intellectual environment in the Longwood/Harvard Medical Area is highly conducive for carrying out this research. The Center will take full advantage of institutional commitment and resources provided by HSPH and other participating institutions, as well as those provided by the broader Harvard community, such as Harvard Catalyst and the Harvard Nutrition and Obesity Research Center. The infrastructure for the Administrative Core will provide a strong and visionary leadership role in science, administration, and dissemination for the DBDC at Harvard University.