Clinical Research and Community Engagement Core

The Tulane COBRE for Clinical and Translational Research in Cardiometabolic Diseases (Phase 1) has successfully supported Tulane University’s efforts to increase the quality and quantity of clinical and translational research in cardiometabolic diseases. The Clinical Research Core played a central role in the success of COBRE Phase 1, which included seven Research Project Leaders (RPLs) and Pilot Project Leaders (PPLs) who received one or more research grants from NIH and NSF and 310 peer-reviewed scientific articles published by COBRE investigators. This COBRE Phase 2 application aims to further develop and strengthen the clinical and translational research infrastructure at Tulane University and to continuously expand and support a critical mass of investigators with expertise in clinical and translational research in cardiometabolic diseases. In Phase 2, the Clinical Research Core will be expanded into the Clinical Research and Community Engagement (CRCE) Core and the Bioinformatics and Biostatistics Core. The CRCE Core will continue to support RPLs, PPLs, other COBRE investigators, and collaborators through our research clinics and biochemical laboratories and will expand efforts to strengthen and broaden capacity for community engagement across the translational research spectrum. The overall objectives of the CRCE Core are two-fold: to enhance and expand an effective and robust infrastructure for clinical and translational research, including research clinics, clinical and biochemical laboratories, and community engagement at Tulane University, and to facilitate and support RPLs, PPLs, other COBRE investigators, and collaborators in the planning and conduct of clinical research. To achieve these objectives, the specific aims are: 1) provide clinical research facilities and staff for study protocol development, regulatory support, participant recruitment, intervention conduct, and data collection for RPLs, PPLs, other COBRE investigators, and collaborators to implement their individual research projects, 2) provide clinical and biochemical laboratory support for the collection, processing, analysis, and storage of study specimens, 3) increase capacity for community engagement across the spectrum of translational research in cardiometabolic diseases to enhance study recruitment, retention, and dissemination and translation of study findings, and 4) develop a plan to ensure the long-term sustainability of Core operations. The CRCE Core is critically important for the proposed COBRE Phase 2 program. All four proposed individual Research Projects will utilize the clinical research space and staff and biochemical laboratories. In addition, community engagement support is available to RPLs, PPLs, other COBRE investigators, and collaborators. The CRCE Core will play a central role in assisting RPLs and PPLs with their Research Projects and their transition into independent investigators. The Core will also play an important role in establishing and maintaining a nationally and internationally recognized clinical and translational research program in the etiology, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cardiometabolic diseases at Tulane University.