UAB Center for Precision Animal Modeling (CPAM) - Coordination Section

ABSTRACT (COORDINATION SECTION) Advances in sequencing and analytical technologies have accelerated the identification of genetic variations associated with disease. Determining which of the variants are causative of the disease, establishing models that mimic disease phenotypes, identification and prioritization of possible efficacious drugs, and then testing these therapies in the appropriate models to impact patient care remain challenges. Resolving these challenges requires detailed assessment and annotation of the variants identified in patients, robust criteria for prioritizing and predicting the impact of variants, generation of cell or animal-based models, and computational approaches to identify and prioritizes candidate therapies. This interdisciplinary approach and expertise are beyond what most individual labs can easily or efficiently accomplish. To help address this hurdle, we established the UAB Center for Precision Animal Modeling (CPAM). CPAM consists of a team of highly collaborative interdisciplinary scientists and clinicians with a broad range of expertise in basic and clinical research, computational and data science, human genetics, clinical diagnosis, genetic engineering, and in vivo and in vitro disease modeling. The Center has five main components: Preclinical/Co-clinical Section (PCS), Bioinformatics Section (BIS), Disease Modeling Unit (DMU), Resource and Service Section (RSS), and the Coordination Section (CS). Each component works collaboratively toward a set of shared objectives to define causation and mechanisms of disease pathogenesis, to improve diagnostic capabilities, and to predict and test therapeutic strategies that will slow or prevent disease progression, thus leading to improved patient care. For CPAM to work efficiently and to achieve these goals, the effort of each component is overseen and directed through the Coordination Section (CS). The CS provides the overall framework on which CPAM is built and operates. The CS will manage all administrative, legal, and financial requirements, and maintain communication networks between each CPAM component, ORIP/NIH Program Official, Precision Animal Model Centers awarded at other institutions, and the Advisory Board. The CS will coordinate the Center’s research activities, monitor progress, conduct annual performance evaluations, direct the Center’s promotional and outreach events, and oversee the CPAM Steering Committee meetings to prioritize community nominated variants for modeling. The CS will be responsible for establishing collaborative arrangements (both internal and external) to promote usage of the models that CPAM generates. The CS will define benchmarks for each CPAM component, oversee and implement the strategic plan to fulfill the Center’s vision, and evaluate progress toward these goals through semiannual Advisory Board meetings. In conclusion, the CS is pivotal to the Center’s success ensuring that all components work seamlessly together and in coordination with NIH to advance our understanding of the basis of human disease and for the testing and development of possible treatments.