LA BioMed to participate in Clinical and Translational Science Institute

(June 14, 2011)—Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed) is among the local institutions that will benefit from an $81.3 million Clinical and Translational Science Award, which the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced today to fund the UCLA Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI).

The CTSI is an academic-clinical-community partnership to accelerate scientific discoveries and clinical breakthroughs for improved health. It is collaboration among UCLA, LA BioMed, Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and 19 community partners. In the first year, LA BioMed will receive $4.17 million of the $15.47 million awarded to the CTSI. A significant portion will fund LA BioMed's inpatient clinical and translational research unit at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.

"With this grant, vital research will continue to flourish in Los Angeles and bring new therapies and cures more rapidly and safely to patients," said David I. Meyer, PhD, LA BioMed president and CEO. "For more than four decades, LA BioMed's General Clinical Research Center has been a keystone of the region's pioneering research into cancer, infectious diseases, male reproductive health and much more. The UCLA CTSI's funding will ensure the continuation of these essential studies, while also expanding and accelerating the process of taking discoveries from the lab and making them available to patients."

The General Clinical Research Center, which is located at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, is a unique and vital part of the nation's clinical research resource network, providing the experienced and skilled research personnel, facilities and research support for more than 100 patient-oriented clinical trials annually. Its funding ends in June, and the CTSI will replace its function, creating trans-disciplinary teams focused on the challenges and community health needs of Los Angeles County.

The initiative to establish about 60 CTSIs around the country grew out of the NIH's commitment to re-engineer the clinical research enterprise, one of the key objectives of the NIH Roadmap for Medical Research. Through this initiative, the NIH is seeking to transform how clinical and translational research is conducted by facilitating applied and translational research. The CTSIs include functions to accelerate bench discovery, clinical research, best practices in medicine and adoption of these practices by the community.

Provided by Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed)