Featured Institution - August 2010
Washington University ICTS Funds New Cores through Competitive Process
At the Washington University Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences (ICTS), new research cores are established through a competitive funding mechanism, requiring applicants to make the case for a new core and ensuring that the new core has been evaluated through a peer-review process. In this manner, three cores were funded in 2009 and two in 2010.
Human and Mouse-Linked Evaluation of Tumors (HAMLET) Core
Researchers have used human breast tissue xenografting techniques to propagate breast cancers in vivo, creating HAMLET mice. This new research core provides the infrastructure for distributing tumor lines and associated genomic, clinical and pathological data. The core aims to accelerate breast cancer research and increase knowledge about the drug sensitivity spectrum and genomic structure of tumor lines. The long-term goal of this effort is to better match treatment approaches with the genetic etiology of breast cancer. This approach has already led to exciting results, including a recent paper in Nature describing the genomic analyses of four DNA samples — the primary tumor, peripheral blood, a brain metastasis and a xenograft — derived from the primary tumor of a patient with basal-like breast cancer. A future aim is to extend the HAMLET approach to other tumor types.
Center for Administrative Data Research (CADR)
The CADR allows ICTS investigators to use existing administrative data for clinical epidemiologic, health services and comparative effectiveness research. The CADR assists investigators with selecting appropriate databases; obtaining, storing and using data; and providing tools, programs and other resources. Additionally, the CADR houses several databases, including the Chronic Condition Warehouse of the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), CMS Medicaid eXtract files, CMS Inpatient files, Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results — Medicare (breast and colon cancer) data, and Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project state and nationwide databases.
Dissemination and Implementation Research Core (DIRC)
The DIRC provides both methodological expertise for research and technical assistance on grants to ICTS investigators to help shape dissemination and implementation research aims. It also offers advice on developing and testing strategies to help implement evidence-based treatments in new settings of care.
Center for Economic Evaluation in Medicine
The Center conducts burden-of-illness studies, cost-benefit analyses and cost-effectiveness analyses to evaluate the economic aspects of disease prevention and treatment. These studies will inform decision-makers on the allocation of health care resources. The Center assists ICTS investigators with data analysis, data interpretation, model design, study design for grant applications and manuscript preparation.
Translational Cardiovascular Tissue Core
This core serves as a centralized facility for the acquisition, storage and distribution of human cardiovascular tissues. Phenotypic (electrophysiological, structural, molecular and biochemical) and genotypic (genomic and somatic) data will be integrated with archived (tissue and blood) samples and clinical information in a database that is queryable and accessible to the basic, translational and clinical cardiovascular research communities.