UA College of Nursing Awarded Prestigious National Exploratory Research Center Grant
Sept. 20, 2001
From: George Humphrey, (520) 626-7301
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The University of Arizona College of Nursing has been awarded one of only seven exploratory research center grants nationwide from the National Institute of Nursing Research, the National Institutes of Health. The three-year grant will establish a Center on Injury Mechanisms and Related Responses. The Center seeks to advance knowledge about the cellular mechanisms involved in, and responses to, tissue injury that result from altered health conditions such as stroke, HIV infection or cancer therapy.
"The National Exploratory Research Center Grant will enhance the College of Nursing's research environment and facilitate the scientific work of faculty and students," says Marjorie A. Isenberg, DNSc, RN, FAAN, Dean of the UA College of Nursing. "We are extremely pleased to receive this award. "
"The exploratory center will provide an infrastructure that centralizes facilities and resources to support basic and clinical collaborative research endeavors," explains Ida M. (Ki) Moore, DNS, RN, FAAN, Center director and director of the Nursing Practice Division at the UA College of Nursing.
Based at the College of Nursing, the Center's investigators represent a broad range of disciplines and expertise in methods encompassing molecular and cellular biology, biochemistry and physical chemistry, biological imaging techniques and human physiological measures, Dr. Moore adds. "The collective expertise and research efforts of Center investigators has great potential to advance knowledge about responses to tissue damage caused by specific health problems and/or patient care interventions."
The new center will have an Administrative Core and a Feasibility Studies Core. Under the leadership of Carrie Merkle, PhD, RN, associate professor at the UA College of Nursing and director of the Center Administrative Core, the College biological laboratories will expand with the purchase of new equipment that can support a variety of research projects.
The Administrative Core also will sponsor seminars and symposia to facilitate research collaborations among Center investigators and to disseminate findings from their research.
The Feasibility Studies Core, co-directed by Paula Meek, PhD, RN, associate professor and Leslie Ritter, PhD, RN, assistant professor, aims to increase the number of studies using "state-of-the-science" methods for investigating injury mechanisms and related responses. At least three feasibility studies will be funded each year of the three-year grant. Studies during the first year are:
* "Breast Cancer-Induced Endothelial Cell Injury," a study that examines how young and old vascular endothelial cells respond to damage caused by breast cancer cells.
* "Assessment of Breathlessness among Hispanics with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD)," which aims to find if cultural differences exist in regard to how patients with COPD report breathlessness and if their perceptions of breathlessness can be measured.
"Biomarkers in Early HIV Wasting," a study that hopes to find early biomarkers (physiological symptoms) of wasting in patients with HIV infection.
The UA College of Nursing ranks among the top nursing programs in the United States. As Arizona's only program offering a doctoral degree in nursing, the College provides leadership in doctoral education and clinical nursing research. For more information about the College, please visit its web site at www.nursing.arizona.edu.