PROVIDENCE – For the third time in 10 years, the National Institutes of Health has handed Brown University a multimillion-dollar grant earmarked for its federally funded hub of biomedical and public health scholars developing clinical and translational research.
The hub, referred to as the Advance Rhode Island Clinical and Translational Research program, will receive $26 million over the next five years through the NIH’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences, the university reported on Sept. 10.
Brown’s most recent gift represents the program’s third phase of federal funding, having received awards of $19.5 million in 2016 and $19.9 million in 2021, according to university news releases from those years.
“Advance RI-CTR has been instrumental in helping us build a research ecosystem in Rhode Island that spans the full cycle from basic science discovery to application in patients,” Dr. Mukesh K. Jain, Brown’s senior associate provost for life sciences, said in the September announcement.
Anchored at Brown, the program is a collaboration between the University of Rhode Island in South Kingstown and the Providence-based institutions of Brown University Health, Care New England Health System and the VA Providence Healthcare System.
With its latest round of funding, Brown plans to expand access to data and research resources while accelerating clinical and translational work by bringing in expert consultation services, expanding the program’s network to regional and national partners and increasing community-engaged research.
“The program has greatly expanded the research ecosystem in Rhode Island, not only by funding investigators and their work but also by training research mentors, all while fostering community partnerships and helping to create connections among institutions across the state,” Dr. Sharon Rounds, the program’s principal investigator, said in the announcement.
Mica Kanner-Mascolo is a PBN staff writer. She can be reached at kannermascolo@pbn.com.
