March 2001

      2. The operating principles are:
            • Agency cost-sharing policies and practices must be transparent;
            • Partners should respect the merit review process;
            • Agencies and universities should manage research in a cost-efficient manner;
            • Accountability and accounting are not the same;
            • The benefits of simplicity in policies and practices should be weighed against the costs;
            • Change should be justified by need and the process made transparent.

Existing policies and procedures must be reviewed regularly by each executive branch department or agency that supports research at universities to ensure that they meet the spirit and intent of the guiding and operating principles stated above.

Unlike other nations in the world, the United States relies on a partnership between our government and our research universities to conduct research that improves our economy, health and national workforce. President Clinton believes, “it is vital that this partnership be equitable and effective to sustain U.S. leadership across the frontiers of scientific knowledge.” With this in mind, let us continue to strive to strengthen the Federal Government-University Research Partnership. The full text of the Executive Order can be reviewed at http://www.nara.gov/fedreg/eo2000.html

Overcoming Barriers to Treatment
Adherence in Minorities and Persons
Living in Poverty

The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), and the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) invite applications for research project grants to evaluate the interventions in clinical care settings designed to improve adherence to medically prescribed lifestyle and medical regimens used to treat heart, lung, blood and sleep diseases, disorders or conditions, cancer, or diabetes. The populations targeted by this RFA are racial and ethnic minorities and/or persons living in poverty. The burden of disease is not borne equally by all population groups in the United States; for example, differences in disease morbidity and mortality exist as a function of race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. A key aspect of this program is to encourage research to evaluate innovative yet practical methods that overcome patient, provider and medical systems barriers which impede or erode treatment adherence among racial and ethnic minorities and persons living in poverty in the United States. Deadline: 3/22/01. Full RFA available at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-HL-01-005.html.

SPIN (Sponsored Programs Information Network) is database of over 10,000 funding opportunities ranging from federal, corporate to foundation. This database available to all Spelman faculty is interactive and allows each person, using standard keywords to search for funding opportunities in your individual area of research interest. Visit the website at www.infoed.org

Core Lab Update

The Core facilities in the Science Building have been recently enhanced with the acquisition of two new major pieces of laboratory instrumentation. The equipping of the Digital Imaging laboratory has begun with a Kodak Digital Science Imaging Station 440CF a multipurpose imaging system which provides detection and quantitative analysis for chemiluminescence, fluorescence, and chromogenic detection, as well as densitometry. Also, in the equipment room a Beckman Optima XL-100K Preparative Ultra-centrifuge will be mounted for researchers with experimental procedures requiring centrifugation at very high speeds. These two instruments will be an integral part in the experimental procedures, analysis, and presentation of data for the biomedical researchers at Spelman College. Editor’s note: Sadly, this is Johnafel’s last update. He will be leaving Spelman to join the staff of the Bioinformatics laboratory at Georgia Tech. John’s knowledge and experience have been valuable assets in the development of the RIMI program. Although he will be missed, we certainly wish him well in his new position.

Editor’s Note: Please join me in welcoming Janice Tittle to the RIMI Program and Spelman College. Janice, the new RIMI Laboratory Manager, has over 14 years of laboratory experience. Most recently Janice was employed as a Research Assistant at Morehouse School of Medicine. Over the next couple of weeks Janice will meet and work with Sheres, and the research technicians to become acclimated to the RIMI program and the Science Center.

Those individuals attending the Georgia Academy of Sciences 78th Annual Meeting, please remember the deadline date for registration is Tuesday, March 6, 2001. For further details regarding the meeting, you may visit the Academy’s website at www.GaAcademy.org. I am currently preparing for upcoming lectures. As you will note on the RIMI Calendar, Dr. Temple Smith, Director of the Biomolecular Engineering Research Center, Boston University is our next guest speaker. He will be lecturing on The Informatics Challenges of the Genomic Era. This lecture is scheduled for March 27, 200l, and will be held in the LLCII-Auditorium at 3:00 p.m. If any additional information is needed regarding the Georgia Academy of Sciences 78th Annual Meeting or pertaining to upcoming lectures, please feel free to give me a call at x2278.

March 2001

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