INSPIRE- Inter-NORC SPeakIng ScholaR InitiativE

Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston MA

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

PROJECT/SUMMARY ABSTRACT The Nutrition Obesity Center at Harvard (NORC-H) has been highly successful for almost 3 decades, and has been led since 2015 by Dr. Grinspoon, HMS Professor of Medicine, Chief of the MGH Metabolism Unit and Endowed Chair in Neuroendocrinology and Metabolism. Over the past 5 years, under Dr. Grinspoon’s leadership, and with the able help of a dedicated Executive Committee (EC), and strong external Advisory Board (EAB), the focus of the Center has expanded to include a rich network of collaborating scientists performing translational studies in metabolism, utilizing advanced imaging, ‘omics, and metabolic phenotyping techniques, with 119 active investigators in the research base (comprised of 88 Full and 31 Associate Members). The Research Base of the NORC-H is comprised of faculty from HMS and Harvard Chan School of Public Health, as well as physician-scientists and PhDs/ScDs working at Harvard-affiliate hospitals representing a large and vibrant research community. The research base is carefully evaluated by the Director and the EC, as well as the EAB, with removal of members not participating in Center activities or pursuing funded research in the nutrition and obesity space. Overall, the current application reflects the growing base of members, increasing 18% over the last cycle through a purposeful focus on increasing our base of early career investigators (Associate Members). Our goal is to promote and retain this pipeline of younger, successful researchers with a focus on obesity, nutrition and metabolism at Harvard. The NORC-H now includes 31 Associate Members (up from 12 in the prior cycle). The strong base of 31 Associate Members, consisting of post-doctoral fellows, Instructors and Assistant Professors who continue with mentored research, is comprised of 18 individuals with early career development K funding. Of our 88 full members, 80 have relevant PI/MPI grant support (Table A), 58 (66%) are PI/MPI of at least one R01, and 43(49%) are PI of funding from NIDDK. The Center’s thematic focus has sharpened over the past cycle to further assess translational mechanisms and consequences of nutritional and weight-related metabolic diseases across the lifespan, with 4 focused themes, including: 1) Appetite Regulation, Gut Physiology and Nutrient Absorption, 2) Social and Environmental Determinants of Nutrition and Metabolism, 3) Genetic, Cellular and Immunological Mechanisms, and 4) End Organ Consequences and Obesity related Care. These thematic areas are facilitated by three strong cores, Metabolic Imaging (MI), Metabolic Phenotyping (MP) and Genomics and Cell Biology (GCB), which have continued to grow and offer new cutting-edge services, as well as a robust Administrative Core which coordinates NORC-H services and activities. Strong success of our research base is evident through 1) securing nutrition and obesity related grants, 2) publishing papers, with 618 related publications this cycle, 527 (85%) of which cite the grant, and 3) expanding core use with 102 identified users, publishing 249 papers.