USF receives $128 million award for diabetes research

[IncrediBULL]

Per the Tampa Bay Business Journal.........

The National Institutes of Health awarded $128 million to a University of South Florida research team conducting worldwide studies on the prevention and treatment of juvenile diabetes. Jeffrey Krischer is leading the USF research team.

The seven-year award will support TrialNet, a National Institutes of Health network of clinical research centers. TrialNet aims to investigate new therapies to stop the progression of diabetes. The project will screen more than 150,000 children and adults to identify early signs of the disease.

Last year, Krischer received a $169 million award to investigate the causes of juvenile diabetes through the Environmental Determinants of Diabetes in the Young, a 10-year NIH study. It is screening more than 300,000 newborns and monitoring 8,000 for up to 15 years to investigate the correlation between diet, infections and other environmental factors and the development of diabetes.

Both studies are being conducted at clinical sites in the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

[achiever1911]

Another article...

http://blogs.tampabay.com/breakingnews/2008/07/usf-researcher.html

USF researcher pulls in more big dollars

TAMPA -- Jeffrey Krischer, a diabetes researcher at the University of South Florida who already had the distinction of earning the school's largest research grant, is raking in more money.

Krischer, a professor of pediatrics, has been awarded a $128-million, seven-year grant from the National Institutes of Health to coordinate worldwide studies on the prevention and treatment of diabetes.

That's on top of the $169-million, 10-year grant that the NIH awarded Krischer last year to study why diabetes rates are rising in young children.

Add those two awards to Krischer's other grants, and he has brought USF a staggering $389-million. The new grant pushes USF into the top 50 U.S. medical schools for NIH funding.

In the new study, called TrialNET, researchers will screen more than 150,000 children and adults. Those with early signs of diabetes may receive new drugs to prevent the disease from progressing. Krischer will head the study's data coordinating and technology center. The study will have research sites around the world.

[Bullschmutz]

nice

[RJFinancialAdvisorBull]

Fantastic, it's always good to see money coming into the university.

[IncrediBULL]

Between this and the MIT spin off moving to Tampa to be part of USF, that solidifies how great USF has become.  It amazes me when fans of other schools (notably those to the East) try to put down USF and our academics when we have news like this hitting every week.  USF is an awesome school, not just great at athletics (though that is certainly cool too).

[On_the_Chip]

This is great news that personally effects me. 

I have had Type 1 diabetes for 10 years now. 

It would be great to see USF research on the frontline of finding a cure/treatment for this disease.

Makes me even more proud to be a Bull.

[Ricky the Bull]

Grants Place USF At 'Epicenter' Of Diabetes Research

By ADAM EMERSON

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 1, 2008

TAMPA - A prominent diabetes researcher at the University of South Florida landed another multimillion-dollar grant and ensured that nearly every major effort to eliminate the disease will be orchestrated in Tampa.

Jeffrey Krischer, who previously won USF nearly $200 million in federal grants to coordinate worldwide diabetes research, will lead an effort to investigate new therapies that may arrest the progression of Type 1 diabetes. The National Institutes of Health has awarded his team an additional $128 million to do so.

"We are at the epicenter of diabetes research, there's no doubt about it," Krischer said Thursday. "We're going to be in business doing this until we prevent or cure this disease."

The new award "will catapult USF to the top 50 for NIH funding to medical schools," said Stephen Klasko, USF's senior vice president for health sciences.

Last year, Krischer received a $169 million NIH grant to identify the environmental triggers of Type 1 diabetes, once known as juvenile diabetes. It was USF's largest research award ever.

Altogether, Krischer, a Harvard-trained pediatrics professor, has brought USF about $398 million in research money, federal and otherwise, over the past decade.

Krischer recently has been coordinating the efforts of scientists worldwide to follow 8,000 children for up to 15 years to see how diet, infections and other factors play a role in triggering the disease. These children are at risk of developing Type 1 diabetes.

He also is coordinating a study that aims to prevent the onset of Type 1 diabetes and determine whether breast-feeding protects at-risk children. Researchers are watching 2,100 babies in 15 countries.

The new study, known as TrialNet, will screen more than 150,000 children and adults to identify those with early signs of Type 1 diabetes. Then researchers at more than 200 labs around the world will test to see whether new therapies can arrest the progress of the disease, which afflicts 3 million people in the United States.

Krischer's team ties all the work together. Researchers everywhere feed Krischer data for analysis.

Many of his colleagues consider Krischer irreplaceable, a notion the USF researcher disagrees with. He does, however, concede that this and other studies he's coordinating would not survive without a center like his.

Karen Holbrook, USF's vice president for research, said in a written statement that "Jeff sees connections other people don't see. He uses tools in new ways to solve very complex problems."

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2008/aug/01/na-big-grant-aids-usf-diabetes-research/

[TheBullies]

Good news.

[USFan]

Fantastic!

Congrats to Jeffrey Krischer and his team.

[Compute-a-bull]

Between this and the MIT spin off moving to Tampa to be part of USF, that solidifies how great USF has become. 

I didn't hear about this, any source? Or, care to elaborate?