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Genomic Informatics |
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$18 million award to
support Yale Center of Excellence in Genomic Science
Other Topics: Spectroscopy
and Chemistry Software,
Informatics in Research
The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)
August 22, 2006
New Haven, CT -- The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)
of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) today announced a
grant of $18 million over five years to continue support for the
Center of Excellence in Genomic Science (CEGS) at Yale
University
The CEGS program was started in 2001 to pull together
interdisciplinary teams of scientists with the goal of making
critical advances in genomic research. One of these original
five-year awards was to Yale. Today's awards also continue a
center at the University of Washington, in Seattle, and
establish a new center at the California Institute of
Technology. |
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"The CEGS program
is vital to our efforts to apply innovative genomic tools and
technologies to the study of human biology," said NHGRI Director
Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D. "By fostering collaboration
among researchers from many different disciplines, NHGRI aims to
encourage innovation and build a powerful new framework for
exploring human health and disease."
At Yale's Center of Excellence in Genomic Sciences, a team led
by Michael Snyder, the Lewis B. Cullman Professor of Molecular
Cellular & Developmental Biology, will expand upon its efforts
to develop new technologies for identifying functional elements,
or the areas of the genome essential to biological function.
In the previous funding period, the Yale CEGS created new
genomic tiling array technologies to identify actively
transcribed sequences, transcription-factor binding sites, DNA
replication timing and DNA sequence variation on a large scale.
They were able to represent all of the sequences of the human
genome on microscope slides--a landmark achievement – and
identify thousands of new transcribed regions in the human
genome.
"The Yale CEGS has had a remarkable influence on genomics, both
nationally and at Yale where many different research groups now
perform state-of-the-art experiments using the CEGS techniques
and facilities," said Andrew Hamilton, Provost of Yale
University. "The CEGS has expanded new training initiatives for
undergraduates, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, with
particular focus on under-represented groups."
In the continuing program, the Yale researchers will refine
these innovative technologies and explore new methods and
approaches, including protein microarrays. Their goal is to
analyze the regulatory steps involved in inflammation, a part of
the body's normal response to injury or infection. They will
then examine where the normal process of inflammation runs amok
and contributes to heart disease, arthritis, asthma, allergies,
chronic skin disorders and many other serious medical
conditions.
"This CEGS grant has allowed us to develop new technologies to
explore the mysteries of the human genome. We hope that in the
expanded project we can continue to develop new ways to identify
genes and the way they are regulated," said Snyder, "By applying
these technologies to the study of inflammation, we hope to
understand how our body is protected from pathogens and
disease."
Key members of the Yale CEGS team are Mark Gerstein, the Albert
L Williams Associate Professor of Biomedical Informatics,
Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry and Computer Science;
Sherman Weissman, M.D., Sterling Professor of Genetics, and
Director of Molecular Oncology & Development, Boyer Center for
Molecular Medicine; and Perry Miller, M.D., Director of the
Center for Medical Informatics, and Professor in the Departments
of Anesthesiology, and Molecular, Cellular & Developmental
Biology.
In addition to the centers at Yale, the University of Washington
and Caltech, other current participants in the CEGS program are
the Molecular Sciences Institute, Berkeley, CA; Harvard Medical
School, Stanford University School of Medicine, the University
of Southern California, Johns Hopkins University School of
Medicine, and Columbia University.
Besides carrying out their research missions, CEGS programs also
serve as a focal point for providing education and training
about genomic research opportunities to members of
under-represented minorities among college undergraduates
through post-doctoral fellows. More information is available at
http://www.genome.gov/14514219.
NHGRI is one of the 27 institutes and centers at the NIH -- "The
Nation's Medical Research Agency" -- which is a part of the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services. The NHGRI Division of
Extramural Research supports grants for research and training
and career development at sites nationwide. Additional
information about NHGRI can be found at www.genome.gov. Details
about the research being conducted by the CEGS are available
online at http://www.genome.gov/10001771.
Michael Snyder http://www.biology.yale.edu/facultystaff/snyder.html
Molecular cellular & Developmental Biology http://www.biology.yale.edu/
Mark Gerstein http://www.mbb.yale.edu/fl/fl_m_gerstein.htm
Biomedical Informatics http://ycmi.med.yale.edu/
Molecular Biophysics and Biochemeisty http://www.mbb.yale.edu/
Computer Science http://www.cs.yale.edu/
Sherman Weisman http://info.med.yale.edu/genetics/fac/ShermanWeissman.php
Genetics http://info.med.yale.edu/genetics/index.htm
Boyer Center for Molecular Medicine http://www.med.yale.edu/bcmm/
Perry Miller http://info.med.yale.edu/bbs/faculty/mil_pe.html
Center for Medical Informatics http://ycmi.med.yale.edu/
Anesthesiology http://anesthesiology.yale.edu/ |
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