Thank you for coming to our Website and for your interest in the HNRCA. If you are new to our Center, I invite you to read about our history, our impact and our structure here.

December 2011

It is with great excitement that I announce plans to fund four new Research Clusters at the HNRCA in 2012. The Clusters are a new collaborative paradigm where our scientists from different labs are coming together with their diverse expertise to solve complex public health problems.

HNRCA scientists submitted significant proposals to form the new collaborative model in four strategically significant areas: Cancer; Cardiovascular Disease; Inflammation, immunity and infectious disease; and Obesity. We assembled an esteemed group of reviewers consisting of Tufts University leadership and faculty, USDA / ARS leaders, NIH scientists and experts in the field of nutrition research to evaluate the proposals.

Each new cluster is establishing metrics and milestones for success, and will receive financial and administrative support, as well as leadership training, priority in pilot study funding and equipment requests, and team building guidance.

The new clusters are the result of the strategic planning initiative we undertook in 2010, and were a Year one priority for the HNRCA. Congratulations to the many scientists who are now collaborating in new and exciting ways within the new paradigm of the Research Clusters. I would like to express my gratitude to everyone at the Center for the enthusiasm and innovative thinking that have gone into creating the Research Clusters.

Check back here to our Website in the coming months for more information from the Research Clusters.

Dr. Simin Nikbin Meydani Center Director