Rutgers got a $39 million NIH grant to turn research into medical treatment

The Rutgers Institute for Translational Medicine and Science has received $39.6 million from the National Institutes of Health to continue turning medical research into new therapies and treatments.

The seven-year grant will support the institute’s work through the New Jersey Alliance for Clinical and Translational Science, a partnership that brings together other academic research institutions, health-care businesses, and patient advocates to try to solve systemic community health issues.

For instance, faculty and doctoral researchers supported by the alliance are studying how parents’ mental health affects child development. Others are researching whether there is a correlation between Medicaid coverage and preventable deaths, such as those due to gallstone complications.

The alliance also expanded access to COVID-19 vaccines in underserved communities and gathered clinical information for a national study about the long-term effects of COVID-19 on children.

The new funding will be used to launch and promote new clinical trials, strengthen community connections that improve research, and train more providers and researchers with diverse backgrounds.