Newswise — Chicago...The National Institutes of Health will grant $4.3 million to the Chicago consortium that includes Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago for the first year of President Obama’s Precision Medicine Initiative (PMI) Cohort Program. Over five years, the Chicago consortium, led by Northwestern University, expects to receive $45 million, pending progress reviews and availability of funds.
The PMI Cohort Program is a landmark longitudinal research effort that aims to engage 1 million or more U.S. participants to improve disease prevention and treatment measures based on individual differences in lifestyle, environment and genetics. Study participants will share their genomic and other biological information through blood and urine tests. This data will be linked to their health information and other individual factors. Patient enrollment will begin later this year. The Chicago consortium’s goal is to enroll 150,000 participants in the study. “This research is exceptionally exciting and will make a huge impact on our understanding of disease and wellness in diverse patient populations, including children,” says Susanna McColley, MD, site Principal Investigator at Lurie Children’s, Associate Chief Research Officer at Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute and Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “Chicago has a wide range of demographics and this is important when looking at genetic influences on health. For example, race and ethnicity can influence how patients metabolize drugs.” Shannon Haymond, PhD, Director of Laboratory Research and Assistant Professor of Pathology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, is the co-Principal Investigator at Lurie Children’s. The Chicago consortium is one of four PMI Cohort Program consortiums, headed by Columbia University Health Sciences, New York City; University of Arizona, Tucson; and University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh. In addition to Northwestern and Lurie Children’s, the Chicago consortium includes the University of Chicago, the University of Illinois at Chicago and the Alliance of Chicago Community Health Services, LLC. Research at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago is conducted through the Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute. The Manne Research Institute is focused on improving child health, transforming pediatric medicine and ensuring healthier futures through the relentless pursuit of knowledge. Lurie Children’s is ranked as one of the nation’s top children’s hospitals in the U.S.News & World Report. It is the pediatric training ground for Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Last year, the hospital served more than 174,000 children from 50 states and 48 countries.
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