NHGRI Grant to Establish Center for Genomics and Society

A group led by Gail Henderson (Social Medicine/CCGS) was recently awarded a five-year $5.5M P50 grant from the NIH/NHGRI to establish a new center at UNC to explore the ethical, legal, and social implications (ELSI) of human genomics research. Following on the success of the group’s P20 planning grant awarded three years ago (led by Don Bailey), this new proposal expands the scope of research, training, and outreach projects examining the ELSI issues surrounding large-scale gene discovery and disclosure brought about by modern genomics research. The three major aims of the proposal are:

To implement transdisciplinary studies to help ensure that genomic advances result in maximum benefit and minimal harm to individuals, families, groups, and society. Five interrelated projects will examine scale-up issues that impact human subjects, researchers, university and NIH administrators involved in DNA sample collection and analysis, as well as clinicians and patients engaged in novel pharmacogenetic testing. Three cross-cutting ethical, legal, and social analyses will utilize data from these projects to address major questions raised by large-scale genomics.
To develop a set of mechanisms to inform genomic research, research policy, and public policy. The Genomic Ethics and Policy Group (GEPG) will be established to provide consultation to three communities: researchers engaged in genomic research, research administrators responsible for establishing research policies, and policy makers or other groups who must translate or interpret genetic research when making public-policy decisions.
To train a core group of graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and young investigators from a variety of disciplines working on research, consultation and policy initiatives. Training activities will provide the experiences and knowledge that will promote engagement in ELSI research, and the skills essential to interdisciplinary collaboration. The primary goals of outreach activities are to develop a pipeline for increasing the diversity of ELSI researchers, to increase research collaborations between the University of North Carolina (UNC) and minority-serving institutions, and to gain diverse perspectives on ELSI research and policy.




			October 1, 2007 A group led by Gail Henderson (Social Medicine/CCGS) was recently awarded a five-year $5.5M P50 grant from the NIH/NHGRI to establish a new center at UNC to explore the ethical, legal, and social implications (ELSI) of human genomics research. Following on the success of the group’s P20 planning grant awarded three years ago (led by Don Bailey), this new proposal expands the scope of research, training, and outreach projects examining the ELSI issues surrounding large-scale gene discovery and disclosure brought about by modern genomics research. The three major aims of the proposal are: To implement transdisciplinary studies to help ensure that genomic advances result in maximum benefit and minimal harm to individuals, families, groups, and society. Five interrelated projects will examine scale-up issues that impact human subjects, researchers, university and NIH administrators involved in DNA sample collection and analysis, as well as clinicians and patients engaged in novel pharmacogenetic testing. Three cross-cutting ethical, legal, and social analyses will utilize data from these projects to address major questions raised by large-scale genomics. To develop a set of mechanisms to inform genomic research, research policy, and public policy. The Genomic Ethics and Policy Group (GEPG) will be established to provide consultation to three communities: researchers engaged in genomic research, research administrators responsible for establishing research policies, and policy makers or other groups who must translate or interpret genetic research when making public-policy decisions. To train a core group of graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and young investigators from a variety of disciplines working on research, consultation and policy initiatives. Training activities will provide the experiences and knowledge that will promote engagement in ELSI research, and the skills essential to interdisciplinary collaboration. The primary goals of outreach activities are to develop a pipeline for increasing the diversity of ELSI researchers, to increase research collaborations between the University of North Carolina (UNC) and minority-serving institutions, and to gain diverse perspectives on ELSI research and policy. For more information, visit the Center for Genomics and Society website.