Cornell's Division of Nutritional Sciences (DNS) will be a founding member of the Upstate New York Translational Research Network, a part of the University of Rochester's new Clinical and Translational Science Institute.

"This will be great leap forward for moving scientific discoveries from the lab bench to the bedside," said Tom Brenna, professor and director of undergraduate studies in DNS.

The network is supported by a $40 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to the University of Rochester to foster upstate New York collaboration among institutions. Network members will have access to the resources of the institute for translational research studies and clinical trials. Translational research pilot studies will involve investigators from various network institutions to encourage multidisciplinary collaboration in developing and implementing research.

The network will develop inventories of translational research at the member institutions, and research resources and methodologies accessible for collaborative research. Through the network, members will provide assistance with regulatory compliance, including training programs on regulatory issues to assist investigators in preparing regulatory documents, and support for institutional review boards, including education and certification of clinical investigators on ethical conduct of research. The network also will coordinate regional marketing, recruitment and retention of study subjects.

In addition to DNS and the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, other members are expected to include the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo, SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, SUNY Binghamton, Ordway Research Institute, Albany Medical College, Albany School of Pharmacy, Bassett Healthcare System in Cooperstown and Guthrie Healthcare System in Sayre, Pa.