Journal of Genetic Syndromes & Gene Therapy
Open Access

Overview of rare disease funding at NIH

5^th Annual Congress on Rare Diseases and Orphan Drugs

August 29-30, 2018 | Boston, USA

Jason Wan

National Institutes of Health, USA

Scientific Tracks Abstracts: J Genet Syndr Gene Ther

Abstract :

The National Institutes of Health (NIH), a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the nationâ??s medical research agency â?? which is making important discoveries that helps in improving health and saving lives. NIH is having 27 Institutes and Centers, each with a specific research agenda, often focusing on particular diseases or body systems. Almost all Institutes and Centers support rare disease research and several have major efforts supporting basic and clinical studies on rare disease. Programs that will be discussed include the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), under which the Office of Rare Disease Research resides; and the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) which is the primary institute at NIH with the mission of improving the nationâ??s dental, oral, and craniofacial health through research, research training, and the dissemination of health information. Whereas an overview of projects at NCATS and other Institutes and Centers, will be presented, specific topics relevant to NIDCRâ??s mission will be covered as well. This seminar will also present current funding opportunity announcements (FOA) for investigators ranging from students and trainees, to junior and established investigators. Additional topics covered will be overviews of the application process through peer review, and tips on what to watch out for. Rare diseases are an important area of research and the goal of this presentation is to highlight FOAs and opportunities to be involved in NIH-supported programs.

Biography :

Jason Wan, PhD, is Director of the Mineralized Tissue Physiology Program at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR). The mission of NIDCR is to improve dental, oral, and craniofacial health through research, research training, and the dissemination of health information. The Mineralized Tissue program supports basic and translational science research on craniofacial skeletal biology and pathobiology, and pharmacogenetics. He obtained his doctoral degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics at the University of Pennsylvania and has conducted research on metalloenzymes and proteins involved in inflammatory pathways. Outside of work, he enjoys biking.

E-mail: jasonwan@mail.nih.gov