Document text
Principal Investigator: Ronald G Collman
Organization: UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
Fiscal Year: 2020
Award: $4,100,153
Funding agency: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
CFAR Overview
ABSTRACT
This competing renewal application for the Penn Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) builds on an
outstanding record of dynamic scientific leadership, organizational structure, resources and infrastructure
that advance HIV/AIDS research across the integrated campus of the University of Pennsylvania, Children's
Hospital of Philadelphia & the Wistar Institute. The CFAR's mission is to catalyze cutting-edge science and
add value to the AIDS research enterprise through activities that could not be achieved by individual investigators
or research projects. The Center is comprised of 250 members from our 3 institutions, including 11 of the 12
Penn schools and 17 departments within the School of Medicine, and key partners. The success of the CFAR
in the last 5 years is reflected in >$200M in AIDS-related NIH funding over that time, key discoveries in AIDS
research priority areas including HIV cure, vaccine development, immune reservoirs, bio-behavioral
prevention & engagement in care, HIV coinfections/comorbidities & other areas, and 3 interdisciplinary
Scientific Working Groups with high impact outcomes including funding of a Martin Delaney Collaboratory.
Looking ahead, a comprehensive strategic planning process has led us to refine CFAR priorities, Core activities,
and Core leadership to leverage new expertise and cultivate new research leaders, and maintain a cutting-edge
focus for our SWGs. The Penn CFAR is now well-positioned to address critical challenges during the next 5
years. Our CFAR recently established two new SWGs (“Technology to Reduce HIV Disparities” & “HIV
Reservoirs & Tissue Immunology”) that have already achieved high impact discoveries and will be carried
forward to the next cycle. The CFAR supports a Developmental Core and 7 Shared Resource Cores (Clinical,
Virus & Reservoirs, Immunology, Prevention Science & Community Outreach, Biostatistics & Data Science,
Nonhuman Primate, and International) that provide essential support for the research mission. The CFAR is led
by Drs. Ronald Collman (Director) and Robert Gross (Co-Director) and governed by an Executive Committee
with input from an Internal Advisory Board, External Advisory Committee and Community Advisory Board.
The Penn CFAR has 4 highly inter-linked Specific Aims that enable it to achieve its mission: (1) Provide
scientific and administrative leadership and pilot funding to catalyze innovative, interdisciplinary research that
will lead to new knowledge and solutions for the AIDS crisis; (2) Attract, train, mentor and support the next
generation of HIV/AIDS researchers to ensure forward-looking scientific progress, draw non-AIDS investigators
into the field with cross-cutting interdisciplinary expertise, and launch the next generation of research leaders;
(3) Support, monitor and continually evolve a set of efficient, dynamic & innovative Shared Resource Cores that
both support HIV/AIDS investigators and lead the research agenda through development & dissemination of
innovative technology that transforms scientific capacity, and; (4) Advance science and synergy through intra-
campus, local, national & international partnerships, community engagement and capacity building.
Terms: <AIDS><AIDS Virus><AIDS epidemiology><AIDS/HIV><AIDS/HIV problem><Abbreviations><Acquired Immune Deficiency><Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome><Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome Virus><Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome><Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome><Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome Virus><Acquired Immunologic Deficiency Syndrome><Address><Adherence><Advisory Committees><Africa South of the Sahara><Antibodies><Appointment><Area><Basic Research><Basic Science><Bechuanaland><Behavioral><Behavioral Research><Biometrics><Biometry><Biostatistics><Body Tissues><Botswana><Caring><Cell Therapy><Cellular Immune Function><Children's Hospital><Clinical><Clinical Research><Clinical Study><Clinical Trials Unit><Collaborations><Communities><Community Outreach><DNA><DNA Therapy><Data Science><Deoxyribonucleic Acid><Development><Disease remission><Education and Outreach><Educational Activities><Ensure><Evaluation><Faculty><Fostering><Funding><Gene Transfer Clinical><Genetic Intervention><Genome><HBCUs><HIV><HIV Vaccine Trials Network><HIV prevention trials network><HIV vaccine><HIV/AIDS><HIV/AIDS Vaccines><HIV/AIDS problem><HVTN><Health><Historically Black Colleges><Historically Black Colleges and Universities><Historically Black Institution><Historically Black University><Human Immunodeficiency Viruses><Immune><Immune mediated therapy><Immunes><Immunologically Directed Therapy><Immunology><Immunotherapy><Individual><Infrastructure><Injecting drug user><Injection Drug User><Institutes><Institution><Instruction and Outreach><Interdisciplinary Research><Interdisciplinary Study><International><Interruption><Investigators><Knowledge><LAV-HTLV-III><LMIC><Lead><Leadership><Link><Lymphadenopathy-Associated Virus><Lymphoid><Mental Health><Mental Hygiene><Mentors><Messenger RNA><Mission><Modeling><Monitor><Multidisciplinary Collaboration><Multidisciplinary Research><NIH><NIH Office of AIDS Research><National Institutes of Health><Opportunistic Infections><Organization Charts><Outcome><PWID><Pb element><Pediatric Hospitals><Pennsylvania><Philadelphia><Pilot Projects><Position><Positioning Attribute><PrEP><Prevention><Prevention Research><Primates><Primates Mammals><Process><Psychological Health><Public Health><R-Series Research Projects><R01 Mechanism><R01 Program><Remission><Reporting><Research><Research Grants><Research Personnel><Research Priority><Research Project Grants><Research Projects><Research Resources><Research Support><Research Training><Researchers><Resource Sharing><Resources><SHIV><SIV><Schools><Science><Scientist><Simian Immunodeficiency Viruses><Strategic Planning><Sub-Saharan Africa><Subsaharan Africa><Task Forces><Technology><Testing><The Wistar Institute><Time><Tissues><Training><Training and Outreach><Translational Research><Translational Science><Tutoring and Outreach><United States National Institutes of Health><Universities><Vaccines><Viral reservoir><Virus><Virus reservoir><Virus-HIV><YMSM><acronyms><advisory team><anti-retroviral therapy><anti-retroviral treatment><antiretroviral therapy><antiretroviral treatment><base><biobehavior><biobehavioral><biomed informatics><biomedical informatics><cell mediated therapies><cell-based therapy><cellular therapy><chronic mental illness><clinical research site><clinical site><co-infection><co-morbid><co-morbidity><coinfection><collaboratory><comorbidity><develop a vaccine><development of a vaccine><developmental><first in man><first-in-human><gene therapy><gene-based therapy><genetic therapy><genomic therapy><heavy metal Pb><heavy metal lead><human immunodeficiency virus vaccine><immune function><immune therapeutic approach><immune therapeutic interventions><immune therapeutic regimens><immune therapeutic strategy><immune therapy><immune-based therapies><immune-based treatments><immuno therapy><industrial partnership><industry partner><industry partnership><innovate><innovation><innovative><innovative technologies><international partnership><international research partnership><low and middle-income countries><mRNA><medical college><medical schools><member><neutralizing antibody><next generation><non-human primate><nonhuman primate><novel><organizational structure><people who inject drugs><people who inject illicit drugs><persistent mental illness><persons who inject drugs><pilot study><pre-exposure prophylaxis><recruit><school of medicine><serious mental disorder><serious mental illness><severe mental disorder><severe mental illness><simian HIV><simian human immunodeficiency virus><social><success><synergism><translation research><vaccine development><vaccine formulation><work group><working group><young MSM><young men who have sex with men>