The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has took steps to expand engagement with extramural investigators interested in collaborating with intramural researchers to use the unique resources of the NIH Clinical Centre.

A new grant programme, Opportunities for Collaborative Research at the NIH Clinical Centre, will support these partnerships. In addition, extramural investigators may access Clinical Centre resources through previously existing formal funding relationships, such as contracts, grants, and cooperative agreements.

“The NIH Clinical Centre is truly a national treasure and opening its doors to a greater pool of researchers will welcome fresh perspectives and cultivate new opportunities for discovery that will translate to greater human health,” said Francis S Collins, MD, PhD, director, NIH.

Until now, the Clinical Centre has served exclusively the NIH Intramural Research Program. The Clinical Centre launched a new website illustrating the hospital's research resources, such as its metabolic unit, pharmaceutical development capabilities, and advanced research-related radiology imaging services. The website offers a toolkit that outlines steps for extramural researchers interested in working with NIH intramural investigators to use the Clinical Centre and its research infrastructure.

"The Clinical Centre should be available for collaborations that will further enhance the translation of scientific observations and laboratory discoveries into new approaches for diagnosing, treating, and preventing disease," said Clinical Centre Director and NIH Associate Director for Clinical Research John I Gallin, MD.

In addition to the new grant programme, administrative supplements are available for short-term Bedside-to-Bench Awards Programme projects that involve partnerships between intramural and extramural investigators pursuing translational research projects.

The 2011 recipient of the Lasker-Bloomberg Public Service Award from the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation, the Clinical Centre is a 240-bed hospital and research facility with more than 1,500 clinical research protocols underway.

The recommendation that the NIH allow external investigators to use the unique resources of the Clinical Centre to stimulate a broader range of research came from the congressionally mandated Scientific Management Review Board (SMRB). The SMRB is charged with examining the NIH's organizational structure and providing recommendations for enhancing the agency's mission.

The NIH Clinical Centre (CC) is the clinical research hospital for the National Institutes of Health. Through clinical research, clinician-investigators translate laboratory discoveries into better treatments, therapies and interventions to improve the nation's health.

NIH, the nation's medical research agency, and is a component of the US Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases.