NIH 1998 Almanac/The Organization/NCRR/
National Center for Research Resources: Mission
NCRR is this nation’s leading supporter of biomedical research resources and
investigator-initiated technology-related projects. A catalyst for discovery, NCRR ensures
that institutions, NIH-supported investigators, and others across the nation have the
means to develop and access unique technologies, instrumentation, facilities, animal
models (mammalian and nonmammalian), genetic stocks, and biomaterials such as cell lines,
tissues, and organs. This diverse funding commitment enables scientific collaborations and
discoveries important to many areas of health, complementing the various missions of
NIH’s categorical institutes. NCRR’s extramural grant support is concentrated in
four areas: Clinical Research, Comparative Medicine, Biomedical Technology, and Research
Infrastructure.
Many NCRR-supported research resources—often one-of-a-kind or in short
supply—are expensive to create, develop, and maintain. However, when a number of
researchers have access to a given resource, the effectiveness of that resource is
maximized relative to its cost. Shared resources, an NCRR hallmark, also allow scientists
to react rapidly and effectively to emerging health problems and unexpected research
opportunities. NCRR-supported shared resources include networks of General Clinical
Research Centers, Biomedical Technology Resource Centers, Regional Primate Research
Centers, special animal colonies and repositories, biological models, and biomedical
instrumentation.
A number of NCRR grant programs help build and strengthen the biomedical research
infrastructure of the United States, including physical facilities and human resources.
For example, NCRR provides support to institutions to construct, renovate, and improve
biomedical research facilities, develop basic and clinical biomedical research
capabilities, provide teachers and students hands-on science education experiences, and
assist researchers in developing education models that will ultimately increase student
and public understanding of biomedical science. Other NCRR support provides postgraduate
and postdoctoral special-emphasis training and career-development opportunities.
