The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded Boston University a prestigious $4.5 million grant to further women’s health research and spur career growth for young investigators.
The five-year award from the Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH, pronounced “birch”) program, an NIH-funded research and career development initiative, will connect senior and junior faculty interested in women’s health research.
“The BIRCWH award reflects Boston University’s dual mission: to educate and empower future leaders from all sectors of society and to conduct research that advances knowledge and delivers meaningful societal impact,” says Kenneth Lutchen, BU’s vice president and associate provost for research. “By investing in cross-disciplinary mentorship and discovery, BU is helping to drive a convergent approach necessary to address the challenges in women’s health.”
BU’s BIRCWH grant provides funding for three early-career faculty members per year to participate in a two-year program. They will perform research under the mentorship of senior BU faculty, receive individualized career development support, and participate in regular research meetings and annual conferences. The program will largely focus on the themes of addiction science, maternal and child health, and sex influences on health outcomes. It will be led by Emelia Benjamin, the Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine’s Jay and Louise Coffman Professor in Vascular Medicine and associate dean of faculty development ad interim, Elisha Wachman (CAMED’06), a professor of pediatrics at the medical school, and Joyce Wong, a College of Engineering Distinguished Professor of Engineering. Wachman and Benjamin also hold positions at Boston Medical Center, BU’s primary teaching hospital; Wachman is a neonatologist and vice chair of pediatric academic research, and Benjamin is a cardiologist.
The three lead the BU Evans Center for Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research’s Women’s Health Affinity Research Collaborative (ARC) and say the BU BIRCWH program will boost the number of highly trained scientists tackling issues like maternal and reproductive health, as well as help disseminate more research in women’s health areas.
“Women’s health, including addressing sex-based differences in healthcare, represents one of our most critical challenges,” says Wong, a professor of biomedical engineering and of materials science and engineering whose research focuses on using bioengineering to support maternal and child health. “We are thrilled by this opportunity, because the BU BIRCWH program uniquely integrates engineering, basic science, and clinical translational medicine—perfectly aligning with BU’s mission to tackle major societal challenges. This program, together with ARC, will unite our women’s health research community to accelerate progress in this essential field.”
The grant links multiple BU schools across its Charles River and Medical Campuses, as well as affiliated sites, such as the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System. Almost 30 faculty members have signed on to be BU BIRCWH senior mentors; in addition to ENG and the medical school, mentors hail from BU’s School of Public Health, College of Arts & Sciences, Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine, and Sargent College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences.
“The BU BIRCWH grant represents an important partnership across multiple BU schools and Boston Medical Center, with the participation of accomplished faculty mentors from across disciplines,” says Wachman, a leader in the field of substance use disorders in pregnancy.
The award represents BU’s second BIRCWH grant; the first ran from 2002–2014.
“[These] awards can launch an early-career investigator’s research career,” says Benjamin, a widely recognized expert on the epidemiology of atrial fibrillation and other cardiovascular conditions. “In these challenging fiscal times, we are grateful to be able to support the early-career scientists from across BU seeking to improve women’s health across the country.”