National Institutes of Health awards $54 million to CU Anschutz

The National Institutes of Health on Monday announced a $54 million grant to the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, money the latter said would fuel biomedical research and training across the state.

The funding, to be awarded over a seven-year period, is the fourth consecutive time the federal agency has funded the Colorado Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute located on the CU Anschutz campus in Aurora since 2008. The grant is directly from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences. 

“This powerful grant will allow the University of Colorado to conduct leading-edge research that can directly impact health and patient care, reduce health disparities across our state and remain poised to respond to public health emergencies of the future,” University of Colorado President Todd Saliman said in a news release. 

CCTSI is a research partnership between CU Anschutz, CU Boulder, CU Denver and Colorado State University. Local hospitals and other organizations are also part of the group, allowing professionals across the state to work together to further biomedical research through clinical research and training efforts.

The institute has, over the years, made notable accomplishments, including establishing the standard of care worldwide for youth with Type 2 Diabetes, groundbreaking research on COVID-19 treatment and advancing precision medicine treatments for cystic fibrosis, the university said. 

“I am honored to help lead the CCTSI as we prepare to train the next generation of clinicians and scholars who will lead discoveries and solve some of the thorniest problems in human health,” said Janine Higgins, a professor of medicine at the CU School of Medicine. “We are energized and excited to continue this challenging yet critical work.”