Cross posted from Nature’s The Great Beyond blog.
In his quest to fast-track a new translational medicine center at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), agency director Francis Collins has encountered a rising tide of opposition. Now two US senators have joined the ranks of the disgruntled, concerned that their constituents will be hurt by the related dissolution of another NIH center.
Because NIH is limited by law to a fixed number of institutes and centers, Collins has recommended eliminating the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) in order to make way for the proposed National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS). The change could be reflected in the 2012 federal budget request expected from the White House on Monday.