A. History, Purpose and Objectives of the Center

1. History:

The Baylor Center for Reproductive Biology Research had its beginnings in 1973 when Dr. Bert O'Malley and Dr. Anthony Means were recruited to Baylor College of Medicine and established the Baylor Center for Population Research and Studies in Reproductive Biology. Since that time the program has flourished under the auspices of the Department of Cell Biology and its strong research base in modern molecular endocrinology. The philosophy for the Center was that it served as an anchor unit for a group of independent, high-quality scientific collaborators in the reproductive sciences, and provide a stimulating environment for the training of students and postdoctoral fellows. This core group of scientists grew into NICHD's single largest departmental group of funded investigators, which generally published between 50-100 publications per year. It gained an international reputation for its efforts in Reproductive Sciences.

Until this renewal, the Center for Reproductive Biology Research functioned as a P30 Center composed of interrelated Core Laboratories, offering technology transfer to other researchers at Baylor College of Medicine. Core Laboratory Directors were chosen for their individual leadership and productivity in their own research area of reproductive science and interacted with their colleagues in providing consultation, reagents, techniques, assays and training within the Center. The mission of the Core Lab Directors was to provide expert advice, training and pilot studies in addition to longer-term collaborations. Our Center also distributed research materials to other U.S. investigators in the field without cost or restrictions; these requests numbered from 200-250 per year.

A major strength of this Center has been the continuity of research and the faculty. The Center has succeeded in the past in maintaining a stable and productive research base without becoming hidebound in the traditional approaches. Rather, the infusion of new thoughts and approaches served to keep the Center as a vibrant research support entity with an excellent track record of productivity and creativity. Turnover has been modest; investigators have left on occasion to take senior posts at other institutions, but most important we have been able to retain junior investigators very effectively. This latter point speaks directly to the nature of the research infrastructure of the Center and of the Department of Cell Biology at Baylor College of Medicine.

The Center existed for the sole purpose of strengthening the research capabilities of a group of scientists undertaking related lines of reproductive investigation. It achieved this goal in two ways: (1) by fostering rapid application of novel technological advances; and (2) by doing so at a true cost saving for the scientific endeavor as a whole.

2. Objectives of the Center Renewal Application:

Since the Center for Population Research of NICHD has changed their application format so that P-30 Center Grants will be eliminated, we have been advised to move to the U54 Center Grant mechanism. The theme chosen and approved for the renewal application is "Mechanisms Involved in Female Reproduction." The purpose of this Center will be to establish a comprehensive research program to investigate the molecular mechanisms governing female reproduction. The research proposed in this Center application will include an investigation of crosstalk between the steroid hormone receptors and neurotransmitters in the regulation of female reproductive behavior, an investigation of the molecular regulation of folliculogenesis and oogenesis and finally an investigation of the molecular regulation of fertilization. We have chosen a group of our best reproductive scientists to lead this endeavor, which is comprised of four research projects and four core laboratories. The interactions of these research projects and the cores will not only provide an outstanding environment for the execution of the proposed research but also provide an exciting and stimulating atmosphere for training in reproductive biology. With the outstanding scientists involved, the interesting and currently unfunded projects contained herein and strong core laboratory support proposed, we are excited that our impact in the field of female reproductive biology will not only be sustained, but also be enhanced over our prior Center's significant contributions.

Finally, the new Center (U54), as in the past, will continue to function as an international resource for reagents such as cell lines, antibodies, DNA clones, animal models and so forth. It has always been the policy of this Center to cooperate with outside researchers wanting access to any specialized materials of the kinds listed above. These materials and their transfer to other Population Centers and to other HD grantees magnify enormously the impact that the Center's funds have in achieving the NIH goals for this type of research endeavor.

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