Nutrition and Metabolic Health Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) Services
Services we provide
Core description
Core A serves as the administrative and developmental hub of the NMHC. It provides leadership, fiscal and regulatory oversight, coordination among the scientific Cores and research projects, investigator mentoring, professional development, program evaluation, and communication with University leadership and NIH.
Core A also coordinates the Pilot Project Program, annual scientific reporting, Center meetings and events, resource sharing, and activities designed to help Research Project Leaders establish strong, independently funded research programs.
Leadership
- Matthew Cave, MD — Co-Director
- Bradford Hill, PhD — Co-Director
- Cheri Levinson, PhD — Associate Director
- Helen Collins, PhD — Pilot Project Program Director
- Kim Williams, MD — Faculty Success Leader
- Becky Antle, PhD — Evaluation Expert
Core description
Core B is a technology-development and innovation hub that integrates sequencing- and mass spectrometry-based approaches to advance nutrition and metabolic health research.
The Core develops and applies genomics, epigenomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, glycomics, and single-cell and spatial-omics workflows. Core B also provides project consultation, experimental-design support, customized technology development, education, and hands-on training.
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Core Directors
- Melissa L. Smith, PhD
- Michael L. Merchant, PhD
Highlighted capabilities
- Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics
- Genomic and epigenomic profiling
- Proteomics and glycomics
- Spatial and deep visual proteomics
- Integrated multi-omics workflows
- Customized technology and protocol development
Core description
Core C provides the expertise, equipment, assays, and validated physiological assessments needed to study nutrition and metabolism from cellular and molecular systems to the whole organism.
The Core connects metabolic and behavioral phenotyping, mass spectrometry, and clinical chemistry to support comprehensive evaluation of nutritional status, substrate metabolism, mitochondrial function, organ physiology, and whole-body health.
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Core Director
- Jason Hellmann, PhD
Highlighted capabilities
- Body composition and metabolic phenotyping
- Indirect calorimetry and substrate utilization
- Rodent exercise testing and training
- Mitochondrial function and energetics
- Stable-isotope-resolved metabolomics
- Metabolite, lipid, hormone, and vitamin measurement
- Clinical chemistry
- Human metabolic and nutritional phenotyping as services develop
Core description
Core D is the central resource for data management, statistical analysis, bioinformatics, visualization, data harmonization, and artificial intelligence within the NMHC.
The Core will develop a secure, centralized database containing data and machine-readable metadata from Research Project Leaders and Pilot Project awardees. This infrastructure will support reproducible research, cross-project analyses, integration with external repositories, and development of machine-learning and artificial-intelligence tools.
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Core Directors
- Clara Sears, PhD
- Olfa Nasraoui, PhD
Highlighted services
- Study design and biostatistics
- Bioinformatics and multi-omics integration
- Data management, curation, and secure storage
- Metadata standards and FAIR data practices
- Database and data-pipeline development
- Data visualization
- Machine learning, explainable AI, and predictive modeling
- Training in human and preclinical study design and advanced analytics
Overview
The NMHC provides a structured development environment designed to help early-career investigators build rigorous, visible, and independently funded research programs.
Each Research Project Leader receives multidisciplinary mentoring, access to Core expertise, individualized career planning, grant-development support, and opportunities to present work, build collaborations, and develop leadership skills.
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Program elements to feature
- Structured Individual Development Plans reviewed at regular intervals
- Mentoring teams that connect basic, translational, clinical, and methodological expertise
- Work-in-progress sessions and annual scientific retreat
- External seminar speakers and networking opportunities
- Mock NIH study sections and grant-readiness reviews
- Training in statistics, rigor and reproducibility, budgeting, project management, leadership, and responsible conduct of research
- Tracking of research productivity, funding, mentorship, training, and national visibility
- Regular identification and removal of barriers such as regulatory delays, statistical bottlenecks, equipment access, recruitment challenges, and protected-time concerns