Dear Colleague,

This month we’re excited to announce the launch of a completely redesigned CIAPM website that features easier navigation, streamlined organization, and new content.  

Ahead of National DNA Day on April 25, we join scientists, educators, and the public in celebrating the impacts and promises that genomic medicine and adjacent fields have inspired. To contribute to and amplify opportunities for practitioners and the public to become familiar with precision medicine, today we launched a new section of our website for educational resources and a primer on precision medicine.  

Read on for more about the webpage content, updates from the Advisory Council Working Groups, a calendar of external events, and a list of funding opportunities. As ever, if you would like to submit a story about how precision medicine is making an impact in California, please click the button at the bottom of this newsletter. 

In celebration,
The CIAPM Team 
Launch of Precision Medicine Educational Resources Content
Countless discoveries, collaborations, and technological achievements have brought us to this moment of pinpoint diagnostics and life-saving vaccines. Few endeavors have influenced the emergence of precision medicine as significantly as the Human Genome Project, which ran from 1990-2003 and spurred the creation of National DNA Day. 

In a state and nation that values and supports scientific research, public understanding of science is crucial, not only to uplift the next generation of innovators but also to share the excitement of expanding our knowledge and applying scientific principles in service of communities. We are delighted to launch new web content, including a primer on precision medicine and a curated resource library of external information for all audiences. In the near future we plan to add playlists of our favorite informative videos about precision medicine, public health, and other related topics, and a continuously updated list of relevant external funding opportunities. 
Browse the primer for answers to questions like How does precision medicine affect me? and How will data change health care? If you are a researcher, teacher, student, or community member, there are additional resources that have been carefully curated with you in mind. 

We will continue to update the resources to capture new developments and represent diverse voices in the field. If there is a link or topic you would recommend including on the webpage, please share it with us. 

Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn as we continue to celebrate National DNA Day this week. 
Programmatic Updates
Four Teams Receive $9 Million for Precision Medicine Research
Four state-funded grants totaling $9 million were awarded March 30 to support collaborative community-driven research teams in response to the latest request for proposals, Addressing Health Impacts of Adverse Childhood Experiences Through a Collaborative Precision Medicine Approach. In partnership with the Office of the CA Surgeon General, CIAPM administered a thorough selections process that launched in December 2019 and concluded after two pandemic-driven postponements with the final meeting of the out-of-state Expert Selection Committee in late March. Research teams will begin their three-year projects in May with budgets ranging from $2-2.4 million. 
Congratulations to the four primary institutions and numerous collaborators: 

  • Children's Hospital Los Angeles: Scalable Measurement and Clinical Deployment of Mitochondrial Biomarkers of Toxic Stress 
  • Loma Linda University: A Multi-Component Intervention to Strengthen Families and Build Youth Resilience 
  • University of California, Irvine: Using Precision Medicine to Tackle Impacts of Adverse and Unpredictable Experiences on Children's Neurodevelopment 
  • University of California, San Francisco: The Collaborative approach to examining Adversity and building Resilience (CARE) Program 

Find additional information about principal investigators, projects, and community, academic, and industry partners in our full announcement online. 
New Website to Showcase Our Work, Past and Present
This month we launched a redesigned website. The rollout is part of a larger website update for the Governor’s Office of Planning & Research. In addition to the educational content discussed above, the new site is easier to navigate and better highlights our funded projects, cross-agency partnerships, news and updates, and members of the California Precision Medicine Advisory Council and Expert Committees.  
Precision Medicine Advisory Council
During its meeting on March 31, the Data Integration Working Group discussed potential points at which a project might intersect with the integration of data into electronic health records. A meeting summary will be available on our website soon. The next Working Group meeting will be held in May. 

The Equitable Consent Working Group will meet today, Thursday, April 22 at 2 p.m., to discuss how to foster greater inclusion of underrepresented minorities in biomedical research. Register to attend and view the meeting materials.

A meeting of the full Advisory Council will be held on Thursday, May 27. Materials will be posted ahead of the meeting, but public attendees may register now.
Upcoming Events
April 23, 2021
The Health Resources and Services Administration, Office of Health Equity proudly presents our virtual event in recognition of National Minority Health Month. Speakers will focus on the disproportionate impact that COVID-19 has had on communities of color, why disparities in health outcomes and health care access persist, and what measures can be taken to address these inequities.

April 27, 2021
As part of National Minority Health Month, this webinar will highlight successful strategies and lessons learned by researchers and community partners in engaging diverse communities in complementary and integrative health research.

April 28, 2021
The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted long-standing racial inequities in the U.S. healthcare system. One urgent issue: making sure that the studies that test medical treatments reflect the populations of people who will receive them. Reporter Nicholas St. Fleur assembles a panel to search for solutions.

April 28-29, 2021
This two-day virtual workshop will explore challenges and opportunities for researchers, institutions, and funders in establishing effective data management and sharing practices. Workshop presentations and discussions may examine strategies, resources, and promising practices for developing and evaluating data management and sharing plans.
External Opportunities
ciapm
Catalyst Awards will reward bold, new, potentially transformative ideas to improve the physical, mental, or social well-being and health of people as they age, in a measurable and equitable way. 
April 25, 2021
Created to help small businesses apply for Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) funding. Selected small businesses can participate in the program at no cost. 
April 26, 2021 

Transformative Research to Address Health Disparities and Advance Health Equity
Supporting collaborative investigative teams or individual scientists who propose unusually innovative research projects, which could lead to the development of innovative and effective interventions to reduce health disparities and advance health equity.
April 28, 2021

Seeking proposals that address patient adherence to treatment and prevention regimens. Applications may address healthcare regimen initiation, implementation, and/or persistence by patients.
May 7, 2021 

Supplements will support efforts that address robustness, sustainability, reusability, and scalability of existing biomedical research software tools and workflows of recognized scientific value. 
May 15, 2021 
The purpose of this program is to study how best to implement screening protocols and evidence-based interventions for children and adolescents with ACEs. The goal is to yield a model for integrating ACEs screening and strength-based, trauma-informed services into primary care settings.
May 17, 2021

The purpose of the RMOMS program is to improve access to and continuity of maternal and obstetrics care in rural communities.
June 4, 2021