The University of Nebraska Board of Regents today approved the establishment of a Nebraska Center for Substance Abuse Research at the University of Nebraska Medical Center to promote and facilitate research in understanding consequences and prevention of drug abuse and neurodegenerative diseases.
“Substance abuse leading to addiction is often accompanied with mental illness, and continues to be one of the most devastating problems facing communities throughout the world,” said Shilpa Buch, Ph.D., center director. “The mission of the center is to bring the power of science and research to bear on drug abuse and addiction, thereby, improving the quality of life of the affected individuals, while reducing the health care costs, in the state of Nebraska through innovative collaborative basic and clinical research, premier education programs, and outreach to those suffering from addiction,” Dr. Buch said.
The Nebraska Center for Substance Abuse Research will be part of the UNMC Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience in the College of Medicine. Dr. Buch is a professor in the department.
"As a department we are more than thrilled to support and partner in this effort in the strongest manner possible,” said Howard Gendelman, M.D., chairman of the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience. “Dr. Shilpa Buch is the right person to bring this important problem to center stage for our state and nation."
“The mechanisms, the treatment and prevention of substance abuse is an extension of all the outstanding work currently being done by the Buch laboratory. This center is a natural next step in its evolution. The impact to our university and its mission is boundless,” he said.
The new center will focus on understanding the neurologic and behavioral consequences of drug addiction. It also will enhance research capacity by recruiting new faculty, postdocs and students, and building bridges between basic, clinical and public health investigators.
The center builds on existing and planned collaborations with other institutions and universities, including the VA Medical Center, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Creighton University, Kansas University Medical Center, University of Minnesota, Emory University, as well as Nanjing University in China and two institutes in India – the Brain Research Institute, Manesar and Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Advanced Study.
“The interdisciplinary capabilities and approaches that will come together in the center will make UNMC a leader in combatting the plague of substance abuse that brings pain and suffering to so many,” said Bradley Britigan, M.D., dean, UNMC College of Medicine.
The UNMC Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience, the College of Medicine, office of the chancellor and office of the vice chancellor for research will fund the center, which will cost approximately $362,000 to establish.
UNMC leaders say discoveries generated by center investigators will pave the way for future diagnoses, prevention and treatment of substance abuse-related disorders.
“Substance abuse continues to be a problem both in the region, nationally and around the world,” said Jennifer Larsen, M.D., vice chancellor for research. “We hope this center will bring together a broad array of expertise needed to understand and better address the consequences of drug abuse as we work together toward better treatments and prevention.”
Through world-class research and patient care, UNMC generates breakthroughs that make life better for people throughout Nebraska and beyond. Its education programs train more health professionals than any other institution in the state. Learn more at unmc.edu and follow us on social media.