Strategic Planning Modules

Four planning modules, each consisting of an external advisory panel assisted by an NINDS staff working group, will make recommendations about priorities and strategies for the NINDS over the next five to ten years in the areas of basic, clinical, translational, and disease research.

• The Basic Module will focus on basic science research, which provides fundamental understanding of normal nervous system function and disease mechanisms.
  
  
• The Translational Module will focus on research to develop potential therapies and advance them to the point that they can be tested in clinical trials.
  
  
• The Clinical Module will focus on all aspects of clinical research, which includes clinical trials, epidemiological and natural history studies, and other research in humans.
  
  
• The Disease Module will look at research planning from the perspective of the hundreds of diseases within the NINDS mission.

In making their recommendations, the modules will take into account both a review of current NINDS activities and their strengths, weaknesses and gaps, as well as a look forward to challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.

Basic Module

Broad questions for the Module to consider:

• What is the proper balance of NINDS support across different areas of neuroscience?
• What is the role for the NINDS within the context of other NIH Institutes that support neuroscience research?
• How can the NINDS optimize support for basic research, including funding mechanisms, review policies, training, and shared resources?

Basic Module Advisory Panel
View the full charge to the Basic Module Advisory Panel
Gary Westbrook, M.D. (Chair), Vollum Institute, Oregon Health Sciences University
Dora Angelaki, Ph.D., Washington University School of Medicine
Bruce Bean, Ph.D., Harvard Medical School
David Bredt, M.D., Ph.D., Eli Lilly and Company
Dan Feldman, Ph.D., Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley
David Ginty, Ph.D., Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
Sabine Kastner, M.D., Ph.D., Princeton University
Pat Levitt, Ph.D., Vanderbilt University
Earl Miller, Ph.D., Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Robert Miller, Ph.D., Case Western Reserve University
Josh Sanes, Ph.D., Center for Brain Science, Harvard University
Leslie Vosshall, Ph.D., Rockefeller University

Translational module

Broad questions for the Module to consider:

• Has NINDS translational research been as effective as it could be, given the opportunities and resources available?
• What should the NINDS continue to do, and what should it do differently? Are there ways in which the NINDS can support translational research more effectively?
• How should the NINDS decide whether to invest in a new translational research activity and what shape it should take?

Translational Module Advisory Panel
View the full charge to the Translational Module Advisory Panel
Howard J. Federoff, M.D., Ph.D. (co-chair), Georgetown University
John McCall, Ph.D. (co-chair), PharMac, LLC
Christopher Austin, M.D., National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH
National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health
Robi Blumenstein, MRSSI, Inc.
Robert H. Brown, Jr., M.D., D.Phil., Massachusetts General Hospital
Cristina Csimma, Pharm.D., M.H.P., Clarus Ventures, LLC
Warren Grill, Ph.D., Duke University
Franz F. Hefti, Ph.D., Avid Radiopharmaceuticals Inc.
Peter T. Lansbury, Jr., Ph.D., Harvard Medical School
William D. Matthew, Ph.D., UCB Group, Schwarz Biosciences, Inc.
Douglas R. Morton, Jr., Ph.D., PharmMor Consulting, LLC
Dinah Sah, Ph.D., Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Anne B. Young, M.D., Ph.D., Massachusetts General Hospital

Clinical module

Broad questions for the Module to consider:

• Has the NINDS clinical research program been as effective as it could be, given the opportunities and resources available?
• How can the NINDS more effectively improve the pace of clinical research advances?
• How can the NINDS best balance its support across different types of clinical research studies and clinical trials?

Clinical Module Advisory Panel
View the full charge to the Clinical Module Advisory Panel
Merit Cudkowicz, M.D. (co-chair), Massachusetts General Hospital
Dan Lowenstein, M.D. (co-chair), University of California, San Francisco
Sander Connolly, M.D., Columbia University Medical Center
Gary Cutter, Ph.D., University of Alabama
Patrick A. Griffith, M.D., Meharry Medical College
Berch Griggs, M.D., University of Rochester Medical Center
S. Claiborne Johnston, M.D., Ph.D., University of California, San Francisco
Karl Kieburtz, M.D., University of Rochester Medical Center
Karen Marder, M.D., Columbia University Medical Center
Justin McArthur, M.D., Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Henry McFarland, M.D., NINDS Intramural
Laura Ment, M.D., Yale University
Gilmore O'Neill, M.B., M.Med.Sc., MRCPI, Massachusetts General Hospital
Steven Piantadosi, M.D., Ph.D., Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Jeffrey L. Saver, M.D., University of California, Los Angeles
A. Gregory Sorensen, M.D., Massachusetts General Hospital
Caroline Tanner, M.D., Ph.D., The Parkinson's Institute

Disease module

Broad questions for the Module to consider:

• How can the NINDS best balance burden of disease and potential for public health impact with scientific opportunity when prioritizing disease-related research activities?
• What are the most important unmet opportunities and challenges for disease research (on specific diseases or across many disorders)?
• Are there opportunities to better coordinate research on shared biological mechanisms across diseases, both within and outside the NINDS?

Disease Module Advisory Panel

Henry L. Paulson, M.D., Ph.D. (co-chair), University of Michigan
Timothy A. Pedley, M.D. (co-chair), Columbia University Medical Center
Susan Axelrod, Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy
Stephen A. Back, M.D., Ph.D., Oregon Health Sciences University
Nicholas M. Barbaro, M.D., Ph.D., University of California, San Francisco
Robert H. Brown, M.D., Ph.D., Massachusetts General Hospital
Lucie Bruijn, Ph.D., The ALS Association
Kenneth Fischbeck, M.D., NINDS Intramural
Daniel H. Geschwind, M.D., Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles
Cynthia Joyce, M.S., SMA Foundation
Maiken Nedergaard, M.D., Ph.D., University of Rochester
Harry T. Orr, Ph.D., University of Minnesota
John K. Park, M.D., NINDS Intramural
Scott L. Pomeroy, M.D., Ph.D., Children's Hospital Boston
Barbara G. Vickrey, M.D., M.P.H., University of California, Los Angeles, School of Medicine

Review the NINDS Strategic Planning Process