Subgoal 4: Develop and Distribute Research Resources

Physical resources—such as animal models, chemicals, tools, and other technologies—play a critical role in research. NIA develops and distributes these high-quality resources to investigators efficiently and at reduced cost. These resources include:

• Central aging colonies of animal models, including genetically altered animals necessary for research on aging processes and specific age-related diseases.
• Cell cultures and tissue, cell, and blood banks for basic and epidemiologic research.
• DNA resources for genetics.
• Imaging technologies for exploring the body, from the interior of the cell to organ systems.
• Computer technologies to record and analyze findings on basic biological research.

NIA will continue to identify and evaluate opportunities for providing research resources and infrastructure development using the advice of extramural and intramural researchers.

NIA also is evolving information technologies to assure broad access to archived data vital to researchers and policymakers and to ensure protection of anonymity and confidentiality of participants in clinical studies. In conjunction with selected NIH Institutes, NIA plans to support research on new mathematical and informatics methodologies and on improved instrumentation and computational techniques for modeling systems changes in aging.