NIH 1998 Almanac/The Organization/NIGMS/
National Institute of General Medical Sciences : Mission
NIGMS primarily supports basic biomedical
research that is not targeted to specific diseases or disorders. Because scientific
breakthroughs often originate from such untargeted studies, NIGMS-funded work has
contributed substantially to the tremendous progress that biomedical research has made in
recent years. The institutes training programs help provide the most critical
element of good research: well-prepared scientists.
Each year, NIGMS-supported scientists make major
advances in understanding fundamental life processes. In the course of answering basic
research questions, these investigators also increase our knowledge about the mechanisms
involved in certain diseases. Other grantees develop important new tools and techniques,
many of which have applications in the biotechnology industry. In recognition of the
significance of their work, a number of NIGMS grantees have received the Nobel Prize and
other high scientific honors.
NIGMS has three divisions that support research
and research training in basic biomedical science fields: Cell Biology and Biophysics;
Genetics and Developmental Biology; and Pharmacology, Physiology, and Biological
Chemistry. The institute also has a Division of Minority Opportunities in Research, which
administers programs that are designed to increase the number of minority biomedical
scientists. Finally, NIGMS has a Division of Extramural Activities, which handles
institute grant-related functions.
NIGMS was established in 1962. In fiscal year
1998, its budget was $1.066 billion. The vast majority of this money funds grants to
scientists at universities, medical schools, hospitals, and research institutions
throughout the country. At any given time, NIGMS supports over 3,500 research
grants--about 14 percent of the grants funded by NIH as a whole. NIGMS also supports
nearly half of the predoctoral trainees and about 30 percent of all the trainees who
receive assistance from NIH.
The institute places great emphasis on the
support of individual, investigator-initiated research grants. It funds a limited number
of research center grants in selected fields, such as trauma and burn research and the
pharmacological sciences (including anesthesiology), in which the interaction of basic and
clinical researchers is critical for rapid scientific progress. In addition, NIGMS funds
several research contracts that provide important resources for basic scientists.
NIGMS research training programs recognize the
interdisciplinary nature of biomedical research today, and stress approaches to biological
problems that cut across disciplinary and departmental lines. Such experience prepares
trainees to pursue creative research careers in a wide variety of areas. Among the fields
in which NIGMS has long offered institutional predoctoral training programs are the
cellular, biochemical, and molecular sciences; genetics; the pharmacological sciences; and
systems and integrative biology. Another longstanding training activity, the Medical
Scientist Training Program, provides investigators who can bridge the gap between basic
and clinical research by supporting research training leading to the combined M.D.-Ph.D.
degree. Several newer training programs were designed to capitalize on rapidly developing
areas of science, including biotechnology, molecular biophysics, and the interface between
the fields of chemistry and biology.
The institute supports postdoctoral research
through individual fellowships in areas related to its scientific programs and
institutional postdoctoral training in the fields of anesthesiology, clinical
pharmacology, medical genetics, and trauma and burn injury.
NIGMS also has a Pharmacology Research Associate
Program, in which postdoctoral scientists pursue research in NIH or Food and Drug
Administration laboratories. It is intended for individuals with backgrounds in the basic
or clinical sciences who wish to obtain advanced experience in an area of pharmacology, or
for those who are already pharmacologists to gain experience in new fields.