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Yale Collaborative Center for Statistics in Science Receives $12.4 Million to Advance Reproductive Medicine Research

Heping Zhang, Ph.D., Professor in the Division of Biostatistics and Director of the Collaborative Center for Statistics in Science, will serve as principal investigator of the data coordination and analysis center for the National Institutes of Health's Reproductive Medicine Network.

The Yale Collaborative Center for Statistics in Science (C²S²) has been awarded $12.4 million over the next five years from the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute on Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) to fund research initiatives in reproductive medicine.

C²S² will serve as the data coordination and analysis center for NICHD’s Reproductive Medicine Network.  It is part of an eight-site network that will investigate and facilitate resolution of problems in reproductive medicine, including infertility, gynecological diseases and disorders, as well as diseases and disorders of the male reproductive system.  Other institutions conducting research in conjunction with Yale are Pennsylvania State University, University of Colorado, University of Michigan, University of Pennsylvania, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, University of Vermont, and Wayne State University.

Heping Zhang, Ph.D., Professor in the Division of Biostatistics at Yale School of Public Health and Director of C²S², will serve as the principal investigator of the data coordination center for Yale.  Zhang will oversee all aspects of the effort including study design, data management, informatics, statistics, and coordination. “The center will coordinate the network activities, establish web-based data management systems, help develop and execute study protocols, and conduct on-site monitoring for compliance and quality control on all of the network sites,” said Zhang.  Dr. Louis De Paolo, Chief of Reproductive Sciences at NICHD, stated that C²S² will be the “heart and soul” of the Reproductive Medicine Network.

“We are very excited about this important grant from NICHD that will allow biostatisticians at the Yale School of Public Health and other investigators in the Yale School of Medicine to play a key role in study design and coordination, and data management and analysis for national studies in reproductive medicine,” stated Paul Cleary, Dean of the Yale School of Public Health.

Robert Alpern, Dean of the Yale School of Medicine said, “This grant is another indication of the success of Dr. Zhang's program, as well as the quality of Yale in biostatistics.”

Conditions such as endometriosis, leiomyomata uteri, abnormal uterine bleeding, pelvic floor disorders, and others that cause pain, disruption of function in the workplace and the home may cause other problems besides infertility. Gynecologic conditions that result in significant morbidity, particularly in women of reproductive age.  Many of these conditions can lead to hysterectomy or other major surgery.  In some cases, alternative management strategies might have been effective, but were not understood, accessible or affordable.  The goal of the network is to resolve problems in reproductive medicine, resulting in this effort benefiting infertile couples and individuals afflicted with reproductive diseases and disorders.

Yale Fertility Center’s Hugh S. Taylor, M.D., Professor and Section Chief and Pasquale Patrizio, M.D., Professor, Clinical Practice Director, and Director, will provide clinical and scientific expertise.  Robert Makuch, Ph.D., Professor of Biostatistics at Yale School of Public Health, will provide assistance with methodologic issues in the design, conduct, and analysis of clinical studies. Lawrence Scahill, M.S.N., Ph.D., Professor of Nursing and Child Psychiatry at Yale School of Nursing and Child Study Center, will provide his expertise in design and coordinate multi-site clinical trials. Dr. Scahill is the Director of the Research Unit on Pediatric Psychopharmacology (RUPP) at the Yale Child Study Center.

C²S² was founded in 2006 after Zhang received over $10 million from NICHD to coordinate the National Genomic and Proteomic Network for Preterm Birth Research. C²S² aims to be a leader in fostering collaborations involving statistical methods and technologies in any aspect of scientific research, particularly for understanding disease etiologies and developing treatment and prevention strategies.