Native American Projects
Native American Research Centers for Health (NARCH)
The mission of NARCH is to provide a cooperative structure for the development and implementation of high quality, culturally sensitive and community supported research linked to health disparity issues. Collaborative effort will facilitate the participation of American Indians and Alaskan Natives in the research process through training and mentoring opportunities within both academic and community settings.
Within collaboration between OU Health Sciences Center and NARCH, Dr. Piers Blackett, M.D. served as co-investigator for one of the pilot studies on the project which is designed to study the effect of increasing exercise and dietary modification on cardiovascular risk in Native American school-children.
Oklahoma Native American EXPORT Center
EXPORT stands for "Excellence in Partnerships for Community Outreach and Research on Disparities in Health and Training". The mission of the Oklahoma Native American EXPORT Center is to promote health and reduce health disparities in the Native American population. The Center conducts research, provides training, disseminates health information, and reaches out to Native American communities. Primary health disparities to be addressed have included obesity.
Within collaboration between OU Health Sciences Center and EXPORT and serving as a principal investigator, Dr. Piers Blackett, M.D. is conducting a four-year grant entitled, "Prevention of Obesity in Early Childhood". This study is designed to test the efficacy of education to improve infant and toddler nutrition.
Treatment Options for Type 2 Diabetes in Adolescents and Youth (TODAY)
TODAY is a nationwide research study to find the best ways to treat young people with type 2 diabetes. The inclusion of several Native American tribes in the study makes Oklahoma's contribution to the study highly unique and provides a valuable service to Native Americans. To learn more about the study and the College of Medicine's strategic partnerships with Native American tribes, click here.
OU Alumni Foundation Grant
Dr. Piers Blackett, M.D. is conducting a study entitled, "Selected Polymorphisms, Fatty Acid Regulation, and the Metabolic Syndrome in Obese Adolescents".
Oklahoma Center for the Advacement of Science and Technology (O.C.A.S.T.)
With funding from OCAST, Dr. David Fields is conducting a three-year longitudinal study, examining insulin sensitivity, fat mass and distribution, and cardiovascular fitness. The pattern of change over the course of the study in these data will be examined in a group of overweight Native American and Caucasian children with a family history of Type 2 Diabetes. The results may be useful in determining risk for developing diabetes. Other analyses will be culled from the data, e.g., whether antecedents and markers of Syndrome X are evident in pre-pubertal, at-risk overweight children.