The past decade has seen an impressive increase in research in the area of women’s health due, in large part, to the efforts of NIH through the Office of Research in Women’s Health (ORWH).  The Medical University of South Carolina’s (MUSC) Specialized Center of Research (SCOR) on Sex and Gender Factors Affecting Women’s Health is one of eleven specialized centers in the United States charged with the task of advancing research on women’s health and promoting institutional interdisciplinary research.  It represents a collaboration between the Clinical Neuroscience Division, the Women’s Scholar Initiative, the Center for Drug and Alcohol Programs, and the Neuroscience Department of MUSC.

The MUSC SCOR is a productive interdisciplinary research center focused on treatment and relapse in substance use disorders in women.  The MUSC SCOR serves as a focal point for women's health research at MUSC and is comprised of four core research components, an administrative core component, and a Pilot Project Program.  Our core scientific projects focus on sex and gender differences in the relationship between addiction and stress response using emerging technology in closely aligned clinical and basic science projects. The overarching goals of the center will focus on supporting and improving the translational scientific collaborations of the core and pilot research projects, catalyzing further growth of interdisciplinary sex and gender-based research on the MUSC campus and creating strategic partnerships to enhance the translation and dissemination of SCOR findings and other relevant research to improve the health of women and girls.  

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Specific Aim 1:
To continue the well-established, multidisciplinary, translational program of research focused on sex and gender differences in addictions and in the interactions of sex/gender, stress and addictions.

Specific Aim 2:  
To provide common resources through the Administrative Core to assist investigators in increasing efficiency, maximizing scientific rigor and productivity, and collecting pilot data.

Specific Aim 3: 
To encourage and support the growth of interdisciplinary sex and gender-based research on the MUSC campus.

Specific Aim 4: 
To attract and mentor young investigators and new faculty in the area of sex and gender based research.

Specific Aim 5: 
To develop strategic partnerships for the purpose of increasing research productivity and enhancing the dissemination of research findings to improve the health of women and girls.  

June 2012:  Specialized Centers of Research (SCOR) on Sex and Gender Factors eNewsletter (June 2012)