About Us

ATRAC Mission Statement

The overall goal of the American Heart Association (AHA) Tobacco Center for Regulatory Science (ATRAC 2.0) is to provide scientific data relevant to the cardiovascular effects of tobacco products by evaluating the effects of these products and their constituents. Research supported by the Center will help develop new understanding relevant to the potential regulation of the cardiovascular effects of current, new and emerging tobacco products; and build and deploy capacity and expertise to respond to new developments in regulatory science.

ATRAC houses programs of multidisciplinary research to inform the manufacture, distribution and marketing of tobacco products for FDA-CTP regulatory policies. The Center is designed to collaborate with the other Centers within the TCORS network to share information, assess scientific progress in the field, identify new research opportunities, participate in cross-site scientific working groups, and form inter-center alliances to promote discovery, address research gaps, and resolve areas of scientific disagreement.

As a part of the larger Tobacco Center of Regulatory Science (TCORS), our mission is to aid the development and evaluation of tobacco product regulation by the FDA and thereby contribute to the protection of public health and reduction of tobacco-related disease, disability and death. In addition to providing the scientific expertise to inform regulatory policies, ATRAC also aims to train a new generation of investigators of tobacco regulatory science.

ATRAC Structure

The American Heart Association Tobacco Center for Regulatory Science (ATRAC 2.0) is constituted by the American Heart Association (AHA) and eight leading academic institutions across the country.

ATRAC currently supports three flagship projects, three supporting cores and four pilot projects being conducted by Fellowship awardees. Our Projects are designed with the purpose of understanding the underlying processes of tobacco-induced endothelial injury leading to cardiovascular disorders, identifying the biomarkers for early detection of cardiovascular injury, and gathering information that could help FDA/ CTP with their public education campaigns about tobacco use, especially in minority and vulnerable population groups. The Administrative Core facilitates a smooth operation of the entire grant, helping the different entities to function as one unit and work towards achieving the Center’s research goals. The other Cores have been tailored to support the flagship projects by helping measure tobacco exposure and its metabolic effects, quantitative analysis of all resulting data, and providing comprehensive education and funding opportunities in tobacco regulatory science for early career investigators and faculty.

Participating Institutions