The agreement encourages closer collaborations between NIH and Norwegian institutions in biomedical research. Collins mentioned in particular the ongoing collaboration between the Norwegian Nord-Trondelag Health Study (HUNT) population biobank and the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). Before becoming director of NIH, Collins was the director for NHGRI, which is one of 27 institutes that make up NIH. NIH is also funding the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study (MOBA) biobank through a collaboration with the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH).
The agreement holds a great potential for cooperation in all fields of biomedical research, says Director General of the Research Council Arvid Hallén who signed the agreement in Norway. In addition to biobanks and health registries, global health stands out as a very interesting field of cooperation between NIH and Norwegian research institutions.
The Research Council of Norway and the NIPH have informed Norwegian universities and medical schools about this initiative to promote increased collaboration with the US. As a next step, the Research Council’s North-America coordinator Terje Emblem will attend a meeting with NIH in May at the Norwegian Embassy in Washington D.C. to discuss concrete collaborative topics between Norway and the US.