PROJECT SUMMARY RESEARCH CAPACITY CORE Prostate cancer is the most common cancer type found in senior men and a second leading cause of cancer deaths among American men. Although prostate cancer grows slowly, the major cause of prostate cancer death results from cancer metastasis and chemoresistance. In AfricanAmerican men, the incidence of prostate cancer is 65% higher and the mortality rate is more than double compared to Caucasian men. The cause for this racial disparity in both incidence and death rate in AfricanAmericans are illdefined, but considerable evidence points to roles for an array of biological and environmental factors. The Center for Cancer Research and Therapeutic Development (CCRTD) at Clark Atlanta University (CAU) is committed to an ongoing mission which is to advance our understanding of and ability to alter the pathogenesis and risk factors associated with prostate cancer and its associated disparities through three research projects and fifteen pilot projects in this renewed proposal. The Research Capacity Core at CAU proposes to continue supporting rigorous, reproducible research in three ways: 1) Support research projects by maintaining the core laboratories, core laboratory personnel and services that will be utilized by the project leaders and other users of the core; 2) Provide training to ensure that project leaders and other users are acquainted with the use of core equipment; and 3) Enhance biomedical research capacity to allow projects leaders and other users of the core to develop their research projects toward preclinical and/or clinical research.