National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)

Scientific Director: John O’Shea, M.D.

NIAMS focuses on studying diseases that involve bones, joints, muscles and skin, which affect almost every person in America and are a major cause of disability in the US and elsewhere. The Intramural Research Program (IRP) provides a unique contribution to the overall NIAMS research agenda and utilizes a broad spectrum of disciplines to conduct clinical and laboratory research related to arthritis and musculoskeletal and skin diseases.

For 25 years, the IRP has established a tradition of excellence with a strong focus on long-term, high-risk research aiming to develop innovative therapies for a number of serious disorders, for which satisfactory treatments are non-existent.

The program is firmly grounded on a foundation of world-class basic science research and technology within the NIAMS IRP itself, as well as with widespread collaborations with other outstanding intramural and extramural clinicians and scientists. The result is a cocktail of cutting-edge research in immunology, inflammation, signal transduction, epigenetics and transcriptional regulation, genetics, stem cell biology, structural biology, developmental biology, biophysics, and cartilage biology, with a generous twist of translational investigation in a number of clinical specialties.

Learn more about the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases’ Intramural Research Program.