Center for Public Health Kinetics (CPHK) was originally established in 1995 as a collaborative initiative between Johns Hopkins University, Annamalai University, and a Delhi-based system. At its inception, the center focused primarily on micronutrient research and operated under the name Center for Micronutrient Research. It was set up as an off-site center of Annamalai University through a formal resolution of the university’s Senate.
In 2005, as the scope of work expanded to include clinical trials and operational research in maternal and child health, the center was renamed the Center for Micronutrient Research–Clinical Trials and Operations Research in Maternal and Child Health (CMR–CTORMCH).
Subsequent regulatory changes in India required institutional IRBs to be located within 100–150 km of the research field sites. As a result, the Delhi/UP-based sites could no longer remain affiliated with Annamalai University for regulatory purposes. Around the same time, Annamalai University transitioned to become a state university under the Government of Tamil Nadu.
These developments led to the formal registration of the Delhi research center as an independent entity in 2011, under the new name Center for Public Health Kinetics (CPHK). Despite the name change, the mandate, research sites, personnel, and ongoing programs remained unchanged—CPHK represents a direct continuation of CMR and CMR–CTORMCH.
CPHK, as a center of excellence, envisions becoming a global leader in public health research, with a mandate to work not only in India but also in other low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), as outlined in its Memorandum of Association (MoA).
As part of this international vision, CPHK has provided technical assistance and conducted collaborative research in several LMICs:
- In Bangladesh, a study was conducted in collaboration with Bogra Medical College.
- In Pakistan, CPHK partnered with Aga Khan University.
- In Zanzibar (Tanzania), CPHK works with the Ministry of Health and Jhpiego
- In Zimbabwe, CPHK Collaborated with University of California
One of the center’s most significant international collaborations has been in Pemba, Tanzania, where CPHK—formerly CMR—developed a major field site in partnership with PHL-IdC, the local host institution. This collaboration, supported by the WHO and Gates Foundation, has included:
- Establishing a research field site covering all 60,000 households on Pemba Island.
- Setting up a state-of-the-art Biobank housing biospecimens from over 5,000 pregnancies (followed from conception to delivery) and approximately 2,500 children (followed to age three).
- Constructing a new laboratory facility equipped for advanced research in clinical biochemistry, immunochemistry, microbiology, histology, and genetics (including DNA and RNA extraction).
Through these initiatives, CPHK continues to contribute significantly to global public health research and capacity-building in LMICs.