Research News - January 9, 2015

ANNOUNCEMENTS

1. NIH Update: FY15 Fiscal Policies; FY14 Application, Award & Success Rate Data; NIH Late Policy Changes; Learn More About Lab Animal Oversight

Please click here to read the NIH Extramural Nexus.

2. Core of the Week: High Resolution Peripheral Quantitative Computed Tomography (HR-pQCT) Core

High Resolution Peripheral Quantitative Computed Tomography (HR-pQCT) Core
Director: Joel S. Finkelstein, MD
Location: 10 Emerson Place Suite 1, Boston, MA

The High Resolution Peripheral Quantitative Computed Tomography (HR-pQCT) Core Facility offers measurements of the microscopic internal structure of cortical and trabecular bone in the distal radius and tibia. Additionally, the HR-pQCT Core Facility offers Finite Element Analysis to estimate key biomechanical properties of the bone including failure load and stiffness.

By scanning the distal radius and tibia, the HR-pQCT Core can measure a variety of important parameters reflecting the integrity of cortical and trabecular bone. This information cannot be determined using standard clinical imaging techniques such as dual-energy X-Ray absorptiometry (DXA). A scanning appointment is a 30 minute addition to a clinical research visit and involves less radiation exposure than traditional bone densitometry. With applications for both cross-sectional and longitudinal research, investigators have employed our facilities and expertise to study a variety of bone-related diseases with participants ranging in age from children to the elderly.

The goal of the HR-pQCT Core is to provide facilities and personnel on a per study basis, allowing investigators access to important information about bone structure and function without requiring special expertise and equipment.

To learn more about the High Resolution Peripheral Quantitative Computed Tomography (HR-pQCT) Core, please click here.

EVENTS

1. Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) 2015 Poster Session

Wednesday, April 1, 2015, 110:00 am – 1:45 pm, SERI, Simches, 2nd Floor

ECOR is now accepting abstracts for the 2015 SAC Poster Session! 

Deadline for Submission: Tuesday, January 20, 2015 - 5:00 PM

The SAC Poster Session gives researchers the opportunity to create a compelling visual display of their work, and present it to some of the best scientific minds in the nation. It is an essential part of the two-day meeting, which highlights excellence in research at MGH. Presenters must be a MGH employee.

NEW for 2015!
This year, we will be featuring a limited number of electronic poster boards (ePosterBoards). We are looking for dynamic, visually interesting presentations for these ePosterBoards.

LOCATION, DATE & TIME
Schepens Eye Research Institute
185 Cambridge St.
Simches Building, Second Floor
Wednesday, April 1, 2015, 11:00am - 1:45pm

PRIZES
Twelve $1,000 Awards of Excellence for Scientific Meeting Travel

HOW TO SUBMIT
Please click here for more information and to submit a poster abstract!

Please note: Space is limited! Submissions will be closed before the deadline if we reach capacity.

QUESTIONS
If you have problems or questions, please email sac@partners.org.

2. 5th Annual Research Administrators Retreat

Tuesday, February 10, 2015, Time: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm, reception to follow, Simches, 3rd Floor 

Please join us for the 5th Annual Research Administrators Retreat. All MGH Department Administrators and Partners Central Administrators are invited to attend as well as any interested investigators. The retreat will be equally beneficial to those who are new to research administration and those who have been in the field for years, and will be a great opportunity to network with your colleagues.

Please click here to register.

3. Responsible Conduct of ‘Omics’ Research

Tuesday, January 20th and Monday, February 9, 1:00pm - 5:00pm, Simches 3.110

Sponsored by Harvard Catalyst, the Clinical Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital and the Center for Clinical Investigation at Brigham and Women’s Hospital

Join us for this two session course looking at complex challenges that have become widespread due to rapid advances in genomic technologies, large scale data sharing, and the emerging integration of genetic and biomarker findings into clinical setting. Investigators throughout the Harvard community have increasingly expressed a need to adapt Responsible Conduct of Research training to this changing environment. Therefore, in collaboration with the Harvard Catalyst and the MGH Clinical Research Program (CRP) we are pleased to be offering this course for the Harvard community.

This course is intended for individuals who are working in the field of genetics, genomics, and related “omics” fields.

Registration is required. Please contact Jillian Tonelli with questions.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

1. Claflin Distinguished Scholar Awards for Junior Faculty Women Investigators in Basic & Clinical Research

Applications are now being accepted by the Executive Committee on Research (ECOR) for the Claflin Distinguished Scholar Awards!

What are the Claflin Awards?
Although women scientists are recruited to Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) programs, their advancement to senior faculty positions is still far less frequent than that of their male counterparts. In 1993, The Women in Academic Medicine Committee, originally chaired by Mrs. R. Morton Claflin, Honorary Trustee, was established to facilitate the academic careers of women in science at MGH. Recognizing that a significant obstacle to career advancement is the difficulty of maintaining research productivity during the child-rearing years, this Committee, with the sponsorship of the Executive Committee On Research (ECOR), established the Claflin Distinguished Scholar Awards. It is intended that this transitional funding will increase opportunities for women to advance to senior positions in academic medicine.

How much is each award?
These are two year awards for $50,000 per year in direct costs, plus 15% for indirect costs.

When is the deadline?
Tuesday, March 3, 2015 - 9:00 PM

How do I learn more and apply?
Click here to read more and apply online!

2. Private Funding Opportunities 

Please contact Corporate & Foundation Relations in the Office of Development at devcfr@mgh.harvard.edu if you wish to submit a proposal in response to any of these funding opportunities. Note that proposals are still routed through the standard InfoEd/Research Management process.

• Request for Applications, Foundation for Prader-Willi Research (FPWR)
• Young Investigator Award (YIA), Children's Tumor Foundation (CTF)
• Allen Distinguished Investigators (ADI) Program, The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation
• ASD Clinical Trials Award, Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative
• Translational Research Program, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

Please click here for further details on these funding opportunities.

3. Limited Submission Funding Opportunities

We ask that all MGH Investigators interested in applying for any limited submission award submit a Letter of Intent (see detailed instructions below) to the MGH Executive Committee on Research (ECOR) by the deadline indicated for each award to be considered to receive an institutional nomination.

Process
Submit a one- to two-page Letter of Intent (LOI) to the MGH Executive Committee on Research (ECOR) via email to ecor@partners.org. In addition to your LOI, please include an NIH Biosketch.

The letter of intent should include:
1. Name of the Principal Investigator with appropriate contact information
2. A descriptive title of the potential application
3. Brief description of the project
4. Brief description of why you specifically should be selected to receive institutional nomination for this award

In the event that there is more than one MGH investigators interested in applying for each limited submission award, the LOIs will be used to assess candidates and a review and selection process will take place.

Current Limited Submission Funding Opportunities
Please click here for more information and for our internal deadlines.

• Centers for Common Disease Genomics (UM1)
• Centers for Mendelian Genomics (UM1)
• Environmental Health Sciences Core Centers (EHS CC) (P30)
• NIAMS Skin Biology and Diseases Resource-based Centers (P30)

If there is a limited submission funding opportunity you do not see listed above or you have any additional questions, please contact Erin McGivney at 617-643-6471.

4. NIH Update for Week Ending January 9, 2015

For the latest National Institutes of Health notices, requests for applications, and program announcements, follow this link: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/WeeklyIndex.cfm

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Reminders of recently posted funding opportunities, deadlines and events

MGH ECOR Formulaic Bridge Funding
Application Deadline: 7th day of each month

MLSC Cooperative Research Matching Grant Program
Application Deadline: February 13, 2015 

Boston Biomedical Innovation Center (B-BIC) Accepting PILOT & DRIVE Grant Pre-Proposals

HMS Faculty Seminar - Panel Discussion: Claflin Distinguished Scholar Awards - January 13

Clinical Trial Billing (Part 2): Tracking Charges and Patient Care Corrections - January 22

Strategies for Recruiting and Retaining Study Subjects - January 22 

Research Nurse Book Club - January 27

Save the Date! Research Administrators Retreat - February 10

Save the Date! SAC 2015 - April 1 & 2, 2015

2015 World Medical Innovation Forum - Neurosciences - April 27-29

Executive Committee On Research (ECOR) Massachusetts General Hospital

50 Staniford Street, Suite 1001, Boston, MA 02114

ecor@mgh.harvard.edu