Research News

Research News - April 17, 2015

April 17, 2015

ANNOUNCEMENTS

1. Core of the Week: Tumor Imaging Metrics Core (TIMC)
2. Navigating the Grant Process - NIH Progress Reports (Part 2)
3. Spring into Innovation – Innovation Newsletter
4. PCORI April 2015 Newsletter: Recent Awards, Upcoming Board Meeting, Advisory Panel News, and CME Plans

EVENTS

1. 2015 World Medical Innovation Forum - Neurosciences
2. Don't forget to register for the 5th Annual Research Administrators Retreat!
3. Orientation Program: Clinical Research Resources at MGH
4. Call for Abstracts: Present your poster at the Connected Health Symposium
5. Call for Abstracts: Center for Skeletal Research Symposium
6. “Science BITES” CNY Faculty Lunch Seminar Series
7. MGH Seminar Series in Cell Biology

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

1. Private Funding Opportunities
2. Limited Submission Funding Opportunities
3. NIH Update for Week Ending April 17, 2015

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Reminders of recently posted funding opportunities, deadlines and events

ANNOUNCEMENTS

1. Core of the Week: Tumor Imaging Metrics Core (TIMC)

Tumor Imaging Metrics Core
Co-Directors: Gordon Harris, Ph.D. & Annick Van den Abbeele, M.D.
Locations: BWH, MGH, DFCI

The mission of the Tumor Imaging Metrics Core (TIMC) is to provide reliable and consistent standardized tumor measurements of radiological images to evaluate treatment response for oncology clinical trials. As an independent core laboratory, the TIMC provides objective anatomic and functional imaging measurements which enhances the efficiency and quality of clinical trials using this service.

To learn more about the Tumor Imaging Metrics Core (TIMC), please click here.

2. Navigating the Grant Process - NIH Progress Reports (Part 2)

This is Part 2 in a four-part series about NIH Progress Reports.

More than half of our NIH Research Performance Progress Reports (RPPR) are due between March and May each year. Accurate, complete, and compliant progress reports are extremely important to ensure continued funding. NIH will not approve your new funding until ALL compliance requirements are met. We find that the biggest sticking points for progress reports are:

Public Access to Publications
Unobligated Fund Balances
Reduction to PI Effort (coming soon)
Patient Enrollment Tables (coming soon)

For more detail on the NIH RPPR, see their official guide: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/RPPR/rppr_instruction_guide.pdf

Unobligated Fund Balances
NIH reviews your grant's actual expenses, against actual awarded funds, in order to estimate the fund balance at the end of the budget period. Their estimate includes projected salary and F&A, but does not include unbilled subcontracts and any other project budget item not yet expensed. If it looks like your fund balance will substantially exceed 25% at the time the report is submitted (even if the grant will be spent out by end of the budget period) we recommend that you tick 'yes' but add an explanation in the text box at G.10.b explaining the reason for the apparent large current balance. Without an explanation, NIH will ask why their calculation differs from yours. You will be asked for a full budget for the unspent balance and a detailed justification for spending the balance in the new budget period. To avoid this, review your expense detail in InSight, remind your subawardees to submit their invoices on schedule and make sure cost transfers or salary transfers are timely.

3. Spring into Innovation – Innovation Newsletter

Please click here to read the Partners Innovation Newsletter.

4. PCORI April 2015 Newsletter: Recent Awards, Upcoming Board Meeting, Advisory Panel News, and CME Plans

Please click here to read the latest news from the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute.

EVENTS

1. 2015 World Medical Innovation Forum - Neurosciences

April 27-29, 2015, Boston, MA

The World Medical Innovation Forum is a global gathering of more than 1,000 senior health care leaders hosted by Partners HealthCare. The 2015 event will bring together decision-makers from the life sciences, health care, academic and investment communities to discuss the most compelling advances in neuroscience technology, care and research. Join CEOs, investors, senior executives, entrepreneurs, physicians and scientists from around the globe for the inaugural Forum from April 27-29, 2015.

A special Partners HealthCare Employee rate of $499 is being offered. Full registration is $1495 and the Non-Profit rate is $895.

For details and to register, please go to www.worldmedicalinnovation.org.

2. Don't forget to register for the 5th Annual Research Administrators Retreat!

Tuesday, May 12, 2015, 8:00 am - 4:00 pm, reception to follow, Simches Research Building, 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 note that everyone must register for the Retreat in May, even if you had registered for the original date in February. Please click here to register.

If you have any questions regarding the retreat, please email researchmanagement@mgh.harvard.edu.

3. Orientation Program: Clinical Research Resources at MGH

Thursday, May 7, 11:15am - 4:00pm, Simches 3.120

Sponsored by the MGH Clinical Research Program

Are you new to clinical research or planning a research project at MGH?
Orientation Program: Clinical Research Resources at MGH will provide valuable information about the clinical research system at MGH. New investigators and research coordinators/assistants are invited to meet with representatives from Research Management, Partners Clinical Research Office, Partners Human Research Committee, Partners Quality Improvement Program, Clinical Research Program, Clinical Research Center, Research Compliance, Investigational Drug Service and Clinical Research Laboratory Core.

Schedule:
Lunch & Welcome (11:15 - 11:30am) Stacey Grabert
Investigational Drug Pharmacy (11:30 - 11:45am) Alan DiBiasio
Clinical Research Center (11:45 - 12:00pm) Kathy Hall
Clinical Research Program (12:00 - 12:10pm) Stacey Grabert
Research Compliance (12:10 - 12:35pm) Pamela Richtmyer
Break (12:35 - 12:50pm)
Partners Human Research Committee (12:50 - 1:50pm) Maria Sundquist
Partners Quality Improvement Program (1:50 - 2:50pm) Michele Gomez & Angela Savlidis
Partners Research Management (2:50 - 3:10pm) Stania Augustin
Partners Clinical Research Office (3:10 - 3:30pm) Maureen Lawton
Harvard Catalyst Research Subject Advocacy Program (RSA) (3:30 - 3:55pm)
Certificates and Evaluations (3:55 - 4:00pm) Stacey Grabert

Lunch will be provided. Registration is required. Please contact Kelsey Gay with any questions.

4. Call for Abstracts: Present your poster at the Connected Health Symposium

October 29-30, Seaport Hotel and World Trade Center, Boston

As part of the 2015 Partners HealthCare Connected Health Symposium we are pleased to announce a poster session in collaboration with the Journal of Medical Internet Research.

Poster presentations offer an opportunity to share your work with an international audience interested in connected health. Poster presenters will enjoy free registration at the Symposium. Abstract submission deadline is May 14th.

With a focus on trends at the intersection of technology and new models of health care delivery, the Connected Health Symposium is a dynamic event that assists you to understand the rapidly-expanding connected health marketplace.

Partners employees can save even more on registration with the early-bird discount, available until July 31st. Visit http://symposium.connectedhealth.org

5. Call for Abstracts: Center for Skeletal Research Symposium

Wednesday, June 10, 2015; 1:00pm – 5:00pm, O’Keeffe Auditorium, Blake 1

Abstract Submission Deadline: May 8th at 5pm EDT

The goal of this symposium is to bring together the Boston bone research community for an exciting afternoon of scientific exchange. The session will feature talks by talented invited leaders of the field and by young investigators who will describe the research they are conducting with the help of Pilot Grants awarded by the Center. An important feature will be a poster session with prizes, which we hope will be an occasion for informal interchange about new research ideas. Please register in advance due to limited seating.

To register for this event or to submit an abstract, please click here

6. “Science BITES” CNY Faculty Lunch Seminar Series

Thursday, April 23, 2015 1:00pm - 2:00pm, CNY Bldg. 149, Conference Room A behind Eat Street Café

“Stem Cell based Multimechanistic Therapies for Tumors in the Brain”
Khalid Shah, MS, PhD
Head, Molecular Neurotherapy and Imaging Lab
Director, Stem Cell Therapeutics and Imaging Program

Bring your lunch!

Contact: JLFuller@mgh.harvard.edu

7. MGH Seminar Series in Cell Biology

Wednesday, April 22, 2015, 3:00 PM, CNY Bldg. 149-East, 2nd Floor, Room 2204

Sponsored by the Division of Nephrology

“Ouroborous, Autophagy, Cell Survival and Cell Death”
Eric H. Baehrecke, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Cancer Biology
University of Massachusetts Medical School

Host: Roy J. Soberman, M.D.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

1. 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.

Clinical Research Awards, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF)
Advanced Researcher Grants, Osteology Foundation
Innovations: Awards - Seeding Drug Discovery, Wellcome Trust

Please click here for further details on these funding opportunities.

2. 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:

Name of the Principal Investigator with appropriate contact information
A descriptive title of the potential application
Brief description of the project
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.

Charles H. Hood Foundation Major Grants Initiative to Advance Child Health
NIAMS Rheumatic Diseases Research Resource-based Centers (P30)

The two awards below are offered in addition to those that follow the LOI process mentioned above and will require a full preliminary application be prepared:

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.

3. NIH Update for Week Ending April 17, 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