Research News - July 31, 2015

Effective Thursday, August 6, the ECOR administrative offices will be located at 125 Nashua Street, Suite 822, Boston, MA 02114. The new internal mail code is 125N-822. Telephone and fax numbers have not changed. Please feel free to contact us with any questions at:
Main Number: 617-643-7420
Email: ecor@mgh.harvard.edu

Or, also visit us online at http://ecor.mgh.harvard.edu

Please bring a photo ID when visiting 125 Nashua Street. All visitors will be required to show a photo ID when entering the building. Parking is available at the North Station Garage, located at 121 Nashua Street.

High Resolution Peripheral Quantitative Computed Tomography (HR-pQCT)
Director: Joel S. Finkelstein, M.D.
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, click here.

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

Thursday, August 20, 2015, 12:00 - 1:30 pm, MGH Main Campus (Details provided upon registration)

Sponsored by the Office for Research Career Development

This mock review panel will show how NIH grants are evaluated for funding. Real NIH R01 applications will be discussed, included funded and unfunded grants. You will learn about:

• Membership of a typical review panel (study section)
• Responsibilities of review panel members
• What happens during the review meeting
• What your grant’s priority score means
• How to communicate with NIH staff about your grant

Chair: Dara S. Manoach, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at MGH
Panel Members: Dennis Brown, PhD, Professor of Medicine and Director, Office for Research Career Development at MGH; Patricia A. D’Amore, PhD, MBA, Charles L. Schepens Professor of Ophthalmology and Professor of Pathology at MGH

*1 hour of RCR training credit available for NIH trainees.

Please click here to register. If you have any questions contact us at orcd@partners.org

Thursday, October 8, 8:00am – 12:00pm, O’Keeffe Auditorium & Bulfinch Tents
 
Celebrate MGH’s 13th Annual Clinical Research Day on Thursday, October 8 from 8am – 12pm. The day will kick-off with the keynote presentation by Dr. Mark Fishman, President, Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research.
 
More details will be available in the next few weeks, including instructions on abstract submission and event schedule. Please mark your calendars and plan to attend. Questions may be directed to Jillian Tonelli.
 
MGH Clinical Research Day is brought to you by the Division of Clinical Research.

The Executive Committee on Research (ECOR) is accepting applications for the August 1st deadline for the Deliberative Interim Support Funding g.  August is the second of three standing deadlines for these awards in 2015. The next deadline will be December 1, 2015.  

What are they?
Deliberative Interim Support Funding
This is open to Principal Investigators during a lapse or delay in their research funding from the NIH or another Federal agency (e.g., the National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense).  Investigators must have applied for independent, long-term support (R01, R21, U01 and P01).  The Deliberative Interim Support process is open to:

1. Investigators whose grants were not scored or whose scores were not translated into a percentile ranking.
2. Investigators whose grants received scores >20th percentile.
3. Investigators who were awarded Formulaic Bridge Funding (grants with scores < or = 20th percentile), and are now requesting additional financial support (in excess of $75,000 for RO1s, and $37,500 for R21s).
4. Investigators who have already received Formulaic Bridge Funding or Deliberative Interim Support on their A0 grant application and are now requesting support for their A1 or A0 resubmission.  Investigators in this category must apply through the Deliberative Interim Support process for their A1 and A0 resubmission regardless of the score they received on their resubmitted grant.

When is the deadline?
Saturday, August 1, 2015 - 5:00 PM

How do I learn more and apply?
Deliberative Interim Support Funding - Click here

Applications are now being accepted by the Executive Committee on Research (ECOR) for the Tosteson and Fund for Medical Discovery (FMD) Postdoctoral Fellowship Awards!

What is it?
The Tosteson & FMD Awards are intended to support junior investigators (MD and PhD fellows/postdocs) at Massachusetts General Hospital pursuing either fundamental (basic) or clinical research.  

The ECOR Subcommittee on Review of Research Proposals (SRRP) reviews the applications and selects the awardees. The top three applicants will receive Tosteson Awards - named for the longtime Dean of the Harvard Faculty of Medicine - and the remaining awardees receive FMD awards.

How much is each award?
The awards are $40,000 for one year, plus applicable fringe benefits and 15% indirect costs.

When is the deadline?
Thursday, October 1, 2015 - 5:00 PM

How do I learn more and apply?

• Click here to read more and apply online.
• Visit the ECOR website http://ecor.mgh.harvard.edu/ and specifically the Tosteson and Fund for Medical Discovery page under the ECOR Post Doctoral Awards section of the Awards and Grants tab of the site.

The Charles H. Hood Foundation was incorporated in 1942 to improve the health and quality of life for children throughout New England. Today's research projects encompass many disciplines that have contributed to discoveries in pediatric medicine while launching the careers of promising junior faculty. The intent of the Award is to support newly independent faculty, provide the opportunity to demonstrate creativity, and assist in the transition to other sources of research funding. Research projects must be relevant to child health.

Online Application Deadline: Friday, October 2, 2015 at 12:00 Noon, U.S. Eastern Time

Application Materials: www.tmfgrants.org/Hood

Funding Period and Award Amount

• January 1, 2016 - December 31, 2017
• Up to five $150,000 awards at $75,000 per year (inclusive of 10% institutional overhead)

Eligibility

• Investigators within five years of their first faculty appointment (inclusive of any independent research positions in a for-profit or other professional setting)
• Research with relevance to child health
• Hypothesis-driven clinical, basic science, public health, health services research and epidemiology projects

• Applicants may submit only once to the Hood Foundation regardless of project focus unless specifically invited back by the Scientific Review Committee.

PLEASE NOTE: Hospital divisions may select no more than two Applicants to submit proposals. There are no limitations on departmental or institutional submissions.

Please direct any questions to 617-695-9439 or GLockwood@hria.org.

The purpose of the NINDS Research Program Award (RPA) is to provide longer-term support and increased flexibility to investigators whose outstanding records of research achievement demonstrate their ability to make major contributions to neuroscience.  RPAs will support the overall research programs of NINDS-funded investigators for up to 8 years, at a maximum level of $750,000 direct costs per year.  This greater funding stability will provide investigators increased freedom to embark upon research that breaks new ground or extends previous discoveries in new directions.  It will also allow Program Directors/Principal Investigators (PDs/PIs) to take greater risks and to undertake research projects that require a longer timeframe.  Research supported through the RPA should be within the scope of the NINDS mission (http://www.ninds.nih.gov/about_ninds/mission.htm).

It is anticipated that the RPA will:

• Provide a stable and flexible funding environment, thereby facilitating ambitious, creative research;
• Enable investigators to pursue research opportunities as they arise; PDs/PIs will not be bound to specific aims proposed in advance of the studies;
• Reduce the time researchers spend writing grant applications and managing multiple grant awards, thereby allowing them to spend more time conducting research; and
• Enable PD/PIs to devote more time and energy to mentoring junior scientists.

Eligibility to apply through this FOA is limited to investigators who currently have at least one active NINDS R01 or R01 equivalent grant (defined here as R01, R37, DP1, or DP2 awards) due to expire in FY16 or FY17.  Applicants must also have received continuous R01 or R01 equivalent grant support from NINDS for at least the past 5 years.  Investigators receiving RPAs must relinquish their other NINDS research grants, with a limited number of exceptions.

For more information, click here.

Application Due: February 1, 2016

The Gliklich Innovation Scholars Program launched in 2013 with the aim of providing a transformative opportunity for young physicians to pursue novel and disruptive ideas and projects that might otherwise be difficult to undertake through traditional funding mechanisms.  The program seeks individuals looking for a mentored experience in innovation and the opportunity to make an impact on healthcare treatments, delivery, outcomes, or education through a focused project, protected time, and the rich, collaborative environment of the Mass Eye and Ear, Harvard, nearby institutions, and other resources.   The program draws on the unparalleled resources of the Harvard community: its faculty, networks, and a broad range of potential collaborators and local entrepreneurs.  The program is seeking motivated individuals with good ideas -- ideas that will help shape their own unique experience at a premier, specialized teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School and impact healthcare broadly.  Projects should be relevant to at least one of the departments at Massachusetts Eye and Ear, with key milestones that can be achieved during the period of funding.

Innovation Scholars may be selected for either a full-time or a part-time commitment.  Salary support will be commensurate with their post-graduate level and time commitment, and funding will be provided for miscellaneous expenses and travel. 

For more information, click here.

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.

• Research Grants, Meningitis Research Foundation
• Clinical Site Network for the National Autism Cohort Request for Applications, Simons Foundation/Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative (SFARI)
• Helen Walker Research Grant, Acid Maltase Deficiency Association (AMDA)

Please click here for further details on these 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.

• Asthma and Allergic Diseases Cooperative Research Centers (U19)
• Career Development Program in Emergency Care Research (K12)
• Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Centers (P30)
• Career Development Programs in Diabetes Research for Pediatric Endocrinologists (K12)
• Nanomaterials Health Implications Research (NHIR): Comprehensive Evaluation of Interactions between Engineered Nanomaterials and Biological System (U01)

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.

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

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

MGH Claflin Distinguished Scholar Awards
Application Deadline: October 13

Howard M. Goodman Fellowship 2016
Application Deadline: October 1

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

Research Subject Remuneration and Reimbursement: Policy Review – August 4

HMS Faculty Seminar: Drafting Your Chief’s Letter  - August 26

Connected Health Symposium - October 29-30, Boston Seaport Hotel & World Trade Center

Looking for something you saw in a previous Research News release? Check out our archive!