In this edition:

Feature

Did You Know?

Georgia CTSA Leader Discusses Importance of COVID-19 Trials on NPR Affiliate

Lilly Immergluck, MD, Professor at Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM), MSM's site PI for the COVID-19 Prevention Network, and Georgia CTSA Pediatrics Co-Director and Integrating Special Populations Co-Investigator, discussed combating the global pandemic and COVID-19 trials on WABE radio, an NPR affiliate. Immergluck remarked that communities of color are being disproportionately affected by the virus. She and her team are working with a Community Advisory Board for involvement in study design, participant feedback, and information sharing. Immergluck also emphasized to listeners the importance of wearing a mask and getting a flu shot.

Funding (* New Opportunities)

NIH Funding Opportunities Specific to COVID-19

This page contains a listing of active and expired funding opportunities specific to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).

* Emory OCR/OFR Funding Opportunities

For Emory schools or units, access RFPs posted by Office of Corporate Relations (OCR) and the Office of Foundation Relations (OFR) on the SharePoint site using the link below. Should you identify an opportunity of interest, please submit the Funding Opportunity Interest form linked on the page. We'll respond within 24 hours and confirm next steps. Some opportunities limit applications to one per agency. Please contact Gayathri Srinivasan ( gayathris@emory.edu ) for any questions.

MP3 Initiative Seed Grants – LOI Due December 1

The goal of the MP3 Initiative is to facilitate and grow basic and applied infectious disease research across scales at Emory, from molecules and pathogens within hosts to populations and pandemics. The main way in which the initiative will accomplish this is to provide sizable seed grants to interdisciplinary teams of researchers, to provide proof-of-concept and preliminary results for subsequent applications for research grants, program grants, center grants and training grants. An explicit requirement of funding through this program is the subsequent submission of extramural grants. Seed grants are only awarded to teams of researchers from different schools at Emory. Partnerships with CDC and Carter Center are strongly encouraged.

* Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation Clinical Investigator Award – Emory Internal Submission Due December 8

The Damon Runyon Clinical Investigator Award supports independent young physician-scientists conducting disease-oriented research that demonstrates a high level of innovation and creativity. The goal is to support the best young physician-scientists doing work aimed at improving the practice of cancer medicine. The $600,000 award will be for a period of three years. This is a restricted funding opportunity for Emory School of Medicine and Winship Cancer Institute members only.

Aligning Science Across Parkinson's (ASAP) – Due December 11

The ASAP initiative is accepting applications to support multidisciplinary research teams to join the newly established ASAP Collaborative Research Network. ASAP seeks to fund research projects that address key knowledge gaps in the basic mechanisms that contribute to Parkinson’s development and progression. Applications that focus primarily on Circuitry and Brain-body Interactions, inclusive of genetic and neuro-immune contributors to disease, will be considered.

A Call for Student-Initiated Project Grants in Healthcare Innovation - LOI Due December 15

Emory-Georgia Tech Healthcare Innovation Program (HIP), in partnership with Emory Synergy Award Program and Georgia CTSA, is pleased to announce Student-Initiated Project Grants in Healthcare Innovation. Grants will fund multi-disciplinary teams proposing innovative research and education projects that address issues of healthcare quality, costs, and access. Awards are up to $5,000 for one year. LOI Due December 15.

* Emory SOM Bridge Funding – Due December 15

This funding opportunity will assist investigators who have temporarily lost significant federal research funding, and to facilitate carefully planned changes in research direction, the School of Medicine offers a Bridge Funding Program. Bridge funding up to $100,000 (including Department support/matching funds) will be available to investigators based on merit, potential for renewal of external funding, and availability of School of Medicine.

WHSC COVID-19 Center for Urgent Research Engagement (COVID-19 CURE) and Awards Program – Rolling Acceptance until December 15

The Woodruff Health Sciences Center (WHSC) announces the launch of the WHSC COVID-19 CENTER for URGENT RESEARCH ENGAGEMENT (COVID-19 CURE) and Awards Program, made possible by generous philanthropic support from the O. Wayne Rollins Foundation and the William Randolph Hearst Foundation. The CURE Center was created to facilitate high-impact science and discovery towards improved COVID-19 treatment and prevention research. The funds can be used to support new COVID-19 focused researchers, equipment/instrumentation, technical support, pilots and enhancing facilities for this work. In addition, COVID-19 CURE will act as a hub, facilitating and helping to prioritize Emory COVID-19 research activities. http://georgiactsa.org/documents/news/COVID-19-CURE.pdf .

* Collaborative Program Grant for Multidisciplinary Teams (RM1 - Clinical Trial Optional) – Emory Internal Submission Due December 17

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is designed to support highly integrated research teams of three to six PDs/PIs to address ambitious and challenging research questions that are important for the mission of NIGMS and are beyond the scope of one or two investigators. Collaborative program teams are expected to accomplish goals that require considerable synergy and managed team interactions. Project goals should not be achievable with a collection of individual efforts or projects. Teams are encouraged to consider far-reaching objectives that will produce major advances in their fields. While applications may request research program budgets of up to $1.5 million direct costs per year, it is anticipated that most awards will be between $700,000-$900,000 direct costs. An additional $250,000 direct costs per year may be requested for optional developmental funds to support the addition of ESIs to the program in YRS 2-5. Applications may request up to five years of support.

RWJF Data Access Award – Due December 17

Health Data for Action (HD4A) aims to reduce the barriers often faced in accessing rich data by serving as a conduit between data owners and interested researchers. The purpose of the 2020 HD4A CFP is primarily to award data access at no cost from one of eight anticipated data providers to successful applicants. Most selected projects will not receive a financial award for personnel or other project-related costs. However, limited funding up to $100,000 per project is available for a small number of projects from principal investigators who have not previously received external research funding

* Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation Macy Faculty Scholars Fund – Emory Internal Submission Due December 21

The Macy Faculty Scholars Program is designed to identify and nurture the careers of promising educational innovators in medicine and nursing. The program aims to develop the next generation of national leaders in medical and nursing education. The program will support the Macy Faculty Scholars in leading new educational innovations at their home institutions and will provide opportunities for further career development through national meetings and participation in other Macy activities. Macy Faculty Scholars Program will provide salary support for each scholar up to $100,000 (plus fringe) per year, which will protect at least 50% of the scholar’s time over two years. This is a restricted funding opportunity for Emory School of Medicine and School of Nursing only.

The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation 2021 Physician Scientist Fellowship – Due January 5

The Physician Scientist Fellowship (PSF) award aims to support research during the final years of subspecialty fellowship and aid in the transition into an academic faculty appointment. The specific goals of the PSF program are to: support physician scientists in subspecialty fellowship to conduct an outstanding clinical research project; ensure research time protection to enable development of research skills; and facilitate strong mentorship relations. Award consists of $100,000 direct costs plus $10,000 (10 percent) indirect costs each year for two years.

* Emory SCORE Pilot Grants – Due January 25

The Emory Specialized Center of Research Excellence on Sex Differences (Emory SCORE) will fund a variable number of one-year, non-renewable awards ranging from $10K - $30K plus indirect costs, for projects that account for sex as a biological variable when examining key sex influences on health processes and outcomes. Additional awards that are in line with the overlapping missions of Emory SCORE - to strengthen science through accounting for sex - and its partner organizations may be funded in partnership with the Emory Center for AIDS Research (CFAR), the Emory Diabetes Center (EDC), and the Emory Women’s Interagency HIV Study (WIHS). Applications outside these fields are also strongly encouraged.

Drug Development Collaboratory (UG3/UH3 Clinical Trial Required) – Due February 9

The purpose of this FOA is to support intramural-extramural collaborations on late-stage translational science projects between NCATS Therapeutic Development Branch (TDB) and extramural researchers, for therapeutic development of small molecules, biologics, or gene therapies.

Education

Winship K12 Clinical Oncology Career Development Training Program – LOI Due January 4

Selected scholars will have full-time appointments and will receive 75% protected time for research, formal mentored training in clinical cancer research, up to $100,000 per year (up to two years) to support salary and benefits, and up to $30,000 per year (up to two years) for other research/training related expenses. Potential applicants must first submit the K12 LOI. To support excellence and diversity among applicants and awardees, proposals are encouraged from groups identified as nationally underrepresented in the sciences including women, members of underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, individuals with disabilities, and individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Phlebotomy 101 Introduction to Venipuncture – January 28 & 29

Phlebotomy 101 is a two-day classroom and clinical, hands-on training to venipuncture offered through the Georgia CTSA Clinical Research Centers (GCRCs). The course is offered bi-monthly to research coordinators from Emory, MSM and UGA.

Georgia CTSA TL1 (T32-like) Training Grant Clinical & Translational Research Training - Predoc Due February 15, Postdoc Due March 15

The TL1 program is focused on providing innovative didactic and mentored research training to individuals interested in careers that encompass clinical and/or translational research. The TL1 program supports predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees (medical and PhD students, resident and fellow physicians, PhD postdocs, and PharmD residents). Register for the free TL1 Application Workshop on December 9.

Georgia CTSA KL2-Mentored Clinical and Translational Research Scholars Program – Due March 1

The goal of the KL2 Scholars program is to support and enhance career development for junior faculty (MD, PhD, MD/PhD, or PharmD) committed to a career in clinical and/or translational research. The Georgia CTSA is committed to assisting junior faculty at partner institutions to become independent, established, and ethical clinical and/or translational research investigators. Register for the free 2-session KL2 Application Workshop on December 3 AND December 10.

Emory BIRCWH Program – Due March 1

The Emory BIRCWH program, short for Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health, is a highly selective career development program for junior faculty interested in women's health research and/or sex/gender science. The ultimate goal of the BIRCWH program is to train junior faculty, through a mentored research and career development experience, to become independent investigators who use novel, interdisciplinary approaches to advance the science of women’s health and sex/gender research. Communicable disease research is one area of focus for the Emory BIRCWH program. Register for the free 2-session BIRCWH Application Workshop on December 3 AND December 10.

Free Online Trainings for Clinical Research Professionals

Georgia CTSA and the University of Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute (SC CTSI) have created a new Online Course Catalog with free course and program offerings available to clinical research professionals. Participants earn a certificate or badge with contact hours (continuing education – CE) from an accredited provider upon completion of a course or a program (series of courses). Contact hours can be used to meet requirements for CRP certification renewal. The newest program, “Quality by Design in Clinical Trial”, is now available online.

Research Resources

N3C - COVID-19 Analytics Platform Now Open

Researchers studying COVID-19 now are able to access an innovative new analytics platform that contains clinical data from the electronic health records of people who were tested for the novel coronavirus or who have had related symptoms. Part of the NCATS National COVID Cohort Collaborative (N3C) Data Enclave, the centralized and secure data platform features powerful analytics capabilities for online discovery, visualization and collaboration.

All of Us Researcher Workbench Database

The All of Us Research Program at Emory University is excited to announce the launch of the Researcher Workbench Database – a cloud-based platform enabling researchers to execute rapid, hypothesis-driven research on one of the largest and most diverse biomedical datasets of its kind. Researchers may visit the login page to create an account and use their Emory University email account to register.

Georgia CTSA Ethical Dilemma of the Week

Data Interpretation and Management: When an Investigator Recruits Himself for a Study (PDF)

Innovation & Translation

Bench2Market Talks: Preparing High Quality Invention Disclosures – December 9

Join our December 9th webinar at 1:00 PM to learn how to prepare an invention disclosure that clearly communicates the patentability and commercialization potential of your innovation. Researchers and principal investigators will learn how to think broadly about their innovations to develop a high-quality invention disclosure. Led by Nicole Morris, Director of TI:GER and Professor in Practice at Emory School of Law.

Community

Participants Needed for COVID-19 Vaccine and Therapeutic Trials

Adults 18 and older, from all races and ethnicities, are needed to participate in COVID-19 trials. Please spread the word to help recruit minorities, especially for vaccine trials. Register at www.coronaviruspreventionnetwork.org, or contact Hope Clinic (Decatur) vaccine@emory.edu, 404-712-1371; Emory Children’s Center (main campus) ecc.vaccine@emory.edu, 404-727-4044; or Ponce CRS (Downtown/Grady) atl.ponce.crs@emory.edu, 770-286-3327.

Free Flu Shots During DeKalb County Annual Day of Service – November 21

As part of the Georgia CEAL, free flu shots will be administered in the MSM Research Mobile Unit from 3 to 7 p.m. at the Intergenerational Center at Exchange Park, 2771 Columbia Drive, Decatur, GA. (Vaccines are generous donations by Morehouse Healthcare and Clarkston Community Health Center.)

Events

Rigor and Reproducibility at eLife – TODAY

Join us via Zoom from 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM. Dr. Ron Calabrese, Senior Editor, for eLife will detail novel tools the journal is using to increase the Rigor and Reproducibility of work published in the journal.

COVID FORCE Seminar Series – TODAY

Join us via Zoom from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM to hear about how COVID-19 tests are chosen, how they are used and how clarity can be drawn from confusion.

ARC Webinar – November 24

Join ARC (Aflac Research Conference) via Zoom from 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM to learn more about “Novel Questions and Approaches in Hodgkin Lymphoma” with Associate Professor Sharon Castellino, PhD, MSc and “A Primer on Immune Recovery after BMT” with Professor Edwin Horwitz, MD, PhD.

Strategies for Preparing a Competitive Research Grant Submission – December 2

Join us via Zoom from 1:00 – 5:00 PM to learn grant writing tips to improve the impact of your proposal, hear about how reviewers critique your science, and more. This workshop is hosted in collaboration with the Georgia CTSA and is part of the Research Survival Skills 2020 – 2021.

Annual Workshop on Sex as a Biological Variable - December 2

Join us from 8:00 AM -12:45 PM via Zoom! In 2015, the NIH released a mandate requiring consideration of sex in all human subject and vertebrate animal research studies that utilize study subjects and/or materials (blood, tissues, cell lines) from them in order to strengthen research leading to the development, design, and testing of preventive and therapeutic interventions for both men and women. This workshop will help you learn how to do that.

HIP Symposium: The Use and Mis-Use of Diagnostic Tests for COVID – December 7

The 31st Healthcare Innovation Symposium will be held from 12:00 PM -2:00 PM via Zoom. The keynote speaker will be Michael Laposata, MD, PhD, Professor and Chairman, Department of Pathology, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. His keynote presentation is entitled “The Use and Mis-use of Diagnostic Tests for COVID.” This event is free and open to all faculty, staff and students.

K-Club: Transitioning to Research Independence Part 3: NIH Review Process – December 14

Join K- Club via Zoom from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM to learn more about the NIH review process, review criteria & rigor and reproducibility.

Blue Sky Group: COVID-19 and Cardiovascular Complications – January 13

Join researchers and clinicians from across the Georgia CTSA for a session on COVID-19 and Cardiovascular Complications via Zoom from 4:00 PM – 5:30 PM. Share your experience, learn from others, enjoy opportunities for interdisciplinary networking and find potential collaborators!

Team Science Skill Workshop: Developing Trust and Psychological Safety – January 15

Join Georgia CTSA via Zoom from 12:00 PM -1:30 PM with Associate Professor Jessica L. Wildman, PhD from Florida Institute of Technology. At the end of this session, participants will be able to define trust and psychological safety as they apply within work teams, identify examples of common behaviors that build trust, break trust, and restore trust in work teams. Also, develop strategies to build and maintain trust over time in work teams.

Southeast Regional Clinical and Translational Conference - March 4 - 5

Hosted by the Georgia CTSA, mark your calendar and plan to virtually join us in 2021 as we bring together researchers from across the region to present the best new clinical and translational research and build collaborative partnerships. We’re excited to announce that Sandro Galea, MD, MPH, DrPH, Boston University, and Cato T. Laurencin, MD, PhD, University of Connecticut, will be our Keynote Speakers.

HIV & Aging: Mitochondria to the Metropolis - Population Determinants of Health – April 14 -16

This multidisciplinary conference will provide a venue for all attendees to build scientific partnership and contribute useful knowledge to the quality of care and life of persons aging with HIV. Abstracts due January 15.