eRoundup for 05/01/09

The Human Uterine Biology (HUB) Center, headed by Dr. Robert Taylor, ACTSI Pilot & Collaborative Translational & Clinical Studies (PiCoTraCs) program director, received several new grants, including two RO1 grants to Neil Sidell. Faculty in the HUB study endometrial cells and the role they play in endometriosis, preeclampsia, preterm labor, and oncogenesis. Dr. Barbara Stoll, ACTSI Clinical & Translational Research Program for Pediatrics (CTRPP) program director, also received one of the 2009 Unsung Heroine Awards given by the Center for Women for her dedication to issues affecting women.

Something all ACTSI-supported investigators should hear.  Click to listen...

In an effort to foster interdisciplinary collaborations and promote technology training and awareness, the Translational Technologies and Resources (TTR) program of the ACTSI is pleased to co-sponsor biomedical symposia and other educational events related to translational technologies in research. Limited funds ($5,000-$10,000 per event) are available through the TTR program for co-sponsorship of educational events that align with TTR and ACTSI goals. To apply for funds to support your upcoming biomedical symposium or educational event, please complete an application.  Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. For more information about this educational partnering opportunity, please Deb Smith.

Solicitation of Assays for High Throughput Screening (HTS) in the Molecular Libraries Probe Production Centers Network (R03) encourages HTS assay applications from investigators who have the interest and capability to work with the Molecular Libraries Probe Production Centers Network for chemical probe development. Read more. 

Clinical and Translational Science Award Consortium Steering Committee announced the adoption of a fifth Strategic Goal Committee focused on T1 Translation.  Consequently, the NCRR announced this week they will now accept two, rather than one, applications related to the administrative supplement titled "The CTSA Consortium Strategic Goals." This is a $300K per year total costs proposal for up to two years. The application is due on May 18. The mission of the Translating Research Discoveries to Clinical Testing Strategic Goal Committee #5 is to assess the opportunities and barriers to T1 Translation and develop strategies for efficient movement of discoveries and mechanistic knowledge into clinical testing through new models of partnership (both public and private) to develop new prognostics, diagnostics, and therapeutics. Contact Andrew West if you would like to participate. For more information please click here.

The P50 Emory Molecular and Translational lmaging Research Center (EMTIC) Pilot Project program offers opportunities for both trainees and established scientists to acquire preliminary data in the quantitative molecular imaging arena on which to base competitive future R01 proposals. Pilot Projects would be supported at the level of $25,000/year total direct costs per pilot project. Imaging modalities of interest include CT, MR, Optical, PET, SPECT and US. The is deadline for submission is May 30. For more information please click here.

Midcareer Investigator Award in Mouse Pathobiology Research (K26) seeks to support established, outstanding pathobiologists by providing protected time for mouse pathobiology research and mentoring of beginning investigators. The target candidates are scientists engaged in mouse pathobiology research who are within 15 years of their specialty training. Read more.

NCRR just released a new ARRA funding opportunity entitled Enabling National Networking of Scientists and Resource Discovery (U24) (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-RR-09-009.html). The goal of the initiative is to develop, enhance, or extend infrastructure for connecting people and resources to facilitate national discovery of individuals and of scientific resources by scientists and students to encourage interdisciplinary collaboration and scientific exchange. Six diverse institutions must collaborate in an application. Letters of intent are due May 18; the receipt date is June 15; with funding by September 2009.

NIH Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00) is designed to facilitate a timely transition from a mentored postdoctoral research position to a stable independent research position with independent NIH or other independent research support at an earlier stage than is currently the norm. Read more

The Clinical Research Curriculum Award (K30) is intended to stimulate the inclusion of high-quality didactic training as part of the career development of clinical investigators from diverse scientific backgrounds and disciplines. These programs prepare undergraduate, predoctoral or postdoctoral candidates to conduct research in team settings that are highly interdisciplinary and collaborative. Read more. 

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) announces a new funding opportunity to enhance the development of clinical partnerships and translational research in the study of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) - Partnerships for Complementary and Alternative Medicine Clinical Translational Research (U19): RFA-AT-09-002. For more information please click here. The NCCAM also announces a new funding opportunity that encourages investigator-initiated applications that propose to develop, enhance, and validate translational tools to facilitate rigorous study of CAM approaches that are in wide use by the public - Translational Tools for Clinical Studies of CAM Interventions (R01): PAR-09-066. For more information please click here.

Instrument Development for Biomedical Applications (R21) solicits innovative applications for the development of new or improved instrumentation for biomedical research. Projects should propose tools that can be used by a wide range of biomedical or clinical researchers, and are not limited to a specific organ or disease. Read more

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Emory University's Rollins School of Public Health presents The Ghost Map, The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic and How it Changed Cities, Science, and the Modern World by Steven Johnson, PhD on Tuesday, May 5, from 11:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. in the Cox Ballroom, Emory University. Dr. Johnson is the bestselling author of six books, including The Ghost Map, and his latest, The Invention of Air; the Distinguished Writer-in-Residence in the Department of Journalism at New York University; and the founder of FEED, Plastic, and, outside.in.

Drawn from one of the defining moments in the invention of modern life-the emergence of modern public health during the London cholera epidemic of 1854-The Ghost Map is a gripping case study in how change happens, the turbulent way in which wrong or ineffectual ideas are overthrown by better ones. The focus of the Models of Excellence lecture series is to explore the linkage between innovation and public health preparedness-related practice as well as ways in which public health practitioners and health science faculty can facilitate the translation of innovation into practice. 

There is no charge for this lecture and lunch. Book signing immediately after lecture-bring your own copies or purchase a copy. Register online by May 1, at http://www.pware.com/2626. For more information contact Karen Hudson (404-727-5132) or Laura M. Lloyd, MPH, CHES, Director of Continuing Professional Education (404-727-3035). Continuing education credit available.

Dr. David Stephens will serve as the moderator on a panel focused on NIH CTSAs and the ACTSI, Maximizing the Potential of CTSAs for Carrying out Multicenter Clinical Trials, and Translational Informatics and Establishing Clinical Trials at Specific CTSA Sites during the meeting of The Society of Clinical Trials from 3:00-4:00 p.m. on May 5. Mike Kutner, PhD, ACTSI Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Research Design (BERD) program director and Joel Saltz, MD, PhD, ACTSI Biomedical Informatics Program (BIP) director will serve as panel members. The meeting will be held from May 3 until 6, in Atlanta at the CNN Center's Omni Hotel. For more information and registration please visit www.sctweb.org.

Children's Healthcare of Atlanta welcomes guest speaker P. Pearl O'Rourke, MD, Director of Human Research Affairs for Partners HealthCare System in Boston, to the Children's Pediatric Research Symposium. During the symposium dinner, Dr. O'Rourke will present the exciting lecture, Personalized Medicine: Promising, Perplexing, Potentially Problematic. The symposium will be held on Tuesday, May 12, at The Carter Center, Cyprus Room (453 Freedom Parkway) at 6:00 p.m. Contact Martha Turner, Program Specialist, at 404-785-7744 to register. Seating is limited; dinner is complimentary. The registration deadline is Friday, May 8. Click here for more information.

The ACTSI's Community Engagement & Research Program (CERP) presents a Research-Community Workshop on Obesity. Morehouse School of Medicine and Emory University Rollins School of Public Health faculty cordially invite you or your representative to attend the workshop on Wednesday, May 20, at Morehouse School of Medicine. Click here for more information.

The Atlanta Clinical & Translational Science Institute (ACTSI) presents The Role of MYH9 Polymorphisms in Glomerular Disease presented by Jeffrey Kopp, MD, Captain, U.S. Public Health Service and Staff Clinician, Kidney Disease Section, NIDDK, NIH. The lecture will be held on May 27, from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in the Emory School of Medicine (1648 Pierce Drive NE), Room 120. For more information please click here.

The University of California, San Diego's Clinical & Translational Research Institute (CTRI) and Nature Medicine are hosting the 4th Annual Frontiers of Clinical Investigation Symposium on October 8-10, 2009 in La Jolla. CA. The theme for the meeting is Metabolism 2009, which will explore innovative approaches to bridge laboratory investigation and clinical research in metabolism. The topic stands at the cross roads of many disciplines, including endocrinology, cardiology, musculoskeletal diseases, and gastroenterology. Multi-disciplinary sessions will include basic, translational, and clinical presentations on cutting edge research to provide an integrated approach to understanding the pathogenesis and treatment of metabolic diseases. This symposium will provide unique insights and tools for optimizing and streamlining clinical investigation from discovery to drug development. For more information on the symposium please visit http://cme.ucsd.edu/b2b2009.

The Society for Clinical Trials meeting in Atlanta on May 3, is hosting a one-day short course on clinical trials. To register please click here. Early registration, by March 20, is $325 and advanced registration, by April 15, is $350.

Current medical students at Emory University School of Medicine, Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM), and other health professional trainees pursuing doctoral degrees in public health, biomedical engineering, nursing and other fields at Emory, MSM and GA Tech can apply for short-term (3 month) stipends ($5,190 of salary support) funded by the Research Education, Training and Career Development (RETCD) program of the ACTSI. This mechanism will support medical and graduate students who are interested in a short course program focused on clinical and/or translational research under the mentorship of a successful, federally funded faculty mentor. Application for the short-term training program includes several components that should be submitted electronically by emailing TL1Applications@erooms.emory.edu. For more information please visit www.atlantactsi.org/areas/retcd/documents/TL1_three-month_program-9-30-08_FINAL.pdf.