December 2015 Newsletter

news 
News
COMING IN JANUARY! 

Three new cores are eligible for CTSC Core Utilization Pilot Grants 
Welcome to CLEARPATH and SHED, The Light Microscopy Imaging Core Facilities, and the Small Molecule Drug Development Core! Watch the CTSC website for more details. 
 
CLEARPATH and SHED

The ICB Translational Informatics Core overall goal is to provide expertise for cohort discovery, data analysis, and data management solutions that will facilitate discovery and collaboration leading to maximal impact in the medical research field.  The informatics tools provided by the ICB are housed in the CWRU managed Secure Research Environment (SRE) and are appropriate to use for safe handling of Protected Health Information (PHI). The core utilizes standardized operating procedures and a risk based approach to adhere to rigid access control, auditing and encryption of research data.
                
The CLEveland Area Research Platform for Advancing Translational Healthcare (CLEARPATH), operated by the Core, will facilitate discovery and research with tools for cohort discovery, analytics and reporting using multiple types of data coming from our partners in Cleveland.  The Core uses the combined data sources and resources of collaborating institutions (Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals Case Medical Center, the Cleveland Clinic, and MetroHealth) and expertise of these institutions to advance knowledge of human biology through computational methods on big and diverse datasets, and promote the translation of this knowledge into better diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, prevention, and delivery. 
 
The Safely Held Electronic Data platform (SHED) which is also operated by the Core, provides access to enterprise licensed versions of OnCore and Labmatrix combined with other tools for secure data management and querying.  The SHED platform includes standardized data management tools, customized data structures, longitudinal tracking of study subjects (including disease profiles and outcomes), versioned IRB protocols, subject consents, clinical findings (including images), pedigree-formatted family data, complete biospecimen tracking (annotations, locations, chains of custody, barcodes), cell and cell lines annotation, and reporting (research-oriented and administrative).

For more information, visit the Institute for Computational Biology website, or contact Kellie Bruening, Informatics Project Specialist at kab206@case.edu.

Congratulations to the September 2015 CTSC Core Utilization Pilot Award Recipients

 

Padmanabhan Pattabiraman, PhD at Case Western School of Medicine

"Proteomic Analysis of Aqueous Humor during Pubertal Development and Aging in Rabbits"

 



Hulya Bukulmez, MD at MetroHealth Medical Center

"Pericytes/CD-146+ Human Bone Marrow Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells as Innovative Cell Treatment for Autoimmune Inflammatory Vaculitis"

 


 

 

Robin Norris, MD, MPH, MS at University Hospitals Case Medical Center

"Evaluation of Cdk5 Inhibitors with Chemotherapy for the Treatment of Pediatric Malignancies"
Precision Medicine Initiative Cohort Program Director 
Are you a top-level executive seeking a career at one of the preeminent biomedical research institutes in the Nation and the world? 
 
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, is seeking applications from exceptional candidates with a commitment to scientific excellence and the energy, enthusiasm, and innovative thinking necessary to lead within a dynamic and diverse organization for the important position of the Precision Medicine Initiative (PMI) Cohort Program Director. This position offers a unique and exciting opportunity to lead an innovative and new trans-NIH program emerging from the President's Precision Medicine Initiative. This high-visibility initiative will result in the establishment of the nation's premier research cohort of one million or more Americans of all life stages, health statuses, races/ethnicities, and geographic regions. The PMI cohort will provide a transformational research platform integrating clinical, genetic, behavioral, and environmental data acquired from direct volunteers and healthcare provider organizations in order to study the sources of health and disease, leading to the development of innovative preventions and treatments to foundational health challenges.

For more information regarding the position opening, see the Vacancy Announcement.
Community Input Requested: Future Direction of NCATS
Response Deadline: January 8, 2016
 
NCATS seeks input on the scientific and operational opportunities, challenges and 
research needs in translational science, to help set the Center's strategic priorities and inform the development of a five-year strategic plan.

 

For more information, please visit the NIH webpage.

PRCHN News  from the PRCHN 
PRCHN Seminars
Mark your calendars for these upcoming PRCHN Seminars.

12/9/15- FreshLink 2.0 Survey Results
Sue Flocke, PhD, Associate Professor, Family Medicine, CWRU and PRCHN Associate Director; Darcy Freedman, PhD, Associate Professor, Epidemiology & Biostatistics and PRCHN Associate Director

1/13/16- Neighborhood Racial Residential Segreation and Changes in Health among Older               Adults
Joe Sudano, PhD, Assistant Professor, CWRU School of Medicine

2/10/16- Community Health Workers: Models of Success in Central
Teleange Thomas, BS, Program Officer, Health, Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland
 
You can find more information on these seminars and other PRCHN programs here.
For more news from PRCHN check out their e-newsletter!
Beginnings of a healthy retail movement in Cuyahoga County

Health Improvement Partnership (HIP)- Cuyahoga has created a new video to illustrate the issue of access to fresh and healthy foods across neighborhoods in Cuyahoga County. The systematic absence of full service grocery stores from urban centers is a result of some policies and decisions that were made in the past, leading to disinvestment in certain neighborhoods. As a result, for most people living in these disadvantaged neighborhoods today, corner stores may be the only source of 'food.' Health Improvement Partnership (HIP)- Cuyahoga along with the residents, stakeholders, and local store owners from these communities have joined together to bring fresh food options back to these local corner stores and increase awareness of eating healthy and fresh. PRCHN intern Colleen Kelly filmed and edited the video.

Nominate a corner/convenience store for a healthy makeover.
PEER Fellows' Reflections

"Inspirational." "Innovative." "Empowering." "Experiential." These are just some of the ways the newest cohort of Partners in Education, Evaluation, and Research (PEER) Fellows describe the program. Jeri Jewett, PEER Program Coordinator, asked the Fellows to give one word to describe their PEER experience thus far along with a brief explanation of that answer. We think you'll find their responses as insightful as we did.

Read all of the PEER Fellows responses here.

Urbanhealth News from the Urban Health Initiative
Urban Health Initiative awarded Gund Foundation grant

The Urban Health Initiative, together with the MPH Program, was awarded a grant from the Gund Foundation to continue and expand their work on Healthdatamatters.org. Specifically, this grant will support a pilot effort to create a platform that allows interoperability of community health data with data on social and environmental factors at the neighborhood level maintained by NEO CANDO.  CWRU's Information Technology Services is also supporting this effort.

Research Research Highlights
Research Mob 'Wrap-up'
Center for Reducing Health Disparities seeks out condom access in Cleveland

You've heard of Flash Mobs and Cash Mobs. How about a Research Mob? The Center for Reducing Health Disparities (CRHD) at Case Western Reserve University recently conducted the first ever Research Mob. Their project tested whether a "research mob" founded on Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) principles can serve as an effective way to harvest and disseminate meaningful research about a specific health challenge with high relevance to the community, and which is characterized by disparity in epidemiology, access to care, or clinical end-points. 

Since HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are characterized by disparate epidemiology and access to care, and since access to and utilization of condoms is a primary public health strategy for reducing incidence of STIs including HIV, the CRHD elected to focus on condom access in Cleveland neighborhoods. How accessible are latex condoms in key Cleveland neighborhoods? Click here for the results of the 5-hour study.
From our Colleagues at the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center

The Case Comprehensive Cancer Center is looking for medical students interested in summer research opportunities. There are 8 openings available, with 4 supported by the Brian Werbel Memorial Fund and 4 by the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center. A completed application and reference letter are due by Friday, February 26, 2016.

Click here here for additional information.

Events Events
The Shared Resource Festival 3.0
December 5, 2015 from 10am-3pm at the City Club of Cleveland

Practice-based research networks (PBRNs) are groups of individuals and agencies that collaborate with academic and community partners to facilitate scientific discovery. For nearly two decades, Ohio healthcare providers and practices have conducted ground-breaking research through participation in practice-based research networks. 

We invite clinicians, academic investigators, practice staff, and volunteers from healthcare, public health, and community settings to join us for this one-day Research Festival focusing on how we can partner to create networks in support of practice-based, population health, and outcomes research.

Join us for an opportunity to share your ideas, disseminate your research findings, get input from others, learn about funding opportunities, develop your ideas, and build collaborations future research endeavors.


 

Funding Funding Opportunities

Corporation for National And Community Service - AmeriCorps State and National Grants FY 2016

Letter of Intent Deadline: December 9, 2015

 

AmeriCorps grants are awarded to eligible organizations proposing to engage AmeriCorps member in evidence-based or evidence-informed interventions to strengthen communities. An AmeriCorps member is an individual who engages in community service through an approved national service position. Members may receive a living allowance and other benefits while serving. Upon successful completion of their service, members earn a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award from the National Service Trust that members can use to pay for higher education expenses or apply to qualified student loans. 

 

For more information visit the CNCS webpage.

 
Kresge Foundation
Proposal Deadline: January 15, 2016

The Kresge Foundation is inviting grant proposals from nonprofit organizations for food-oriented initiatives that contribute to economic revitalization, cultural expression, and health in low-income communities. Through its Fresh, Local & Equitable: Food as a Creative Platform for Neighborhood Revitalization initiative, a collaboration between Kresge's Arts & Culture and Health programs, the foundation will award up to twenty one-year planning grants of up to $75,000 each in the first quarter of 2016. Grants may support project management, partnership development, community engagement, strategic communications, evaluation, policy development, and other activities directly related to successful outcomes. Recipients will participate in a national learning network and also have the opportunity to apply for implementation grants. 

For more information visit the Kresge Foundation webpage.
American Psychological Foundation - Alexander Gralnick Research Investigator Prize
Application Deadline: April 15, 2016

The American Psychological Foundation provides financial support for innovative research and programs that enhance the power of psychology to elevate the human condition and advance human potential, both now and for generations to come. To further this goal, the foundation is accepting applications for its 2016 Alexander Gralnick Research Investigator Prize.
The goals of the annual program are to encourage psychologists to assume a leadership role for psychology in the area of serious mental illness; to encourage the training of future psychologists to become leaders in this field; and to provide funding for recipients to ensure that psychologists work to advance understanding and treatment for those who are affected by serious mental illnesses.

In 2015, a single grant of $20,000 will be awarded to an exceptional individual working in the area of serious mental illness, including but not limited to schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and paranoia (delusional disorder).

For more information visit the APA webpage.

HUB RESOURCE CAPACITY
HubResourceCapacity

Centers of Research Translation (P50)

Application Deadline: December 11, 2015

 

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) invites applications for Centers of Research Translation (CORT). Overall, a CORT research program could be carried out by a synergistic team of scientists who will address a highly significant translational research challenge in a disease or condition within the mission of the NIAMS. 

 

The focus of research could be either: 

  1. A disease-targeted translational theme addressed by synergistic Research Projects with optional Research Cores or
  2. A disease-related critical translational research question addressed through a single collaborative Research Project enabled by a number of highly interactive Research Cores whose work is integrated over time during the development and implementation of the Project. 

A CORT must have a minimum of three highly meritorious research components consisting of one or more translational Research Projects and one or more Research Cores. An Administrative Core is required in all applications.

 

For more information visit the Grants.gov webpage.

 
Commonwealth Fund Mongan Fellowship in Minority Health Policy
Application Deadline: December 15, 2015

The Commonwealth Fund in Minority Health Policy is now accepting applications for the 2016-17 class. This unique fellowship prepares physicians for leadership roles in transforming health care delivery systems and promoting policies and practices that improve access to high-performance health care for vulnerable populations, including racial and ethnic minorities and economically disadvantaged groups.

Under the auspices of the Minority Faculty Development Program at Harvard Medical School, up to five one-year fellowships will be awarded annually. Fellows will complete academic work leading to a master of public health degree at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, or a master of public administration degree at the Harvard Kennedy School for physicians already possessing an M.P.H. Fellows will gain an understanding of major health issues facing vulnerable and disadvantaged populations through seminars, site visits, and other fellowship activities. activities.

For more information visit the CFMF webpage.

InformaticsINFORMATICS
Seeking Innovative Ideas to Advance Open Science
Application Deadline: February 29, 2016

The National Institutes of Health has partnered with London-based Wellcome Trust to launch a global science competition for new products or services to advance "open
 science," a movement to make scientific research data broadly accessible to the public. Up to six teams of technology experts and researchers stand to win $80,000 each to develop their ideas into a prototype or to advance an existing early stage prototype. The prototype judged to have the greatest potential to further open science will receive $230,000.

For more information visit the CTSC webpage.

ResearchMethodsRESEARCH METHODS
John Hopkins and Harvard CTSC Mixed Methods Training Program
Application Deadline: January 15, 2016 by 5pm

We invite applications for a new and exciting one-year, fully funded Mixed Methods Research Training Program for the Health Sciences. The program is sponsored by the 
NIH, and led by Dr. Joseph J. Gallo (Professor, Johns Hopkins University), Dr. John Creswell (Professor, University of Nebraska-Lincoln), and Dr. Charles Deutsch (Director, Population Health Research Program, Harvard Catalyst | The Harvard Clinical and Translational Science Center). Program scholars will have the opportunity to enhance their mixed method research skills through a state-of-the-art training program including interactive webinars, working with nationally recognized mixed methods mentors and consultants, and attending a summer retreat. This program is conducted remotely except for the summer retreat.

For more information visit the Training Program webpage.
Burroughs Wellcome Fund - Innovation in Regulatory Science
Application Deadline: March 9, 2016

Burroughs Wellcome Fund's Innovation in Regulatory Science Awards provide up to $500,000 over five years to academic investigators developing new methodologies or
 innovative approaches in regulatory science that will ultimately inform the regulatory decisions the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and others make.

These awards are open to U.S. and Canadian citizens or permanent residents who have a faculty or adjunct faculty appointment at a North American degree-granting institution. Awards are made to degree-granting institutions in the U.S. or Canada on behalf of the awardee.

For more information visit the Burroughs Wellcome Fund webpage.

TrainingAndCareerDevelopmentTRAINING AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT
FDA Fellowship Research Opportunities
Multiple Proposal Deadlines

The ORISE Research Participation Programs at FDA accept applications from students, recent graduates, and faculty researchers year round.

For more information about each opportunity, including instructions concerning the process for submitting an application and other supporting documents, please visit FDA ORISE webpage.  

TranslationalEndeavorsTRANSLATIONAL ENDEAVORS
PILOT PROJECT GRANTS: American Cancer Society IRG Awards
Letter of Intent Deadline: December 18, 2015

The Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, with funds from its American Cancer Society Institutional Research Grant, will provide seed money to foster cancer research by junior faculty who have no current national grant support of their own. Investigators in the CWRU School of Medicine and Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine as well as in other schools and colleges in the University are eligible. Grants, not to exceed $30,000, will be awarded to investigators who intend to gather preliminary data to be used in seeking future and independently funded programs.

For more information visit the Case CCC Funding Opportunities webpage.
NIH - NCI Research Specialist Award (R50)
Letter of Intent Deadline: January 9, 2016

The NIH National Cancer Institute (NCI) has released the FOA for a Research Specialist Award (R50), a 5-year, renewable award for advanced-degree researchers. This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) invites grant applications in any area of cancer research.

The Research Specialist Award is designed to encourage the development of stable research career opportunities for exceptional scientists who want to pursue research within the context of an existing cancer research program, but not serve as independent investigators. These scientists, such as researchers within a research program, core facility managers, and data scientists, are vital to sustaining the biomedical research enterprise. The Research Specialist Award is intended to provide desirable salaries and sufficient autonomy so that individuals are not solely dependent on grants held by Principal Investigators for career continuity.

For more information visit the NIH webpage.
Lymphatic Education & Research Network Postdoctoral Fellowship Awards Program
Letter of Intent Deadline: January 15, 2016

The Lymphatic Education & Research Network (LE&RN) is committed to supporting basic
and translational research that fosters an interdisciplinary field of investigators conducting lymphatic research. The supported research will improve our understanding and advance the prevention, diagnosis, and novel treatments of lymphedema and other lymphatic disorders. In each grant cycle, at least one fellowship will specifically focus on lymphedema.

Research areas of interest include, but are not limited to:
  • lymphatic vessel biology and pathology
  • physiological mechanisms of normal and pathological lymphangiogenesis
  • animal models of the lymphatic system and its disorders
  • studies that address the regulation of lymphatic structure and function
  • Basic science and translational studies addressing normal and pathological lymphatics in organ systems
  • the signaling between lymphatics and other cell types
For more information visit the HRIA webpage.
Sjögren's Syndrome Foundation
Application Deadline: February 1, 2016

Founded in 1983, the Sjögren's Syndrome Foundation is a national voluntary health agency that provides patients with practical information and coping strategies designed to minimize the effects of Sjögren's Syndrome, a chronic autoimmune disease in which the body's white blood cells destroy the exocrine glands that produce saliva and tears.

SSF is accepting applications for innovative research related to Sjögren's, with priority given to projects in the area of novel diagnostics. Grants between $15,000 and $50,000 a year for two years will be awarded, depending on the satisfactory progress of the project. A human study that reviewers deem to be the most innovative will be eligible for a $50,000 grant.

For more information visit the SSF webpage.
Case-Coulter Translational Research Partnership (CCTRP)
Letter of Intent Deadline: February 13, 2016

The Translational Research Partnership (TRP) between Case Western Reserve and the Wallace H. Coulter Foundation fosters collaborations among clinicians and engineers on
 translational research projects with the potential to impact patient care. The program is led by Robert Kirsch, Ph.D, chairman of the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Stephen Fening, PhD, Coulter Program Director.

Funding for full projects can range from $50,000 to $200,000 per year. Smaller pilot grants are available as well. The funding goes towards preparing projects for commercialization, such as demonstrating technical feasibility, market feasibility and industry interest.

For more information visit the CCTRP webpage.
American Society for Reproductive Medicine
Application Deadline: March 2, 2016

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine is accepting applications for its 2015
 Research Grants, an annual program designed to facilitate the research endeavors of new investigators; provide bridge funds for projects that are of benefit to other members of the society; and foster the development of innovative research.

ASRM research grants of up to $50,000 will be awarded for project expenses, technical assistance, patient expenses, research supplies, and durable laboratory equipment. Innovative projects or projects that have previously been funded by other sources and are in need of bridge funding are appropriate. Proposals from junior faculty, particularly those in their first three years of faculty appointment, will receive priority.

For more information visit the ASRM webpage.

Department of Defense New Funding Opportunities
National Institute of Health New Funding Opportunities
Precision Medicine Initiative® (PMI) Cohort Program
Have you explored SciVal yet?

Check out SciVal Experts, a directory of researcher expertise that enables collaboration among researchers!
 
Also be sure to contact our Research Concierge Service for all CTSC and research-related queries.

Researchers: Register for an
ORCID ID
NIH has now adopted the ORCID ID, a free, open-source unique identifing number. Learn more about ORCID. It is also recommended that researchers link their ORCID ID to their CV in NIH's SciENcv, which creates a current, customizable biosketch on NIH grant form pages for any NIH grant. If you would like to learn more about how to register and link your ORCID number, please contact: Clara Pelfrey, Evaluation Director at clara.pelfrey@case.edu or (216) 368-6478.

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