Integrated Pilot Grant Program: BU Clinical and Translational Science Institute (BU CTSI),
Department of Medicine, American Cancer Society
Request for Applications
Deadline
EMAIL APPLICATION SUBMISSION: Deadline Monday, July 27 by 11 PM
Purpose of this RFA
To coordinate pilot grant funding for innovative research, integrating the application and review process of a number pilot grant programs:

BU School of Medicine (BUSM)

Wing Tat Lee Endowment of BUSM

BU Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine (BUSDM)

Department of Medicine (DOM)

Boston Medical Center (BMC)

Cancer Center of the American Cancer Society (ACS)
Research objectives
Pilot grants are intended to lead to an R01 or equivalent grant and/or to commercialization of an innovative technology. These grants may NOT be used as bridge funding or to extend an existing grant.
Projects relevant to more than one category may be funded by more than one funding source. BU CTSI will ensure that each application is considered for funding from any source for which the applicant is eligible.
BUSM, BUSDM, BMC, ACS: These pilot grants are focused on translational research, relevant to the funder, that may fall into one of four possible categories:

T1 - From Basic Science to Health Application

T2 - From Health Application to Evidence-based Guideline

T3 - From Evidence-based Guideline to Health Practice

T4 - From Health Practice to Health Impact in the Population.
Department of Medicine (DOM): These pilot grants seek to foster collaborative, novel and creative research in the DOM. Investigators are encouraged to explore new and currently unfunded avenues of research with the goal of acquiring sufficient new information to successfully apply for extramural grant support within one year. This includes basic, translational, clinical, and educational projects that serve as the basis for an RO1 or equivalent submission.
Wing Tat Lee Endowment awards: These pilot grants fund collaborations with a faculty member in a
Chinese University (not Taiwan) with preference for Hong Kong. The purpose of the endowment is to establish cooperative research programs between BUSM and Chinese universities to further deepen the friendship and mutual understanding between these institutions. (Thus any subsequent grants for international collaborations must go through the BUSM grants office.) The cooperative programs may
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include training faculty from either institution; holding seminars, workshops and symposia; and carrying out research projects of common interest.
Eligibility

BUSM, BUSDM: Applicants must have a primary, full-time faculty appointment at the respective school, and the project must be based at the school.

DOM: Applicants must have a primary, full-time faculty appointment in the DOM. The project may be based at BUMC, Boston VA, or Bedford VA.

BMC: Applicants must have a primary, full-time faculty appointment at BUMC, and the project must be based at BMC.

ACS: Applicants must be Instructors or Assistant Professors with a primary, full-time faculty appointment at BU and with no major national or federal funding. (Senior investigators, postdoctoral fellows and research associates are NOT eligible.) Applicants must have a primary, full-time faculty appointment at BU. The project must focus on the prevention, diagnosis, or treatment of cancer and may be based at BUMC or the BU Charles River Campus, BMC, Boston
VA, or Bedford VA.
Funding available
Direct costs up to $20,000 may be requested
The level of funding awarded to successful applicants, and the source(s) of funding, will be determined after review of the budget request and budget justification.
Funds may be used for any purpose to support the proposed research, except that faculty salary support is not a permissable expense for DOM pilot grants. Typical expenses include laboratory supplies, small equipment, patient recruitment costs, consultants, or support for pre/postdoctoral students, technicians, or research assistants. Awards are not transferable to any other institution.
The award period will begin approximately September 1, 2015 and will end on June 30, 2016 with no carry-over permitted (except for ACS pilot grants, for which the award period will end on December 31,
2015).
No funding can be awarded until all relevant FINAL approvals such as IRB, IUCAC, and IBC are obtained; thus, it is recommended that applicants begin the process of seeking approvals as early as possible, as no award can be made before final approvals, and no carry-over is permitted.
Review criteria
Applications will be reviewed and ranked for funding priority by a research review committee. Review criteria include:

Significance of the work in terms of potential health impact

Scientific rigor and novelty of the proposed approach

Likelihood that the project will lead to subsequent external funding and/or commercial development

Qualification of the research team
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
Need for the funding

Although it is not required that applicants be junior investigators, the review process will take career development into consideration.

Other features that may increase a project’s priority include: o Multi-disciplinary collaboration o High potential for translation o A clear clinical focus, including a practicing clinician on the research team o A well-defined role for a community-based partner o Focus on diseases disproportionately affecting the BMC patient population.
Review Process
Applications will competitively reviewed and ranked by one of four review panels (non-cancer laboratory research; non-cancer clinical, epidemiologic, and health services research; cancer research; and dental research) made up of BU faculty members, using a review process analogous to that of NIH.
Submitting an application
To submit an application, use the application form that is included as the last 3 pages of this RFA . On the application form, please make sure to check the award category(ies) for which you wish to be considered. You may check as many categories as are relevant to your application. Please note that the scientific plan portion of the application cannot be more than 3 pages long (including all figures and tables), plus one page (maximum) of literature citations.
After completing and saving your application on your own computer as a single PDF file including ALL application components (see application form below), please email your application to
( ctsipilots@bu.edu
). Submissions emailed after the submission deadline will not be considered.
Progress reports
By accepting these funds, the applicant agrees to submit a brief progress report to the funding program mid-way though the grant period. The applicant also agrees to submit a report after the end of the grant indicating key results and any publications, grant applications, and grants that resulted from the project.
Where to send inquiries
We encourage inquiries concerning this RFA and welcome the opportunity to answer questions from potential applicants. Direct your questions to:
George T. O'Connor, MD, MS
Professor of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Sleep, and Critical Care Medicine
Director, Clinical Research Resources, Boston University Clinical and Translational Science Institute
Boston University School of Medicine
Tel. 617-638-4470
Email: goconnor@bu.edu
(Please also “cc” ctsipilots@bu.edu
.)
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PILOT GRANT APPLICATION FORM
Please submit entire application as single pdf file including ALL application components, either by completing electronically and converting to pdf format OR by printing, completing, and scanning into a pdf file. After completing and saving your application on your own computer as a single PDF file , please email your application to ( ctsipilots@bu.edu
).
Deadline: Submissions uploaded after the submission deadline (11 PM, Monday, July 27, 2015) will not be considered.
1. PI information and application categories
Principal investigator name, degrees, academic title:
Project title:
PI Primary academic appointment (check one):
BUSM BUSDM Boston or Bedford VA BU Charles River Campus
Other (specify: )
PI School / Department / Division or Section:
PI Phone Number:
PI email:
Key Personnel in Addition to PI (name/degrees/school/ dept/ division or section:
Which funding mechanism are you applying for (check as many as are applicable)?
BU School of Medicine
Wing Tat Lee Endowment of BU School of Medicine
BU Goldman School of Dental Medicine
Department of Medicine
American Cancer Society
Boston Medical Center
Which review panel would be most appropriate for reviewing your application (check one)?
Laboratory-based research (not cancer-related)
Clinical, epidemiologic, and health services research; translational clinical studies (not cancer-related)
Cancer research (laboratory-based or clinical research)
Dental research (laboratory-based or clinical research)
Has an application for extramural funding has been previously submitted for this project?
No
Yes

if yes, please specify:
Funding agency: Please check if already reviewed:
If reviewed, please attach review to the application form.
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Have you previously received a BU pilot grant?
No
Yes

if yes, please provide details:
2. Budget request
Total direct costs requested:
1-paragraph narrative budget justification:
3. Other Support for PI and Co-investigators in NIH Format
Please provide “other support” information for all for all key personnel using NIH format.
Format
NAME OF INDIVIDUAL
ACTIVE/PENDING
Project Number (Principal Investigator)
Source
Title of Project (or Subproject)
The major goals of this project are…
OVERLAP (summarized for each individual)
Dates of Approved/Proposed Project
Annual Direct Costs
Person Months
(Cal/Academic/Summer)
4. NIH-format biosketches for all key personnel
5. Scientific Plan:
The scientific plan portion of the application cannot be more than 3 pages long (including all figures and tables), plus one page (maximum) of literature citations. The format of the scientific plan should be: a.
Specific aims b.
Background and significance, including discussion of translational significance c.
Preliminary studies (if applicable) d.
Research methods, including timeline e.
Intellectual property considerations (if applicable) f.
Commercial potential (if applicable) g.
Plans for future grant submissions or commercial development
(3-page limit for parts a-g)
h. Literature citations (1-page limit)
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