Translational and Clinical Research (TCR) Flagship Programme Application--Requirements and Guidelines

Applicants are required to submit a 2-page summary of the TCR programme proposal.

Application form(s) for the flagship TCR programme.
2 page summary of the TCR programme proposal

The 2-page summary of the TCR programme proposal should include details on how the entire
TCR programme will be structured and how the host institution will partner with the recommended
institutions to carry out the TCR programme.
Guidelines for Completing TCR Programme Application Form
.
 Complete 1 application form for the flagship TCR programme.

Follow the instructions closely in every section.

Complete all sections in the application. Indicate “NA” where a particular section is not applicable.

Use Arial font size 10 for all text. Softcopy to be submitted as 1 file including all the pictures,
tables, charts and various attachments either in Word DOC or PDF format (to be recorded in
CDR).

Adhere to the number of characters/space provided in each field and the number of pages where
specified. Reformat softcopy such that all blank or irrelevant pages are removed.

There should be one lead PI for the entire TCR flagship programme proposal who will be the
responsible for overseeing and coordinating the implementation of the entire proposal. The lead
PI shall be the contact person for NMRC, with the stated Department and Institution as the
contact institution. Applicants with multiple appointments at different institutions are to
select only one contact institution for the application. There is no limit to the number of CoPIs or collaborators.

The period of support should not be more than 5 years.

Provide a breakdown for all categories with justifications. Tally and provide both a subtotal
amount for each category and the total amount budgeted. Please refer to Annex 2 for the
budgeting requirements and expenditures supported by the TCR grant. The information can
also be found in the NMRC Admin Guidelines (available on the NMRC website).

Include a 2-page CV for each of the PI, Co-PI(s) and all collaborator(s) with the email addresses
and contact information clearly stated.

PI’s original signature
photostated/faxed copies.
is
required.
The
Co-PIs/Collaborators’
signatures
can
be
Where to submit your application

Submit 1 soft copy (in CDR) and 1 hardcopy (with original signatures) through your institution’s
research coordinator.

For applicants from institution without research coordinator, please submit to :
National Medical Research Council
11 Biopolis Way #09-10/11 Helios, Singapore 138667

NO late submission or revision to the submitted application will be entertained after the closing
date.
1
APPLICATION FOR TRANSLATIONAL AND CLINICAL
RESEARCH (TCR) PROGRAMME
STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL
All information is treated with confidence. The information is furnished to National Medical Research Council with the
understanding that it shall be used or disclosed for evaluation, reference and reporting purposes .
Please complete the form using Arial, Font 10 and submit 1 original hardcopy duly
signed to:
National Medical Research Council
11 Biopolis Way #09-10/11 Helios
Singapore 138667
Closing Date: 30 November 2007
1 Title of research
(a) Host Institution: ________________
Applicant
Role
Position
Department
Institution
Lead
PI
Collab
Collab
Collab
Collab
Collab
Collab
Collab
Collab
Collab
Collab
2
(Attach additional sheet if required)
(b) Total amount of funds applied for SGD
(c) Proposed start and end dates
Start date
End date
(mm/yy)
(mm/yy)
2 Area of Research (Please tick):
a) Neurosciences
b) Eye disease
3 Key words (Please provide maximum 6 key words)
4 Ethical considerations and containment
Fund disbursement is subjected to ethics approval if the project involves any of the below.
Please declare the
participating institutions
where study requiring
ethics approval is
conducted:
Please tick accordingly if project involves any of the following:
a) Human Subject
Yes
No
b) Use of Human Tissues or Cells
Yes
No
c) Animal Experimentation
Yes
No
d) Requirement for Containment
Yes
No
e) Multi-centre project(s) or trial(s)
Yes
No
(If yes, please state all participating institutions/centres :
)
3
5
Abstract
Scientific abstract
In no more than 300 words, concisely describe the specific aims, hypotheses, methodology and approach of the
research module including its importance and significance to the whole TCR programme. The abstract must be
self-contained so that it can serve as a succinct and accurate description of the research module.
4
6 Research proposal
In no more than 20 pages, organize the details of the research module under the following headings: 6.1 Specific
aims, 6.2 Clinical significance and contribution to the TCR programme, 6.3 Potential Application/ Exploitation,
6.4Preliminary studies/Findings, 6.5 Methods and 6.6 References.
6.1 Specific Aims
State concisely and realistically what the module intends to accomplish and/or what hypotheses are to be tested.
6.2 Clinical Significance, especially with respect to the ways the module can
contribute to the selected TCR programme
Briefly sketch the background of the research proposed, critically evaluate existing knowledge and specifically
identify the gaps which the project is intended to fill. State concisely the importance of the research described by
relating the specific aims to possible longer term objectives. State the significance of the research to clinical
application and tangible improvements in healthcare that may result from the study. Relevant references should
be appended.
6.3 Potential Application/Exploitation of the project
In no more than 100 words, please state the potential application and/or exploitation of the project.
6.4 Preliminary Studies/Findings (if any)
State the preliminary studies and/or findings that have been made by the applicants and how the proposed
module can add on to the existing knowledge.
6.5 Methods
Discuss in detail the experimental design and the procedure to be used to accomplish the specific aims of the
module. Describe the protocols to be used and the tentative sequence of the investigation. Include statistical
justification and the means by which data will be analysed and interpreted. Describe any new methodology and
its advantage over existing methodologies. Discuss the potential difficulties and limitations of the proposed
procedures and alternative approaches to achieve the aims. Point out any procedures, situations or materials
that may be hazardous to personnel and the precautions to be exercised. Make every attempt to be succinct.
6.6 References
Please list in chronological order the titles and complete references to recent representative publications
pertinent to this research proposal (especially TCR-related publications) and the applicants’ publications and
patents held related to this research proposal. Highlight Scientific Award(s), if any, of the applicant(s).
5
7
Biographical Sketch
In not more than 2 pages per applicant, please use the format below to provide the required information on the
Principal Investigator (PI), co-PI(s) and all Collaborator(s) involved in the proposed research module.

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
Name
NRIC/Passport No.
Office Mailing Address
Email
Contact No
Fax No
Current Position (Please provide full details, e.g. joint appointments)
Academic qualifications (Indicate institution’s name and year degree awarded)
Selected publications (not more than 6 relevant publications)
Research interests
Recent awards
6
8
Budget
You are advised to prepare the budget carefully under each category and provide the justifications for all
categories in Item 8.5.
8.1 Manpower
Please budget for all the manpower required for the project including part-time personnel and those to be shared
with other projects. State whether they are existing personnel in your institution or new staff to be recruited.
Please use salary scales provided by the Bursar’s Office, Hospital Administration or the Ministry of Health as a
reference. The cost should include annual increments, National Service increment, staff welfare, medical and
other related benefits as per the Human Resource policies of your institution.
Staff Category
Existing/New
Visiting
professor
New
Postdoctoral
Fellow
New
Research
fellow
New
Research
Associate
New
Research Officer
New
Research
Assistant
New
Technologist
New
Others:
(please specify)
New
No
Remarks
Total cost
$0.00
Total
8.2 Equipment
Please budget for all scientific equipment you need to purchase to carry out the project. Indicate sharing of
equipment with other projects, if any.
Qty Equipment
Unit Cost
Sub- Total
Total
$0.00
7
8.3
Materials & Supplies
Please budget for all materials and supplies required specifically for the project such as experimental animals
and consumables.
Item Description
Cost
Animals
Consumables
Others:
(please specify)
Total
8.4
$0.00
Miscellaneous
This category covers other expenses directly related to the project such as the purchase of laboratory manuals,
literature search, and maintenance of equipment. Conference travel will be funded only if a presentation or if an
article is presented. The presentation or article must be directly related to the project.
Item Description
Total
Cost
$0.00
Grand Total: SGD$0.00
8
8.5
Details and Justifications of Financial Assistance Requested
Please provide breakdown for all categories if this is not indicated in the tables.
8.5.1 Manpower
Justifications
8.5.2 Equipment
Justifications
8.5.3 Materials & Supplies
Justifications
8.5.4
Miscellaneous
Justifications
9
9
Cash flow Projection
Please project the cash flow in accordance with your proposed start and end dates
Category
FY2007
FY2008
FY2009
FY2010
(1 Apr 200731 Mar 2008)
(1 Apr 200831 Mar 2009)
(1 Apr 200931 Mar 2010)
(1 Apr 2010- (1 Apr 201131 Mar 2011) 31 Mar 2012)
FY2011
Total
Manpower
0
Equipment
0
Materials & Supplies
0
Miscellaneous
0
Total costs by year
0
0
0
0
0
0
10 Milestones
Please propose Milestones for assessment of the progress of the study. The progress of the project will be taken
into consideration for continued disbursements of funds.
Milestones
Targeted Duration/Date of
Fulfillment
10
11 Performance Indicators
Please indicate the key outputs and parameters that can be used to assess the success of the proposed
programme.
12 Suggested names of Reviewers (optional)
S/N
Title
Names of Reviewers
Details
(tel, fax number and e-mail add)
Relationship to
Principal
Investigator
1
2
3
Proposals should not be sent to (optional)
(a)
(b)
(c)
11
13 Institutional Support (if any)
Provide details on how the host institution will support the proposed project, ie. through co-funding
14 Institutional support
In signing the Grant Application, the Institution UNDERTAKES, on any Grant Award, to:





Ensure that the proposed research could be conducted in the host institution
Provide appropriate support during the grant period
Ensure that the funds provided are used for the stated purposes in the proposal
Ensure that the research complies with all laws, rules and regulations pertaining to national and the
institution's research operating procedures and guidelines
Adhere to NRF's general guidelines on competitive funding
Research Director/ Department Head:
_____________________
___
Date: __________________
Name, Designation & Signature
If the Research Director or Head of Department is involved in this proposal, please seek
support from immediate supervisor:
Comments:
12
15 Signatories
In signing the Grant Application, the Principal Investigator and all Co-Investigator(s) UNDERTAKE, on any Grant
Award, to:

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Declare that all information is accurate and true.
Not send similar versions or part(s) of this proposal to other agencies for funding.
For Biomedical Science proposal, submit supporting documents of ethics approval obtained from the
relevant Institutional Review Board (IRB) and Animal Ethics Committee for studies involving human
subjects/human tissues or cells, and animal/animal tissues or cells respectively.
For Biomedical Science proposal, be actively engaged in the execution of the research and comply with all
laws, rules and regulations pertaining to animal and human ethics, including the Singapore Good Clinical
Practice guidelines.
Ensure that National Research Foundation’s (NRF) funding is acknowledged in all publications.
Ensure that all publications arising from research wholly or partly funded by NRF will be forwarded to NRF.
Ensure that the requested equipment/resources are not funded by another agency or research proposal.
Ensure that there was a reasonable effort in accessing available equipment/resources within the host
institution or elsewhere within Singapore.
Adhere to NRF's general guidelines on competitive funding
_______________
Principal Investigator
Name:
Date:
_______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
_______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
_______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
_______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
_______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
_______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
_______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
_______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
______________
Collaborator
Name:
Date:
13
Annex 1 ---Funding source
Please provide the following details for the grants currently held or being applied for by the Principal Investigator,
Co-PIs and Collaborators. Attach additional pages if necessary.
(a) Grants currently held
Please provide information for all the grants that the Principal Investigator, Co-PIs and Collaborators are currently
holding.
Title of Research
Funding
Agency
Amount of Fund
Approved/
Received ($)
Balance
Available ($)
Support
Period
(Year)
Expiry
Date of the
grant
(b) Grants applying for
Please provide the application ID for all the grant applications which are being currently applied for.
Title of Research
Funding Agency
Amount of fund
applied for ($)
Support Period
(Year)
(c) Support not related to specific research projects
Provide below details of ALL other support which are not derived from funds provided for specific research projects,
such as departmental technicians, grants from private foundations, start-up funds, donations from charitable
organizations and collaborations with industry. You may also attach correspondences showing commitments by
other parties in support of your work.
Types of resources
Funding
Organisations
Duration of
support
Expiry date, if any
14
(d) Potential overlap of support/ funding
Please explain how any potential overlap of funding will be dealt with.
15
Annex 2— Categories of expenditure supported by TCR research grants
Only expenses directly related to the proposed project are allowed. All funding will be net of what is
already supported via existing research grants or institutional funding to ensure that there is no double
dipping of funds.
Supportable items
Item
Manpower
Equipment
Consumables and materials
Conferences and joint workshops
Overheads (to be factored in by PI when
budgeting)
Budget Allocation
Guidelines - %
Programme budget
50
10
15
5
20
Non-supportable items
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Audit cost
Entertainment & refreshment expenses
General office equipment
International students’ fees or other stipends or awards to students
Legal cost
Patenting costs
Student attachment
Others
16