Institute on Aging Grants 2014 Call for Proposals: February 15	Print Issue
December 4, 2012, Volume 59, No. 14

The University of Pennsylvania Institute on Aging (IOA) and the Alzheimer’s Disease Core Center (ADCC) will fund six one-year, multidisciplinary pilot grants in the 2013-2014 academic year to support biomedical, epidemiological, behavioral or health services research, as well as basic science, clinical or psychosocial research.

Two of the six pilots, funded by Penn’s ADCC, will focus on Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and related neurodegenerative disorders, as well as healthy brain aging. The remaining four pilots, supported by funding from the Perelman School of Medicine at Penn to the IOA, will focus on aging and aging-related diseases, as well as healthy aging.

Applicants may consider using data from the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center. More information can be found at their website: https://www.alz.washington.edu/

The Principal Investigator (PI) for each of these six pilots must be a member of the University of Pennsylvania full-time faculty from any of its 12 schools. Collaboration with other departments or schools is strongly encouraged. In addition, applicants who want to be considered for the Penn ADCC pilots must ensure that the PI for the pilot commits some effort to the project. Pilots cannot be used to support student dissertation research.

Each pilot will be funded at a level of up to $50,000/year for personnel and supply costs but not tuition costs, equipment or instruments. The purpose of these one-year, non-renewable grants is to assist faculty in obtaining preliminary data to serve as the basis of a grant application to the NIH or other public or private agencies concerned with aging or AD and related neurodegenerative disorders.

A committee of IOA and ADCC members will review all proposals. Funding depends on scientific merit and the likelihood that the pilots will lead to independent funding to continue the research beyond the pilot studies. Priority will be given to:

• Faculty in the early stages of their career who seek to enter research fields on aging or AD and related neurodegenerative disorders
  
• Senior faculty who intend to shift their research emphasis towards aging or AD and related disorders

Detailed instructions regarding the application process can be found on the IOA’s website at www.med.upenn.edu/aging/pilot.shtml

Application Process:

Applications will be considered for all pilot grant award programs for which they are eligible, described in this announcement, and should be formatted basically in the style of an NIH PHS 398 application. However, a title page should be substituted for the NIH face page.

Application items (items 5 and 6 below) should be limited to two pages (exclusive of title page with abstract, budget, biosketches, letters of collaboration, literature cited, etc. as in PHS 398). Animal and/or IRB protocols may be pending.

Organization of the Application:

1) Title Page with Abstract (one page; not the NIH face page) showing the title of grant, name of PI, affiliation, address, telephone numbers and email address, as well as an abstract of the proposed project using language that an educated lay audience can understand

2) Budget (costs for personnel and supplies, but no tuition costs, equipment or instruments)

3) Biosketch

4) Other Support

5) Specific Aims

6) Research Strategy (significance, innovation, approach)

7) Human Subjects (if applicable and protocol may be pending)

8) Vertebrate Animals Sections (if applicable and protocol may be pending)

9) Consultants (if applicable)

10) Consortium Contractual Arrangements (if applicable)

11) Literature Cited

12) Certification of Patient Oriented Research (if applicable)

It is obligatory that Pilot Awardees provide a final report at the end of the pilot year. Financial reports will also be required, and awardees must be responsive to subsequent requests for updates on publications and subsequent grants stemming from their pilot as this information helps ensure the continuation of this program. In addition, IOA Pilot Awardees must present their pilot data at an IOA Retreat and Poster Session.
For more information, contact Kathryn Jedrziewski, IOA Deputy Director, at (215) 898-2445 or email: jedrzmk@mail.med.upenn.edu

Applications are due: February 15, 2013; anticipated date of award is July 1, 2013.

Submit one hardcopy original and an electronic PDF file (via email) to: Kathryn Jedrziewski, Institute on Aging, University of Pennsylvania, 3615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, jedrzmk@mail.med.upenn.edu

Note: If anyone encounters difficulties with the online submission, please contact Kathryn Jedrziewski at the number listed above prior to the due date.