Research@UIC > Funding Opportunities > Limited Competitions > BWF Clinical Scientist Awards in Translational Research

BWF- Clinical Scientist Awards in Translational Research

Program Summary

The program’s goal is to foster the development and productivity of established independent physician-scientists who will strengthen translational research through their own studies as well as by mentoring physician-scientist trainees. The awards are intended to give recipients the freedom and flexibility to explore fundamental scientific questions, to apply the resulting knowledge at the bedside, and to bring insights from the clinical setting back to the laboratory for further exploration. BWF hopes these efforts will lead to a better understanding of disease mechanisms and to new methods of diagnosing, treating, and preventing disease.
BWF is interested particularly in supporting investigators who will bring novel ideas and new approaches to translational research. Proposed activities may draw on recent advances in the basic biomedical sciences—including such fields as biochemistry, cell biology, genetics, immunology, molecular biology, and pharmacology—that provide a wealth of opportunities for studying and alleviating human disease.

For the purposes of BWF’s award, translational research may involve studies in these broad areas:
• Etiology, pathogenesis, and mechanisms of disease (particularly studies with direct application to disease prevention and treatment).
• Clinical knowledge, improved diagnosis (including development of new biomarkers, diagnostic methods, or devices), natural history of disease, and biomedical informatics. This includes the use of large clinical and genomic datasets for the purpose of generating and testing hypotheses.
• Disease management (including therapeutics aimed at molecular targets), molecular epidemiology, and limited small-scale clinical studies involving ‘first-in-humans’ testing of novel approaches.

Large-scale clinical trials, epidemiological or outcome studies, and health services research are not eligible for support.

Awards:  $750,000 over five years. 

Eligibility

• Candidates must have an M.D. or M.D.-Ph.D. degree and hold an appointment or joint appointment in a subspecialty of clinical medicine.
• Candidates must be academic investigators at the assistant professor or early associate professor level (preferably no more than two years after promotion), holding a tenure-track or equivalent position, at the time of application. Individuals holding the rank of professor are ineligible.
• Candidates must present evidence of having established an independent research career, as this is not a “new investigator” award. Successful candidates in the past have had NIH RO1 funding and a track record of independent publications.
• Candidates must be nominated by accredited degree-granting institutions in the U.S. or Canada.
• Candidates must present evidence of having established a track record and commitment to mentoring physician-scientist trainees.
• Candidates must be nominated by accredited degree-granting institutions in the U.S. or Canada.
• Candidates must hold a current license to practice medicine in the U.S. or Canada.
• Candidates must be citizens or permanent residents of the U.S. or Canada at the time of application. Persons who have applied for permanent resident status but have not received their government documentation by the time of application are not eligible. Certification of residency status by the nominating institution is required.
• Candidate nominations may come from a wide range of departments, such as pharmacology, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, surgery, medicine, neurology, pathology, or psychiatry. BWF particularly encourages applications in the area of reproductive science.

UIC can nominate up to 4 candidates, provided at least one of the candidates is female and at least one of the candidates A member of an underrepresented minority group (African American, Hispanic, or Native American). Candidates must be nominated by their dean or department chair.

See http://www.bwfund.org/programs/translational/clinical_scientists_main.html for complete program details.

Deadlines

Letter of Intent

By submitting LOI applicant attests s/he has read and meets the sponsor's eligibility criteria for this program.  http://tigger.uic.edu/depts/ovcr/research/funding/forms/0600.doc

Special Instructions:

• Section 3. Department Head must sign indicating they have nominated candidate and that by signing, realize that award recipients would be required to devote at least 75 percent of their time to research. Faxed or emailed PDF copy of the LOI is acceptable.
• Section 9. Please indicate if the nominee is a female and/or a member of an underrepresented minority group (African American, Hispanic, or Native American).

Limited Competition Instructions (If necessary)

If requested, submit one electronic copy of a White Paper containing the following:

1. One (1) Page cover page with following information:
1. Name & departmental affiliation of PI and Co-PIs
2. Sponsor and sponsor program name
3. Title of White Paper
4. PI Contact Information
5. Business or grants manager contact info.
2. Three (3) page narrative addressing:
1. How your proposal addresses the intent of Program Announcement
2. What PI & team expect to accomplish
3. Expected overall significance
4. An additional fourth page may be added to the narrative to be used exclusively for references.

Narrative must be 12-point font; minimum acceptable margin is ½ inch all around.

3. Attach the following for PI and each CoPI:
1. Two page CV
2. 1 page current and pending support
3. If this is a resubmission, please attach copies of past reviews from UIC internal competition and, if applicable, BWF.
4. Optional: In your transmittal email, you may identify potential individuals to review proposal - reviewers should not have a personal stake in outcome of this competition and ideally should not be from same unit as applicant. You may also identify reviewers to exclude - this information will remain confidential.

Please contact Tony Halford, Program Coordinator at ahalford@uic.edu or 6-7036 with any questions.