Washington University Nutrition Obesity Research Center Pilot & Feasibility Program

Purpose: The major objective of this program is to provide research support to test innovative hypotheses involving nutrition and obesity in the prevention, pathogenesis, pathophysiology, and therapy of disease. It is hoped that a Pilot and Feasibility (P&F) Award will generate enough preliminary data for the investigator to obtain research funding from extramural sources (e.g., R01).

Eligibility Criteria:
1) New investigators without current or past NIH research project support (R01, P01 or R24) or other large extramural research support as a Program Director/Principle Investigator.
2) Established, funded investigators who are proposing new studies for a new hypothesis or direction in nutritional science or obesity, which are not directly related to previous or currently funded research, and need pilot data to justify further funding for this new idea.
3) Postdoctoral trainees are eligible for P&F funds who are in their last year of training, have suitable expertise and independence to design and carry out the planned experiments, and can provide documentation that they will be faculty members at Washington University at the time of the initiation of the award.

• Faculty who have received a previous P&F award from the NORC or another center may submit an application; however, priority will be given to those who have not had a previous P&F award.
• There is no citizenship requirement for P&F applicants.
  

Awards: The NORC will fund at least four awards of up to $25,000 for one year. A second year of funding is available, but is a competitive process, and will depend upon progress during the first year of funding and promise of adequate data to support further grant applications. No more than two years of funding will be awarded.

Deadline and Review Process: Applications must be submitted by 4:00 p.m. on Monday, June 3, 2013. Awards will be announced September 1, 2013, and funding will begin October 1, 2013. All applications will be reviewed by the NORC Internal and External Advisory Committee members for scientific merit, originality, relevance of the work to nutrition and obesity, the potential for the project to generate data for a successful peer-reviewed grant application, and the potential for the PI to develop into an independent investigator.

Terms of Awards: All awardees must have appropriate institutional regulatory approvals (Human Research Protection Office-HRPO, Animal Studies, etc.) before funds will be released. Grantees will be required to meet with NORC Co-Director and to submit an annual progress report describing the results of their work, related publications and funding. If applying for a second year of funding, a full progress report on NIH 398 forms is required. All publications should acknowledge the Washington University NORC (P30 DK56341).

For questions contact:
Stephanie Paton,
NORC Research Program Administrator
314-362-2632; spaton@dom.wustl.edu

David Alpers, MD,
NORC Pilot and Feasibility Program Director
314-362-8943; dalpers@dom.wustl.edu

To learn more about the Nutrition Obesity Research Center, go to the Center for Human Nutrition website (http://chn.im.wustl.edu/).

Please see attached document for detailed P&F application instructions.

Attachments and other information related to this message can be found at:
http://intramed.wustl.edu/r.nsf/0/FB6404D9530A439086257B4B005044C6