2011-2012 RTRN Small Grants Program Awardees

ALL RTRN SMALL GRANTS PROGRAM AWARDEES

The RCMI Translational Research Network (RTRN) was awarded an ARRA Supplemental Award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The purpose of this supplement award is to enhance the infrastructure and resources of the RTRN Small Grants Program to more effectively facilitate inter-institutional, cross-disciplinary and community-based collaborations and technology development at RCMI grantee institutions. The funds will provide for the additional human infrastructure needed to implement the Small Grants Program across the Network as well as enrich the amount of funds available to support RCMI research initiatives awarded through the program.

Recognizing the primary goal of RTRN as the facilitation of inter-institutional, cross-disciplinary translational research among investigators at the 18 RCMI centers, the RTRN Small Grants Program is a mechanism developed to foster and facilitate collaborations in clinical and translational science. The RTRN Small Grants Program provides modest funding for various types of short-term research projects, including pilot and feasibility studies; secondary analysis of existing data; small, self-contained research projects; development of research methodology, and development of new research technology. The program encourages inter-disciplinary translational research projects across two or more RCMI institutions that utilize the infrastructure of the RTRN Data and Technology Coordinating Center (DTCC) or enhance existing collaborative initiatives, to link the basic sciences and clinical medicine, integrate research discoveries with innovative medical applications, and develop improved patient-care practices through community engagement.

Benefits to RTRN Investigators

• RTRN investigators will have staff to provide additional support throughout the submission process as well as specific administrative support if research project is awarded.
• Additional funds will increase the amount of dollars available to support more research projects initiated by RTRN investigators.
• It presents opportunities to develop Small Grants Program projects into full-fledged NIH grant applications.

Impact on Research

The expectation is that preliminary data generated from the RTRN Small Grants program will be leveraged into full-fledged NIH grant applications that respond to the tenants of the NIH Roadmap. RTRN Small Grant Program recipients will form a cadre of translational researchers who in turn will be positioned to help mentor the next generation of clinical and translational scientists at the RCMI grantee institutions.

RTRN SGP Informational Webinar Materials_03/24/2011

For more information about the RTRN Small Grants Program, contact the RTRN Research Core at (808).692.1805 or clustercoordinator@rtrn.net