Developmental Grants Program
The primary goal of the Developmental Grants Program (DGP) will be the initiation of innovative studies by junior faculty and trainees at UCSD or affiliated institutions with the following objectives:
- Recruitment to neuroAIDS research of new investigators or established investigators without prior experience in the field;
- Generation and pilot testing of new research initiatives;
- Fostering collaboration among investigators from throughout Southern California.
The program provides to qualified investigators and trainees any appropriate combination of the following forms of support:
- Small, 1-2 year grants to support pilot studies;
- Access to HNRC core resources such as data, specimens, participants, equipment, administrative support, or expert consultation and technical assistance.
The application and evaluation processes for grants is semiannual, rapid, and relatively simple. For faculty, assistance will be directed to projects that can generate pilot data that support peer-reviewed proposals to outside agencies. For postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, or other trainees, the objective may be completion of projects that fulfill requirements for advanced degrees and/or result in peer-reviewed publications.
Southern California and specifically San Diego hosts a remarkable concentration of talented investigators in the biomedical and neurobehavioral sciences relevant to neuroAIDS. Fostering collaboration among these investigators by providing funding for pilot studies and support for trainees is an important secondary objective of the core.
Questions about the Developmental Grants Program
- When can investigators apply to the awards?
- How much support is provided and what categories of research are considered?
- What are some examples of recently funded projects?
- Who judges the merits of the proposals and how are applications reviewed?
- Where can I find the application materials?
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When can investigators apply to the awards?
1st Application Cycle
*Developmental grant concepts may only be submitted twice (one original submission; one resubmission).
Letter of intent to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it : April 8, 2013
Deadline for Applications: April 28, 2013
Estimated Funding Date: June/July 20132nd Application Cycle
*Developmental grant concepts may only be submitted twice (one original submission; one resubmission).
Letter of intent to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it : September 20, 2013
Application Deadline: October 13, 2013
Estimated Funding Date: December 2013 -
How much support is provided and what categories of research are considered?
Awards can be made for up to $18,000, but the median amount will be about $15,000. The number and size of the awards in each category may be influenced by the quality of the submissions in each award cycle, but only applications of sufficient quality to meet our scientific standards will be funded. The two categories of developmental grants that will be supported are described below.
(a) Investigators New to NeuroAIDS Research
This component is designed to support junior investigators in neuroAIDS research, or other investigators with relevant backgrounds, in pursuing new initiatives in HIV-related, neurobehavioral research. Both the guidelines to the review committee and the application instructions will state that the limited CSPAR developmental funds will be targeted to junior investigators. However, we will consider applications from more senior investigators who wish to apply their established skills and methods to neurobehavioral aspects of HIV infections, but who have no prior experience in neuroAIDS research. Support may include access to HNRC resources such as patients, samples, or expertise, or the costs of personnel, consultation with outside experts, assays, drugs, reagents, or equipment needed to complete pilot studies.
(b) Pilot Studies
Because even established investigators have difficulty obtaining grants without pilot data, this category will permit faculty at any level to fund pilot studies to demonstrate the feasibility of a new line of research and generate data to support applications for peer-reviewed funding.
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What are some examples of recently funded projects?
Principal Investigator Title 1. Chad Bousman, MPH Functional variants of CDK5R1 and GSTP1 in the context of methamphetamine and HIV 2. Linda McEvoy, Ph.D. Neural markers of executive dysfunction in HIV: Evidence from Magnetoencephalography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging 3. Jacopo Annese, Ph.D. Multimodal Analysis of HIV-Related White Matter Neuropathology: Correlation between MRI and 3-D Quantitative Histology 4. Mariana Cherner, Ph.D. Role of CYP2D6 in cognitive and motor impairments associated with methamphetamine dependence 5. Lucette Cysique, Ph.D. Neuronal substrates of neurocognitive impairment in HCV mono-infected and HCV-HIV co-infected individuals using structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging 6. Suzi Hong, Ph.D. Cellular Adhesion Molecule Expression on T-Lymphocytes and Monocytes in HIV Patients with Neurocognitive Impairment 7. J. Cobb Scott, Ph.D. Everyday Action Organization in HIV-1 Infection 8. Doug Green, M.D. HAART-mediated Beta-Amyloid Deposition in the CNS 9. Paul Mills, Ph.D. Immune Mechanisms Involved in HCV Effects on Neurocognitive Functioning in an Egyptian Patient Sample 10. Mark Jacobson, Ph.D. Divided attention and fronto-striatal pathology in HIV: measuring frontal lobe activation with functional MRI 11. Steven Paul Woods, Psy.D. Spatial cognition in HIV - 1 Infection 12. Ian Everall, M.D., Ph.D. Gene Dysregulation in HIV Infected Individuals with Major Depressive Disorder 13. Sergio de Almeida, M.D., Ph.D./
Ron Ellis M.D., Ph.D.Collaborative Initiative between UCSD and UFRP (Brazil) to Perform Neuropsychological Evaluation in HIV+ Individuals in Brazil 14. Rebecca Theilmann, Ph.D. Diffusion-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (DW-MRS) in HIV-1 infection 15. T. Dianne Langford, Ph.D. Patterns of Central Nervous System Involvement in the AIDS Population is Ethiopia: A Post-mortem Study from the Forensic Pathology Cases in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 16. Marc Norman, Ph.D. African-American Normative Data Project 17. Lisa Delano-Woods, Ph.D. Regional White Matter Integrity 18. Paula Desplats, Ph.D. Epigenetic Alterations in Brain -
Who judges the merits of the proposals and how are applications reviewed?
The HNRC Developmental Core has a standing Developmental Grant Review Committee. Immediately after the submission deadline, each application will be assigned to two reviewers by Drs. Achim, Lipton and the chair of the Developmental Grant Review Committee. Additional ad hoc reviewers will be assigned as appropriate.
Developmental Grant Review Committee Grant Review Committee Members Affiliation Area of Expertise Howard Gendelman, M.D., Chair Univ. Nebraska Med. Ctr. Neuroscience Harry Vinters, M.D. UCLA Neuropathology James T. Becker, Ph.D. Univ. Pittsburgh Neuropsychology Dianne Langford, Ph.D. Temple Univ. Neuroscience, Neurovirology Brad Navia, M.D., Ph.D. Tufts Univ. Neuroimaging Howard Fox, M.D., Ph.D. Univ. Nebraska Med. Ctr. Neurosciences Joseph W. Hogan, Sc.D. Brown Univ. Biostatistics Thomas L. Patterson, Ph.D. UCSD Behavioral science/prevention Dennis Kolson, M.D., Ph.D. Univ. Pennsylvania Neurobiology
Applications are awarded up to 15 points for scientific merit, relevance to HNRC goals, and relevance to Developmental Core goals. Primary emphasis is placed on significance of the research question and proposed study design and methods. A copy of the review criteria is available here. -
Where can I find the application materials?
You can download the forms here in MSWord format or contact Cristian Achim, M.D., Ph.D. or Steven Paul Woods, Psy.D., at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it in order to receive the application materials.
