The list includes new grants, competitive renewals, transferred grants to KSOM, supplements, and non-competing continuations. The data for this list was obtained via the USC SCera portal and the Contracts and Grants database.  Congratulations to all the principal investigators on their awards! Click here to view the awards.

Please note corrections made in last week's announcement. 

Zumberge 2011 Individual Grants have been awarded to the following Keck faculty members: 

• Xiaoyi Gao – “Multiple Testing Corrections for Imputed SNPs in Latino Genome-Wide Association Studies”
• Shuanglong Liu – “Melanin-Targeted PET Imaging of Melanoma Using Quinoxaline Derivatives”
• Shinwu Jeong – “A Novel Anti-Inflammatory Peptide Therapeutic for Dry Eye Disease”
• Hsiao Huei (Juli) Wu – “MET/HGF Signaling in Hearing Development and Autism”
• Heather Volk – “A Birth Records Based Analysis of Autism and Air Pollution in Anaheim”
• Azin Shahryarinejad – “Genetic Predictors and Epigenetics of Female Organ Prolapse”

Zumberge 2011 Interdisciplinary grant have been awarded to the following faculty members for their team proposals: 

• Eun Sok Kim (Viterbi); Co-PI Mitchell Gross (KSOM) –  “Integrated Micromechanical Platform for Spatially–Targeted Cancer Diagnosis and Therapeutics”
• Patrick James (USC Dornsife); Co-PI, Jonathan Samet (KSOM) – “Public Health in Africa: The Religious Dimension”
  
  

USC Research Collaboration Fund 2011 have been awarded to the following faculty members for their team proposals: 

• Chester Koh (CHLA/KSOM); Co-PI Gerald Loeb (Viterbi) – “Center for Technology and Innovation in Pediatrics”
• Lihua Liu (KSOM); Co-PI, Dowell Myers (Policy, Planning and Development) - “Americanized with Good Health – Helping Immigrants Keep the Healthy Edge” ;
• Giselle Petzinger (KSOM) and Co-PI, Michael Jakowec (KSOM) – “Plasticity and Repair in Neurodegenerative Disorders”
• Stan Louis (Pharmacy) and Co-PI, Clay Wang (Pharmacy); Co-PI, Mark Humayun (KSOM); Co-PI, Nicos Petasis (USC Dornsife) – “USC Center for Drug Discovery and Development"
  
  

Photograph by Jon Nalick

Twenty nine students and postdocs presented their work at the Annual Cancer Center Poster Session - Grand Rounds on May 3rd. Dr. Steven Swenson, nine faculty members and three postdoctoral fellows volunteered as evaluators of the presentations in order to identify the 10 best posters. These presenters were given certificates of Outstanding Merit Award and a gift certificate. Following participants were the Award recipients:  Melissa Warden, (PhD Student, Mentors:  Drs. Shahab Asgharzadeh & Roberta McKean-Cowdin), Martha Pastuszka (PhD Student, Mentor:  Dr. Andrew Mackay), Jueng Soo You (Postdoctoral Fellow,  Mentor:  Dr. Peter A. Jones), Andrew Gray (PhD Student, Mentor:  Dr. Martin Kast), Elena Enbom (Postdoctoral Fellow, Mentors:  Drs. Amy Lee & Louis Dubeau), Yang Li (PhD Student, Mentor:  Dr. Bangyan Stiles), Christine Marion (PhD Student, Mentor:  Dr. Louis Dubeau), Biquon Luo (PhD Student, Mentor:  Dr. Amy Lee), Daniel Purcell (PhD Student, Mentor:  Dr. Mike Stallcup), Scott Bergfeld (PhD Student, Mentor:  Dr. Yves DeClerck).

Alan O. Trounson Ph.D, President of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), came to visit the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California on Friday May 20th and meet with members of our faculty and students. Dr. Trounson gave a presentation as part of the Dean’s Translational Medicine Seminar Series entitled, “CIRM and Progress in Translational Medicine.” He has been a pioneer of human in vitro fertilization (IVF) and associated reproductive technologies; the diagnosis of inherited genetic diseases in pre-implantation embryos: the discovery and production of human embryonic stem cells and their ability to be directed into neurons, prostate tissue and respiratory tissue. This visit was hosted by Dr. Zea Borok, MD, PhD, Chief Division of Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine and Dr. Martin Pera, PhD, Director of the Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine & Stem Cell Research at USC. Click Here to view the Webcast.

This intensive hands – on training course is designed to bridge the gap between Stem Cell /Regenerative Medicine and Regeneration Biology. It will be held October 2nd through October 8th, in MBL, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, USA. This world class training features: current biological concepts and topics and related regulatory issues; over 40 expert international faculty members; newest lab technologies and equipment; and total immersion scientific inquiry. The competitive admissions deadline is June 10, 2011. Click Here for more information and visit the Website.

The USC Vice President of Research has announced the initial solicitation for the Ming Hsieh Institute for Research on Engineering-Medicine for Cancer.  This is an internal funding opportunity for faculty members who have an interest in translational research in nanomedicine.  Proposals are due on June 10. Please click here to view the full solicitation.

The USC Stevens Institute for Innovation is encouraging USC translational research teams to apply for the 2011 Ideas Empowered Program. The Ideas Empowered Program supports groundbreaking projects emerging from USC research that, with the right amount of funding, support, and guidance, could “spin out” of the university within a year or two. The program bridges the gap between ideas and the marketplace by supporting both the idea and the innovator through mentoring, connections to resources, and grants for validation of technical feasibility through proof-of-concept experiments and prototype development. In 2010, the Ideas Empowered Program awarded $459,000 in gap funding to seven USC research teams working on promising technologies. We will hold a special introductory presentation of the Ideas Empowered Program at the Health Sciences Campus on June 3rd, 2011 in Aresty Auditorium from 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm for all those who may have an interest in participating or learning more about the opportunity to further commercialize their research. To learn more about the program or to apply please visit the Ideas Empowered website.

NASA has announced its Informal Education Program: Competitive Program for Science Museums and Planetariums Plus Other Informal Education Institutions.   This competition is institutionally limited; USC has one slot.  KSOM can provide one team.  If you are interested in applying, please send 1-page summary plus CVs to Gigi Petrovich at gpetrov@usc.edu no later than April 18.  "The NASA Office of Education solicits proposals to support NASA-inspired space, science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (S-STEM) informal education projects, including exhibits and partnerships with K-12 schools to support inquiry-based education. Individual total award sizes will range approximately between $100,000 and $1,250,000, with a period of performance not to exceed five years." Click here for further details. NASA application deadline is June 29.

Doris Duke Charitable Foundation Announces the 2011 Innovations in Clinical Research Award Competition Targeted Disease Area: Sickle Cell Disease which provides funding for early-stage research projects in clinical investigation as part of the Medical Research Program’s strategy to foster innovations in clinical research that advance the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of human disease. Letters of Intent for clinical research that has the potential to catalyze innovative breakthroughs in the treatment of sickle cell disease are due June 8, 2011.  Complete competition details, including eligibility requirements and instructions are available at: www.ddcf.org/mrp-icra. Proposals Due: August 3, 2011.

The Fiscal Year 2011 (FY11) Defense Appropriations Act provides $150 M to the Department of Defense (DOD) Breast Cancer Research Program (BCRP) to eradicate breast cancer by funding innovative, high-impact research through a partnership of scientists and consumers. A summary of BCRP funding opportunities is provided here.  LOIs are due on Jun 7.

The DOD issued a pre-announcement for its Autism Research Program  last week to allow investigators time to plan and develop applications if funds become available.  Final program announcements and application instructions package will be made available on the Grants.gov website in the May/June timeframe.

• Extramural Nexus (NIH Office of Extramural Research)
• National Postdoctoral Association POSTDOCket
• Academic Medicine Online
• Science Translational Medicine
• Science Magazine
  
  

• Weekly NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices
• Weekly Foundation RFP Bulletin
  

To download an event to your Outlook calendar, please click the relevant hyperlink and at the bottom of the new page choose 'export entry to V-calendar'.

For a comprehensive calendar displaying all research activities currently scheduled, please visit the online Calendar of Events.

Mon May 30th
Memorial Day

Fri June 3rd
8:30 am – 9:30 am – USC Center for Lung Biology Research Seminar Series – Dean Sheppard, M.D, Professor of Medicine Chief, Pulmonary, Critical Care, Allergy and Sleep Director, Lung Biology Center School of Medicine of the University of California San Francisco, will be presenting “Modulation of Lung Diseases  by Integrins.” This Seminar will be held in the Inters & Residents Dormitory Building, Room IRD 732-734, 2020 Zonal Avenue and is hosted by Richard G. Barbers, M.D. Click Here for More Information.

11:45 am - 1:00 pm - Southern California Environmental Health Science Center – Sanjay Rajagopalan, M.D, Professor Cardiovascular Medicine Ohio State University, will present “Urbanization and Cardiometabolic Disease: Links between Air Pollution and Diabetes.” This Seminar will be held in NTT 4444 – Topping Tower, 1441 Eastlake Ave. Los Angeles, Ca 90033. For more information call (323) 442-1096. The Southern California Environmental Health Sciences Center, supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, is a collaboration between USC and UCLA.

12:30 pm – 1:30 pm - Introductory Presentation of the Ideas Empowered Program – The USC Stevens Institute for Innovation will be holding this  presentation in the Aresty Auditorium of the Norris Research Tower at the Health Sciences Campus.  All who may have an interest in participating or learning more about the opportunity to further commercialize their research are invited to attend. To learn more about the program or to apply please visit the Ideas Empowered website

To keep up-to-date on available research funding opportunities, visit these institutions and organizations:

• The National Institutes of Health
• The National Science Foundation
• The Foundation Center
• California Institute for Regenerative Medicine
• Office of Research, University of Southern California
• Keck Office of Research Advancement
• Los Angeles Basin Clinical & Translational Science Institute
• Programs in Biomedical & Biological Sciences (PIBBS)
• Links to Professional Societies Promoting Biomedical Research