Merkin Translational Research Grants

Clarification regarding the four-page technical narrative limit: This page limit does not include references.

The Merkin Institute for Translational Research (MITR) at Caltech is calling for research and engineering proposals of up to $400K in total direct costs to be spent flexibly over a period of two years. These projects can be positioned anywhere along the translational path from early-stage invention and discovery to clinical testing or early commercialization.

The goal of the Merkin Translational Research Grant program is to support and accelerate translation of Caltech projects to improve health and cure disease. Priority will be given to projects with high translational impact where MITR support can make a significant catalytic difference. The spectrum of translational interests at MITR is defined by the aspirations and work of Caltech research community and includes work on medical devices, biomedical computation and data mining, behavior, as well as biology and chemistry that results in new drugs, therapies, biomaterials, devices, vaccines and diagnostics. Proposals that extend and complete COVID-19 projects are welcome, whether they were initially funded by MITR or by other means.

The budget is expected to be appropriate for the project. The timeline of spending over two years will be flexible and should be driven by the needs of the project.

Eligibility:

The program is open to all Caltech Professors and Research Professors.
Multiple-faculty projects are welcome, but you must identify a lead-PI for grant purposes.
Research requiring IRB, IACUC, IBC approvals or MTAs can commence only after the approvals (or exemptions, as applicable) are obtained.

Optional Letter of Intent: Monday September 13, 2021. We request that you submit a brief (< one page) letter of intent describing your project at any time up to September 13, 2021. Although this LOI is not required, it will be used to guide and improve our review process. Should the review committee feel that a project is outside the scope of the call, that feedback will be provided to the PI. Attach your LOI in pdf format to an email and send it to this Box address: MTR_LOI.kg0kspfuish92k43@u.box.com. This will automatically deposit your attached proposal and you should receive an automated confirmation of receipt. **

Proposal Submission Deadline: Thursday September 30, 2021. Inquiries before then are welcome. Please reach out to George Tolomiczenko (gtolomic@caltech.edu) if you have questions about the program or the application process.

Proposals should include:

An application cover page, which will include a proposal title, PI(s), a statement outlining envisioned translational path including anticipated project impact on human health, a budget justification, and list of other supporting information as needed (included in an Appendix).
The technical narrative (up to 4 pages, including figures).
A project budget with anticipated cadence of spending for each year.
A signed Division Approval Form.

The following criteria will be considered in the selection process:

Overall scientific strength of the project.
Translational impact.
The rationale for MITR funding at this stage of translation.
The research team, including any external collaborators or partners (Academic, Contract Research Organization (CRO), Biotech, other).
The current plan to achieve translation into the clinic or other appropriate venue.

Proposal submission: Attach your full proposal (in pdf format) to an email and send it to this Box address: MTR_Sep.qso2f5ywmf42xlse@u.box.com. This will automatically deposit the attached proposal in the submission folder. You will receive an automated confirmation of receipt. **

Name your attached proposal file as follows: MFG_SubN_Last Name_ First Name. For example, the second (corrected or updated) proposal submitted from Groucho Marx would be named "MFG_Sub2_Marx_Groucho" His first submission would have been "MFG_Sub1_Marx_Groucho"

The submission deadline is end of day (PDT) Thursday September 30, 2021.

**This method of submission is new at MITR. In the event that you do not receive the expected automated confirmation(s), report that failure in an email George Tolomiczenko (gtolomic@caltech.edu), attaching your application pdf to the message.