DEVELOPMENTAL FUNDS

Univ Of Med/Dent Nj-R W Johnson Med Sch, Piscataway NJ

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

Developmental Funds are used to foster outstanding cancer research. During the last grant period, Developmental Funds provided essential support for eight outstanding new investigators, supported 31 pilot studies, and helped establish three new Shared Resources. In particular. Developmental Funds helped to strengthen the Division of Public Health Science and Improved interactions between this division and the Divisions of Basic and Clinical Sciences. During the next grant period, CINJ will use Developmental Funds to continue to enhance each of the established research Programs of the center: Cell Death and Survival Signaling; Genomic Instability and Tumor Progression; Cancer Pharmacology and Preclinical Therapeutics; Clinical Investigations; Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention; and Cancer Prevention and Control. To accomplish this aim. Developmental Funds will be used to help recruit new investigators, develop new Shared Resources, and fund additional pilot projects aimed at fostering transdisciplinary and translational collaborations, within four major CINJ strategic initiatives: (1) to enhance translational research; (2) to enhance basic science depth through collaborative activity with consortium members; (3) to enhance bioinformatics and systems biology through strategic recruitment of bioinformatics and integration of computational biology faculty; and (4) to develop population science research through recruitment and pilot awards, and the incorporation of the State's cancer registry and research into CINJ. The identification of opportunities for developmental funds that are high yield, and possibly high risk, are developed by the Scientific Council, with advice from the internal and External Advisory Boards (see also Section 7.4). We are requesting a total of $600,000 per year in the Developmental Funds category from the CCSG. Specifically, we are requesting $150,000 toward recruitment and support of new faculty level scientists in areas of strategic need; (2) $225,000 to support pilot projects in high-priority and translational research areas; and (3) $225,000 to develop new Shared Resources ($75,000 each for Small Animal Imaging, Metabolomics, and Epidemiology Services) that align with CINJ's scientific growth and needs.