ANMS will be offering up to 2 awards – Deadline: October 13, 2023
Objective
To assist promising trainee and junior faculty investigators in carrying out research projects in the area of neurogastroenterology and motility. The ANMS welcomes applications related to a broad range of topics and research methodologies that are relevant to this field. These grants are intended to support investigators generate sufficient preliminary data to obtain extramurally-funded research grants and to promote career development in the area of neurogastroenterology and motility.
Description
The ANMS Discovery Grants will provide support for senior GI fellows, postdoctoral research fellows, or Instructor/Assistant Professor-level faculty who are pursuing research careers in the area of neurogastroenterology and GI motility. Up to two grants of up to $30,000 each will be awarded in 2024 for qualified applicants including senior GI fellows, postdoctoral research fellows, or junior faculty (with no prior or current independent grant funding, i.e. PI status on an R level grant) pursuing projects spanning basic science, translational investigation, and clinical research pertaining to neurogastroenterology and GI motility. Grant applications should clearly describe how investigators intend to use the pilot data for future studies, how the work will enhance applications for extramural research funding, and where the work fits within their overall career goals.
Eligibility
Applicants must be a GI fellow trainee, post-doctoral research fellow, or a faculty member at the Instructor or Assistant Professor level with a primary appointment at an academic institution. Applicants must also be a member or trainee member of the ANMS at the time of application, and mentors must also be an ANMS member. Information on becoming a member of the ANMS can be found at www.motilitysociety.org. It is anticipated that successful candidates will maintain their membership with the ANMS.
The award is intended for individuals in early stages of their career at the level of senior GI fellow and/or postdoctoral research fellow who are pursuing a research career (“Trainee Investigators”), and junior faculty (position of Instructor or Assistant Professor) (“Faculty Investigators”). Faculty with Associate or Full Professor designations are ineligible. Successful candidates must exhibit evidence of a career trajectory leading towards the development of an independent research program.
Trainee Investigators are expected to devote at least 20% of their effort to this grant proposal, and a letter of support from the candidate’s Division Head or Department Chairperson must verify that the applicant will have at least 20% protected time for research if the application is successful. Each Trainee Investigator applicant must have a designated research mentor who will help oversee the research and guide the applicant’s career development. Applications from Trainee Investigators require a letter from the applicant’s mentor that outlines his/her role and the training and career development environment he/she will provide. Faculty Investigator applicants do not require a mentor letter, but should include a letter of support from the Investigator’s Division Head or Department Chairperson verifying access to sufficient protected time and resources to accomplish the aims of the proposal.
A goal of these grants is to help junior investigators collect preliminary data in order to become competitive for an NIH K- and/or R- award or the equivalent (including internal institutional awards, society career development awards, etc.). Trainee Investigators who have acquired a K- or equivalent career development award are not eligible for the award, whereas Faculty Investigators who have acquired independent R- or equivalent funding as a PI are not eligible for the award. Please note that if at any point during the submission or review process, it is revealed that an application is not eligible, the application will be withdrawn from consideration.
Please note that if at any point during the submission or review process, it is revealed that an application is not eligible, the application will be withdrawn from consideration.
Awards and Requirements
Awards will consist of up to a total of $30,000 to support the proposed research. The funds can be used in either one or two years. If the applicant chooses to spread the $30,000 award over 2 years, a progress report must be submitted at the end of the first year. The report must document adequate progress in order to justify continuation of the award for the second year. Funds may be used for study costs, supplies, equipment, and/or towards salary for support personnel. Salary support for the Principal Investigator is not allowed. Overhead costs and/or indirect costs are not allowed. Receipt of overlapping grant support or any changes to the profile of the awardee, such as a change in institution, or acquisition of a disqualifying level of extramural grant support, must be communicated immediately to the ANMS. Awardees are required to provide a written progress report within 2 months of the end of the award period. This progress report should summarize the research project and explain how the award grant helped their career. It is also required that any publications resulting from this funding, or any publications (even though not specifically related to the subject of the award) during the period of award, should acknowledge the ANMS supported research grant award. Any unspent funds need to be returned to ANMS.
Institutional and Sectional Commitment
There must be a commitment from the applicant’s Division Head or Department Chairperson to provide the applicant at least 20% protected time for research and adequate access to needed resources. Details of current financial commitments to the candidate (such as start-up funds or other institutional support) and/or plans to provide matching funds should the candidate receive ANMS funding would further strengthen the application. These commitments must be clearly outlined in the letter from the applicant’s Division Head or Department Chairperson. In addition, the Trainee Investigator candidates must have a letter of support from their mentor, who will guide and nurture their research experience.
Selection Criteria
The ANMS Research Committee will review the applications. Three criteria will be used to assess the merits of the proposals: 1) originality, importance, and feasibility of the proposed research; 2) qualifications, career trajectory, and plans for development of an independent research program; and 3) For Trainee Investigators — the mentor’s plan and time available to direct the applicant as well as the overall research environment.
One of the goals of the ANMS research grants is to help awardees develop preliminary data for subsequent applications to Federal Bodies and Foundations; therefore, applicants should be aware that hypothesis-based or mechanistic research is advantageous. Preliminary data for these proposals is not strictly required, but including relevant preliminary data would strengthen the application.
Deadline
The application must be received by 11:59 pm EST on October 13, 2023 Applicants will be notified on the outcome of their application by mid-January 2024 and the award period will begin March 1, 2024.
Additional Information
Questions about the grants program and potential application topics should be directed to the Chairs of the ANMS Research Committee (Shanthi Srinivasan, ssrini2@emory.edu or David Levinthal, levinthald@upmc.edu).
All research must be conducted under institutional and federal regulations including appropriate IRB approval for all clinical research studies and IACUC approval for animal studies. The necessary approvals should be applied for well in advance of the starting date of the award. Awards will not be made until successful regulatory approval is obtained.
Application Instructions
Applications must be submitted electronically via the ANMS website. The application should be assembled in the order listed below. Use Arial 11 point font, single space. The award application will comprise of the following nine sections.
1. Title Page.
Fill out the form provided on-line.
2. Abstract.
Limit to 350 words and to one page. Use the abstract to summarize the proposed research plan, career development, and the anticipated benefits of the award to the candidate’s career goals.
3. Research Plan.
This section should follow the NIH guidelines and be divided into the following sections: a) Specific Aims; b) Background/significance; c) Preliminary data; d) Research Project; e) References. The proposed research should be clearly outlined. Clearly state the research hypotheses to be addressed, the immediate objectives of the research, and the ultimate goals. Give details of the research plan, including the methods to be used, the kinds of data that are to be collected, and how the data will be analyzed. For clinical studies involving patients, provide inclusion/exclusion criteria and power/sample size estimates. Anticipated experimental problems and alternative approaches should be discussed. There is a 5 page limit to sections a, b, c, d using Arial font 11 point single space. There is a 2 page limit to the references.
4. Budget.
Begin on a separate page, indicate how the funds of this award will be allocated and justify each budget item. Funds can be used for supplies, equipment, and/or salary support for other personnel needed for the research. Funds cannot be used for salary support for the Principal Investigator, as this is assumed to be covered by the applicant’s institution. The maximum total that can be requested is $30,000 for one or two years of research support.
5. Curriculum Vitae.
Provide a CV for the applicant and research mentor. Use NIH format and adhere to the NIH four page limit for each CV. The CVs should include research support; listing the title of project, objective of the project, funding agency and duration of award.
6. Candidate’s Statement.
This should describe the anticipated benefits of this Research Award to the candidate’s research career development and career goals. It should describe how the proposed research, course work, and/or additional scientific training will help the candidate achieve his/her overall research career goals. Mention should be made of other extramural grants the applicant is currently applying for to support similar or different areas of research. Mention should also be made of what extramural grants the applicant intends to apply for utilizing the data obtained from their ANMS Research Grant. Limit to 2 pages.
7. Letter from Applicant’s Division Head or Department Chairperson.
This letter should indicate strong commitment from the Division Head or Department Chairperson to support the candidate by providing time for the proposed research and adequate research facilities. The letter must certify that at least 20% protected time will be provided to the award recipient. The letter should summarize the applicant’s attributes and assess the impact of this award on the applicant’s career development. Limit to 2 pages.
8. Letter from Research Mentor.
The research mentor will help guide and nurture the applicant in his/her research and assist in their research career development. This letter should provide an overview of the applicant’s research project and the plans for the career development of the candidate. It should also state that the mentor will devote the necessary time and effort to training and supervising the candidate. Mention should be made of the frequency of meetings with the award recipient, techniques the candidate will learn, the candidate’s use of the mentor’s laboratory equipment, the possible use of research personnel and the overall research environment. Limit to 2 pages.
9. Appendix.
This section, if used, may include up to 3 items of additional material to help supplement the review of the grant. This may include manuscripts and abstracts and questionnaires or data instruments to use if the proposal is for clinical studies. Critical material for understanding and reviewing the grant must be included in the 5 page research proposal.
Any table or figure pertinent to the grant application must fit within the grant itself, rather than being included in the appendix.