Planning: Mississippi EPSCoR RII Track-1 Planning Grant

在为期一年的时间里，这项计划拨款将重点关注四个目标，以采用协作和包容的方式，使选定的项目概念和研究团队成熟。首先，规划拨款寻求严格审查和记录密西西比州现有的研究和开发基础设施，这是建立一个区域性生物技术中心所必需的。其次，该项目将在选定的研究主题内确定未来的研究、开发和能力建设需求，这些需求可以通过多学科、全司法管辖区的协调来解决。第三，研究小组将根据研究和生物技术产业的需求制定一项劳动力发展计划。第四，该项目还将为一个跨学科、全面整合的合作研究项目建立一个强有力的框架，扩大参与范围，并确保管辖范围内能力建设投资的可持续性。关键的项目活动包括研讨会、项目范围的会议和逻辑模型开发。这个来自密西西比州立大学的规划项目有潜力发展未来EPSCoR研究基础设施改善轨道1提案所需的州内团队合作，该提案的主题是“用于生物医学应用的工程聚合物纳米材料”，这与密西西比州的科学和技术计划完全一致。该计划将先进材料和生物医学/医疗保健领域的新兴技术确定为未来STEM卓越的重点。聚合物纳米材料项目旨在确定具有最小免疫原性反应的新递送机制；建立新颖的非侵入性技术；并从根本上提高现有技术的交付效率。对纳米生物学和免疫工程的关注将促进跨州四所研究型大学的跨学科、多机构材料研究计划的规划：杰克逊州立大学、密西西比州立大学、密西西比大学和南密西西比大学。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Over a one-year period, this planning grant will focus on addressing four goals to mature a selected project concept and research team, using a collaborative, inclusive approach. First, the planning grant seeks to critically review and document the existing research and development infrastructure in Mississippi necessary for establishing a regional biotechnology hub. Second, the project will identify future research, development, and capacity-building needs within the selected research topic that could be addressed through multi-disciplinary, jurisdiction-wide coordination. Third, the research team will develop a workforce development plan aligned with research and biotechnology industry needs. Fourth, the project will also establish a robust framework for an interdisciplinary, fully-integrated, collaborative research project that broadens participation and secures the sustainability of the capacity-building investments within the jurisdiction. Key project activities include workshops, project-wide meetings, and logic-model development. This planning project from Mississippi State University has the potential to develop the intrastate teamwork needed for a future EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement Track-1 proposal on the topic of “Engineering Polymeric Nanomaterials for Biomedical Applications,” which is properly aligned with Mississippi’s Science and Technology Plan. The plan identifies emerging technologies in Advanced Materials and Biomedical/Healthcare as foci for future STEM excellence. The polymeric nanomaterials project aims to identify new delivery mechanisms with minimal immunogenic responses; establish novel, non-invasive technologies; and radically improve delivery efficiency over existing technologies. The focus on nanobiology and immunoengineering will catalyze the planning of an interdisciplinary, multi-institution materials research program across the state’s four research universities: Jackson State University, Mississippi State University, the University of Mississippi, and the University of Southern Mississippi.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.