Translational Pilot Project Program

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PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT – Translational Pilot Project Program With IDeA funding, the Institute for Biogenesis Research (IBR) has thrived, developing from a small, newly formed institution with three faculty to a world renown center for developmental and reproductive biology with fourteen faculty in four different departments. The overall objective of the IBR-COBRE is to enhance the conditions that accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, heighten research productivity and optimize competitiveness for extramural funding. The center has excelled in basic and applied research in mammalian developmental and reproductive biology, and one obvious arena which would provide a clear opportunity for growth and increased competitiveness is translational research. Over the past three years, the IBR-COBRE has pursued a primary strategic goal of developing a translational research arm of its focus by partnering with the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Women's Health (Dept. Ob/Gyn). The Dept. of Ob/Gyn is one of the most successful clinical departments at the medical school, that has recently accrued more than $8 million in endowments for its academic development. The IBR's partnership with Ob/Gyn is facilitated by the appointment of the IBR-COBRE PI as the Chief of the Division of Research in the Dept. Ob/Gyn in November, 2014. He manages the $2 million Sharma Endowment designated for research in the department. Also, the Dept. of Ob/Gyn recently recruited a physician-scientist, Dr. Men-Jean Lee, who is Chief of the Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine. Dr. Lee was given lab space in the main IBR facility, facilitating collaborations between the IBR and Ob/Gyn. Two other members of the IBR, Drs. M. Ward, and Garmire, are adjunct faculty in the Dept. Ob/Gyn. One Phase II COBRE project is a clinical study that partners with Dept. Ob/Gyn examining the mechanism of increased cancer in children born to obese mothers. This partnership already resulted in an R01 examining epigenetic changes in diseased placenta. The IBR has therefore developed a strong and successful partnership with the clinical department that is closest to its focus of research. In Phase III, the center will leverage its partnership with Dept. Ob/Gyn to develop and implement a flexible Translational Research Pilot Project Program that is targeted to developing translational research projects, with the goal of developing a new arm of the center expanding its competitiveness. The program will be flexible, with two types of awards, translational research pilot projects that require collaborations between IBR and Ob/Gyn faculty, and bridging funds to assist researchers bridge funding gaps. The programs are designed to develop translational research projects, steer mature investigators through funding lapses, and to provide a flexible, and functional mechanism to assist already competitive faculty in the IBR.