Thank you for your interest in the funding program activities of DiaComp.  We have updated the areas of interest for the 2017 Pilot & Feasibility program solicitation.  In addition, the Collaborative Funding Program solicitation will support planning activities for the development of a multi-center study for clinical biomarkers and outcome measures for diabetic foot ulcers.  Please follow the links below to find out more information about these exciting funding opportunities.

Click the links below to find out more information!

For complete details about this program, go to:
2017 DiaComp Pilot & Feasibility Program
2017 Conference Support Program
2017 Collaborative Funding Program

The 2017 DiaComp Pilot & Feasibility Program

The NIDDK-sponsored Diabetic Complications Consortium (DiaComp) is soliciting applications for its annual Pilot and Feasibility Program

Applications of 5 pages requesting up to $100,000 for one year are due June 12, 2017.

Current areas of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Human Tissue Interrogation
  Develop and use innovative technologies to analyze human tissue from end organs of diabetic complications.
• Biosensors
  The pathogenesis of diabetic complications is metabolically and genetically complex and involves multiple organ systems. Model organisms are well suited for studying pathophysiology driven or impacted by tissue- and organ-crosstalk. The transparency of C. elegans and zebrafish larvae permits the facile monitoring of cell-based biosensors designed to measure inter- and intra-cellular processes in free living organisms. With the advent of improved genome-editing technologies and large-scale efforts to develop biosensors (e.g. ER stress, oxidative stress, autophagy, glucose levels, hormone levels, albuminuria, etc.), the time is right for researchers to develop novel tools and adapt existing approaches to advance our understanding of the mechanisms underlying diabetic complications.
• Biofilms
  Biofilms lack a precise definition but are generally accepted to be structured communities of microorganisms, adhered to a surface, and exhibiting phenotypic heterogeneity. Compared to planktonic (free-floating) bacteria, biofilm bacteria are more virulent and resistant to treatment and host immune factors. Biofilms are under-appreciated as a contributor to diabetic complications.
• Neurocognition
  Emerging data has established a link between insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and neurocognitive dysfunction, including dementia (see https://f1000research.com/articles/5-353/v2)
• Pre-clinical Testing
  There is a compelling need to translate novel, scientifically meritorious therapeutic interventions for diabetic complications.

Who is eligible to apply?
Applications are accepted from both National and International institutions/ organizations.

What funds are available for P&F Projects?
Applicants may request up to $100,000 (direct + indirect costs) Total Costs for one year. The number of awards will depend upon the number, quality, duration, and cost of the applications received. Awards will be made as subcontracts from the DiaComp Coordinating Unit (CU) at Augusta University and NOT directly by the NIH.

Timetable for P&F Application Submissions.
June 12th Deadline for applications submitted to the DiaComp CU.
Oct. 1st Estimated Start Date for DiaComp P&F Project funding.

Contact Information
For more detailed information, please go to http://www.diacomp.org/shared/pilotFeasibility.aspx

The 2017 DiaComp Conference Support Program

The NIDDK-sponsored Diabetic Complications Consortium (DiaComp) is soliciting applications for the Conference Support Program

Applications of 5 pages requesting up to $20,000 per conference are due June 12, 2017 for conferences with start dates after September 1, 2017.
A scientific conference is defined as a symposium, seminar, workshop, or formal conference where individuals assemble to exchange scientific information.
This program supports high-quality scientific conferences that feature sessions or speakers directly relevant to diabetic complications and that promote communication and collaboration between research communities investigating similar pathologic mechanisms in different end organs of complications. Strong proposals will also inform investigative communities that have not traditionally been involved in complications research.

A few examples of meritorious proposals might include, but are not limited to:

• The organizers are planning a multi-day conference focused on diabetes and propose to add a keynote presentation and several other individual speakers to highlight complications throughout the agenda. They also propose a dedicated poster session and travel awards for junior investigators involved in complications research.
• The organizers are planning a two-day conference on basic mitochondrial biology and propose to add a session on the role of mitochondrial (dys)function in diabetic complications. They request support for 3 senior investigators and 2 junior investigators to present their scientific findings and a session chair to lead a panel discussion about research opportunities in complications
• The organizers are planning a day and half long conference on novel imaging modalities as applied to renal disease and propose a dedicated session on the diabetic kidney. They request support for 3 additional speakers and the travel of junior investigators to present oral or poster abstracts.

Who is eligible to apply?
Domestic institutions or organizations, including established scientific or professional societies, are eligible to apply for conference support. Foreign institutions are NOT eligible to apply for conference support. Both domestic and international conferences may be supported; however, an international conference can be supported only through the U.S. representative organization of an established international scientific or professional society. Requests for conferences held outside of North America are generally not allowed. An individual is not eligible to receive a grant in support of a conference.

What funds are available for Conference Support Projects?
Applicants may request up to $20,000 per conference per year. Multi-year applications are NOT allowed. The number of awards will depend upon the number, quality, and cost of the applications received. Facilities and Administrative (F&A) costs are NOT allowed. Awards will be made as subcontracts from the DiaComp Coordinating Unit (CU) at Augusta University and NOT directly by the NIH.

Timetable for P&F Application Submissions.
June 12th Deadline for applications submitted to the DiaComp CU.
Sept. 1st Minimum conference start dates

Contact Information
For more detailed information, please go to http://www.diacomp.org/shared/conferenceSupport.aspx

2017 Collaborative Funding Program

The NIDDK-sponsored Diabetic Complications Consortium (DiaComp) is soliciting applications for the Collaborative Funding Program

Applications of 6 pages requesting up to $100,000 for one year are due March 10, 2017

Summary:
Diabetic foot ulcers are the most common cause of non-traumatic lower leg amputation in the United States. Despite efforts to prevent and treat foot ulcers, each year about 70,000 Americans with diabetes will lose part of their lower extremity because a foot ulcer becomes infected or does not heal. An obstacle to the development of therapies is the paucity of validated biomarkers that assess healing, infection, and recurrence risk, and validated outcomes that measure patient satisfaction and quality of life. In addition, systematic reviews of clinical studies on the prevention and management of diabetic foot ulcers consistently point to the urgent need for clinical trials with standardized definitions, outcomes, biomarkers, and protocols that will enable a thorough evaluation of treatments and comparison of results across trials.

The purpose of this program is to support planning activities for the development of a multi-center study for clinical biomarkers and outcome measures for diabetic foot ulcers. It is also part of an effort by the NIDDK to support clinical studies that involve two or more institutions to build a collaborative framework for ongoing research on diabetic wound healing.

Applications should propose a future clinical study based on the criteria listed below. The application should include a rationale for the future clinical study, documenting significance and need, and describe the potential impact of the clinical study on biomarkers and research infrastructure. Preliminary results and background to support the study and an overview of the study design should be provided. The latter should include an estimate of the number of subjects, entry criteria, and outcome measures. In addition, the application should describe the planning activities proposed to be conducted during the single year of this program. These may include meetings to develop the protocol, focus groups for the patient-centered outcomes, clinical studies to obtain preliminary data, quality control testing of patient sample analysis, biostatistical analysis to develop sample size calculations, or analysis of databases to inform recruitment strategies. The goal of the planning activities is to develop a complete study protocol for the validation of a biomarker or outcome measure for diabetic foot ulcers.

Who is eligible to apply?
Applications are accepted from both National and International institutions/ organizations.

What funds are available?
Applicants may request up to $100,000 (direct + indirect costs) Total Costs for one year. The number of awards will depend upon the number, quality, duration, and cost of the applications received. Awards will be made as subcontracts from the DiaComp Coordinating Unit (CU) at Augusta University and NOT directly by the NIH.

Timetable for P&F Application Submissions.
March 10th Deadline for applications submitted to the DiaComp CU.
May 31st Estimated Start Date for Planning Activities funding

Contact Information
For more detailed information, please go to http://www.diacomp.org/collaborative.aspx

Address questions regarding the DiaComp Funding Programs:
Richard A. McIndoe, Ph.D. (Director)
DiaComp Coordinating Unit
Augusta University
Phone: 706-721-3542
Fax: 706-721-3688
Email: rmcindoe@augusta.edu

Funding opportunity in “Microphysiological Systems (MPS) for Disease Modeling and Efficacy Testing (UG3/UH3)” will support studies to develop in vitro disease models using tissue chip technologies and iPSC and/or primary tissues derived from patients, and functional validation of the models.

For more information, go to: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-TR-16-017.html

The (Re)Building A Kidney Consortium is happy to announce that we are accepting a new round of submissions to collaborate with us via our Partnership Program. We are looking for additional projects in the following subject areas:

1. Development of protocols for single cell analysis of human renal biopsy specimens. Protocols may involve tissue in situ analyses or digestion of specimens into single cells for transcriptional or proteomic analysis.

2. Profiling and validation of normal adult kidney cell types isolated from human tissue using FACS, laser-capture or other approaches. Omic profiling of kidney cell types will inform in vitro and in vivo efforts to recreate or regenerate these cell types within the RBK Consortium and provide the research community with detailed expression profiles of specific kidney cell types.

3. Development of protocols for proteomic profiling of kidney cell types using platforms amenable to single cell analysis (flow cytometry, microfluidics, mass cytometry or chemical cytometry) and/or the development of proteomic imaging methods at the single cell level (e.g., SWITCH, systems-wide control of interaction time and kinetics of chemicals, CyTOF mass cytometry, etc.)

4. Bioengineering specific components of the kidney (e.g., convoluted proximal tubule, collecting duct, interstitium, etc.), including incorporation of appropriate cell types. Cell types may be informed by the RBK Consortium.

Applications of 5 pages requesting up to $150,000 total costs for per year for a maximum of 2 years are due July 1, 2016 for a projected start date of October 3, 2016.

For complete details about this program, go to: https://www.rebuildingakidney.org/partnership-project-program.html.