Request for Research Infrastructure Proposals

Minnesota Partnership for Biotechnology and Medical Genomics
Request for Research Infrastructure Proposals
Details and Instructions for Faculty

Awards Description and Criteria:

Total awards for investments in research infrastructure (equipment or facilities) of up to $5 million.

Awards of any size greater than $50,000 will be considered as long as all criteria are met.

• Must be a coordinated project between the Mayo Clinic and the University of Minnesota, building on existing resources and enhancing combined capabilities
• Should not duplicate resources already available at either institution
• Must contribute to the success of existing and future Partnership research projects
• Must build on existing partnership strengths (either adds to an area of competitive advantage or fills gap to yield competitive advantage)
• Must be applicable for research in an area related to human health and disease

Application Process:

1) Interested faculty members should submit a proposal that describes the following information (a single application for each project produced jointly by Mayo and University faculty):

1. Abstract. This section should provide a summary of the proposal
2. Plan.
   1. Describe the overall plan for this equipment or facility. What do you hope to accomplish?
   2. What equipment will be purchased?
   3. What staff will be required to operate the equipment or facility?
   4. How does this proposal enhance existing capabilities at the two institutions? If a duplication of resources exists or will be developed, what is the justification for duplication?
   5. Where will the equipment or facility be located? How will investigators from each institution access the equipment/facility?
3. Importance to existing and future Partnership research. Outline how this research infrastructure will contribute to the goals of the Partnership by facilitating ongoing or future research efforts. If possible, list specific existing or pending partnership-supported research teams that will benefit from the proposed infrastructure investment (give names of investigators, project title, and justification). How will the proposed project enhance the institutions? research reputations or desirability for recruiting new faculty?
4. Business Plan. This section should describe how the equipment or facility will be operated and maintained. Will additional space be required? Will specialized staff need to be hired? Partnership funds may be requested for up to five years of staff salary support, but in any case a detailed plan for equipment maintenance, upgrades, and operation beyond five years needs to be detailed. Will user fees be charged? Will matching funds be required from other sources (if so, the application must contain firm commitments)? How will access be determined?
5. Faculty Roles. This section should provide faculty descriptions and roles on the project (be specific in describing which components will be located at Mayo and which at the University). An internal advisory committee should be named to assist the Principal Investigators in overseeing the equipment/facility.
6. Funding sources. This section should list any other funding pending for this project and explain why other sources of funding are not more appropriate (eg, NIH Shared Instrumentation Grant, R01, P50, or center grant programs).
7. Layperson Summary. A summary of the project that could be understood by a lay audience (not to exceed 1 page).

(Page limit for items a-g is 15 pages, single spaced, Ariel or Helvetica typeface, font size 11 or larger, fully contained in one .DOC or .PDF file. Additional pages and attachments, except as noted below, will be discarded)

8. Biographical Sketches. This section should include a biographical sketch (NIH format; must include Current and Pending Research Support) for each investigator (not entire advisory committee).
9. iResource Inventory. This section should provide a listing of resources at the two institutions already available to this project.
10. Budget. This section should include a single complete budget, along with a description of how funds will be spent, how each expenditure relates to the project, and whether each expenditure will be made through the Mayo Clinic or the University (It may be simplest to provide split budgets in addition to the single complete budget). Each institution should include full Facilities and Administrative (F&A) rates for their portion of the project (i.e. do not treat either institution as a subcontractor for purposes of determining indirects). Indirect calculations for equipment, patient care costs, etc. should be handled consistent with NIH policies.
11. Contacts. This section should clearly identify the principal investigator who will receive all correspondence (the ?contact PI?), and the lead investigator at the other institution.

2) The deadline for receipt of complete proposals is May 23, 2008 (4 pm)

3) Applications should be sent electronically to both of the following:

dole0025@umn.edu
(Erica Dolesy, Academic Health Center, University of Minnesota)
and
skaese@mayo.edu
(Scott Kaese, Department of Research Administrative Services, Mayo Clinic Rochester)

Review Process:

• An internal peer review panel composed of Mayo and University researchers, appointed by the Executive Coordinating Committee, will select finalists.
• The recommendations of the Review Panel will be forwarded to the Executive Coordinating Committee, which will also consider programmatic needs and partnership goals when making the final decisions on funding. Awards will be announced in early September 2008.

Reporting Requirements:

Principal investigators of funded projects will be required to provide a final report and an accounting of all funds expended at the completion of the project. A progress report will be required at the end of each grant fiscal year. In addition, quarterly ?brief progress reports? focused on observations relating to the inter-institutional collaboration will be submitted by e-mail. Some awards may be funded by designated donors. In these cases the investigators will be asked to make annual presentations to the donor organization regarding their research projects.

Additional Information:

Questions about the application process should be directed to either:

Mark S. Paller, MD, MS
Assistant Vice President for Research
University of Minnesota Academic Health Center
palle001@umn.edu

or

Eric D. Wieben, PhD
Director
Mayo Genomics Research Center
wieben.eric@mayo.edu