The Institute for Translational Sciences seeks brief proposal ideas for a new High Impact Specialized Innovation Program (RC2) in Clinical and Translational Science. Must include Greater Gulf Coast Translational Science Alliance partners (Texas Southern University, University of Houston-Clear Lake, Houston Methodist).

Brief proposal due March 1. Download instructions by clicking here or read below. 

Innovation Programs in Translational Science: RC2 Limited Submission Opportunity

The UTMB CTSA is seeking proposals for High Impact Specialized Innovation Programs in Clinical and Translational Science (RC2 funding mechanism).

The UTMB CTSA hub (Director, Dr. Randy Urban) plans to submit an RC2 proposal to add to its suite of programs funded by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences. To ensure we put forward the best proposal possible, the UTMB Institute for Translational Sciences and its partners in the Greater Gulf Coast Translational Science Alliance (GGCTSA) are seeking brief proposals from researchers interested in leading the RC2 program.

Proposals must have a strong translational science component that will yield generalizable insights into the process of moving scientific discoveries into clinical and community care.

Proposals must include collaborators from UTMB and at least one (but ideally all) GGCTSA partner institutions: Houston Methodist, Texas Southern University, and the University of Houston-Clear Lake. Per the NOFO, the PI/contact PI of the project must have a paid faculty appointment at UTMB.

Interested researchers will need to submit a letter of intent (LOI) with a brief description of their project idea by March 1, 2025. See Additional Information for instructions.

RC2 proposal ideas will be weighed against the criteria of the NCATS RC2 NOFO and the goals of the GGCTSA. LOIs will be reviewed by a scientific review committee (SRC) that includes members from each GGCTSA alliance partner. The SRC will score each LOI and make recommendations to the GGGCTSA Executive Leadership Team (ELT). The ELT will make a final decision by April 4.

Additional Information

RC2 ideas should be able to address the following:

• Support unique activities, resources, capabilities or expertise to advance one or more of the NCATS CTSA Program goals. 
  • Fill a gap or address a problem/roadblock or area of need that will help advance clinical and translational science.
• Expedite the development of new science, resources, approaches, therapeutics, devices, software applications or other tools/platforms at CTSA hubs.
• If the project will develop a research resource or tool, the resource or tool should be highly useful and/or transformative for the broader clinical and translational science community, and ideally, able to be sustained beyond the funding period.

  Additional review criteria can be found in the NOFO.

  The NCATS RC2 project period is for up to 5 years. Application budgets are limited to no more than $500,000/year in direct costs excluding consortium/contractual F&A costs.

  Example NCATS RC2 Topics

  Previously funded NCATS RC2s address a variety of translational science concerns. These examples are meant to serve as guides but should not limit your ideas:

• Case Western RC2: Develop operational methods to support and analyze community-based participation and social marketing to accelerate translational research and health equity.
• UNC RC2: Create and validate infrastructure and equity and value frameworks for virtual patient care.
• Tufts RC2: Support integration of veterinary research data into health research by developing, validating, and optimizing tools for early disease detection in dogs and harmonizing veterinary data informatics with human data informatics.
• Utah RC2: Create a generalizable blueprint for a rapid genomic diagnostic platform using the NICU setting as a test bed.

Letter of Intent Instructions

Please include:  

Descriptive title of proposed research

Name, institution, and email address of principal investigator(s)

Participating institutions

A concise description of your proposed project (~500-800 words)

Describe how your plans fit the principles of the GGCTSA. You can view this introduction to the GGCTSA and request additional information from syrojahn@utmb.edu.

Specifically state the translational science question or translational science barrier addressed by the project. Visit the NCATS website for an overview of translational science.  

Ensure the description demonstrates how your proposals fits the NCATS RC2 NOFO.

Questions and Additional Information

Please reach out to Susan Rojahn, ITS Associate Director of Research Development, with any questions or for more information about the GGCTSA and its planned activities: syrojahn@utmb.edu