UAB's Nutrition Obesity Research Center (NORC) will fund up to 6-7 nutrition-related P/F studies at up to $35,000/year. The second year of funding is possible through a competitive renewal process.
Renewal applications will be considered from investigators currently funded by the NORC P/F program. These applications should show substantial progress in the aims of the original application and propose important new aims that further enhance the prospect of extramural funding. Those seeking a second year of funding should apply with the regular P&F procedure.
Research Focus: The P/F studies may focus on any area of research related to nutrition or obesity and are designed to provide initial project support for new investigators; allow exploration of possible innovative new directions for established investigators in nutrition sciences or obesity research that represent a significant departure from ongoing funded research, and stimulate investigators from other areas of endeavor to use their expertise for nutrition/obesity research. Multidisciplinary applications are encouraged, covering topics such as nutrition, metabolism, and obesity, as well as associated comorbidities (e.g., cancer, cardiovascular disease, etc.).
Eligibility: P/F funding is intended to support: 1) full-time UAB faculty (Instructor or Assistant Professor) and postdoctoral fellows without current or past NIH research project support; 2) established investigators with no previous work in nutrition or obesity research; or 3) established investigators in nutrition/obesity with a proposal to test an innovative idea representing a significant departure from ongoing research interests. Post-doctoral fellows wishing to apply are strongly encouraged to meet simultaneously with their UAB faculty mentor and the P/F and/or NORC director prior to submitting a proposal. PI's (Postdocs, Instructors and Asst. Profs.) must identify a senior faculty mentor from the NORC membership, who has a strong record of NIH funding as a PI in an area related to the proposed research and who will agree to provide guidance throughout the conduct of the proposed study. Priority will be given to applications that demonstrate close relevance to the NORC mission, NORC core facility usage (required), and the likelihood of future NIH funding (e.g., K- and R-series grants).
Procedure: Please provide a title, PI, and an abstract (less than 500 words) of intent that highlight the background and significance, hypothesis, specific aims, experimental design, and procedures of the project including relevant statistical analyses. Please submit the P&F Application Form information and a copy of the PI’s NIH Biographical Sketch to www.uab.edu/norc/pilot-funding/pilot-feasibility-training/letter-of-intent, by January 14, 2019. (The "application" form is on that webpage, and should be completed online. Please convert your biographical sketch to PDF and use the "upload" function on the “Letter of Intent” page for submission). Our committee will review all abstracts and select the most competitive for the development of a five-page application plus supporting materials for a final round of selection. The full application will be due February 18, 2019. Specific instructions will be provided to those whose abstracts are selected.
Investigators are encouraged to contact