CCMTR Executive Committee Meeting 2/13/2007

CCMTR Executive Committee Meeting 2/13/2007

Attendees: Gregg Dean, Marie Davidian, Jon Horowitz, Matthew Breen, Greg Gibson, Phil Sannes, Linda Costine.

Meeting with Novartis

Dr. Dean met with Novartis and they are interested in working with the Center. They were not specific in what ways. This is something they need to define.

Their areas of interest are pain management, allergy, anti-parasitics, new vaccines, heart and renal therapies.

They may be interested in helping establish and supporting the Clinical Studies Core as Pfizer has done at Minnesota and Penn State.

Action: Follow-up with Novartis to determine specific opportunities for collaboration and level of commitment/interest in developing the Clinical Studies Core as a possible CRO.

Strategic Plan

Strategic Plan has been submitted to the Executive Committee.

Discussion was held on splitting the Clinical Genomics Core. It appears to be made up of 6 or 7 smaller groups. We do not want to split off the Biostatistics group because they want to be part of the collaboration on grants, not seen as a service core. The successful cores are meeting regularly and have set plans.

It was determined to keep the current core system and have the Genomics Core set up regularly scheduled meetings for their members to attend. Those members not engaged in Center activities will not be invited back when application renewals are evaluated at the end of 3 years. There will be a natural selection processed based on involvement.

Strategic Plan was approved.

Pilot Project Grants

Linda and Dr. Dean are reworking the application for the Pilot Grants. The Center will be committing $90,000 to the program again. The announcement for applications will go out on April 16.

There will be a symposium held in May in which the current pilot grant recipients will present their research. It was suggested that this correspond with the Dean’s First Friday Meeting (May 4). It was also suggested that the symposium begins at 2 PM. Gregg will check with the Dean in coordinating with his meeting.

The deadline for the grant submission will be May 25. Funding will be for one year and begin on July 1.

The Pilot Project Grants schedule was approved.

Action: Determine whether Dean Arden agrees with combining the First Friday event and the Pilot Grant Workshop on May 4. Revised RFA, forms and instructions will be sent to EC for approval.

Proposal for Pilot Service Core Grants

Dr. Dean is proposing that we set up pilot grants for the use of our Service Cores. These grants would be given to Center faculty who wanted to use our Service Cores for preliminary data for grant submission and do not have significant funding. The details of the application process will need to be formalized but it is recommended that there be no specific deadline so that we could requests as money becomes available.

Discussion on the application process ensued. Suggestions included, establishing a waiting list when funds were not readily available, having the steering committees of the service cores evaluate the applications and recommend financial support to the EC. It would be imperative that the applicants still meet all the pilot grant criteria of encouraging novel collaborations, translational research, and potential for extramural funding developing out of the research. This will help us to develop a customer base and be able to give an advantage to Center members. It was suggested that there be 3 applications deadlines and not have the process be open, in order to have a reserve of money to allocate.

The Executive Committee gave approval to go forward developing this program.

Action: Dr. Dean will develop the RFA, forms and instructions to be sent to the EC for approval.

External Review Committee

Dr. Dean asked for suggestion from the Executive Committee for people to serve on our External Review Committee.

The following people were suggested:

Bob Jones, CEO Novartis

Maria Raposa, NCBC

Bruce Pitt, University of Pittsburgh, Environmental Health Sciences

Reen Wu, UC Davis, Pulmonary, Critical Care Medicine

Elaine Osterandor,

Chan Kahna, Clinical Oncology Trials Group

A swine industry representative (To check with Jack Odle for a suggestion)

We need to decide what we want from this committee, scientific advice, connections with potential donors or partners, evaluation of our structure and accomplishments.

We probably need to identify 8 potential members with the expectation of getting 6 to agree to participate.

Opening up the Associate Membership to Post-Doctoral and Graduate Students

Per our bylaws, an Associate Membership is for “participation of faculty not meeting the criteria for full membership.” It would therefore take an amendment to the bylaws to open up the Associate Membership.

Discussion followed as to the advantage to opening up the membership. What is the advantage to post-docs and graduate students and what is the advantage to the Center? Did we need to develop a third category of Affiliate Members? How would this change the interaction of post-docs and graduate students with the Center and visa-versa? The intent of the Center has always been to be inclusive of post-docs, graduate students and technicians in the laboratories of faculty members of the Center. These groups are critically important to the mission of the Center, the Center must reach out to them, and they must feel included.

It was decided that all graduate students, post-doctoral students and technicians who are members of laboratories of Center faculty were by default affiliate members and therefore the bylaws need not be amended. This would be specifically communicated to the membership. There would also be an investigation into how other centers are currently dealing with this issue.

Action: Dr. Dean will draft a message that will be added to the website and included in the newsletter reiterating the status and inclusion of post-docs, graduate students, and technicians in the Center.

Newsletter

We are currently working on a newsletter that we would like to send out periodically throughout the year. We would send it to our membership and post it on the web. We are planning on sending it out on the university level to people who have been involved with the Center and the administration.

Please contact Linda with any specific suggestion of who should receive a copy of the newsletter.

Clinical Studies Core

Dr. Dean met with Dr. Matthew Breen, Dr. Karen Munana and Xandi Hamilton, Clinical Genomics Resource Laboratory Coordinator on Monday, February 12. The Clinical Studies Core is moving from the starting up phase to the started phase. There will be a notice going out soon. They will be filling out all the necessary paperwork with Contracts and Grants to begin charging accounts for the service.

NSF Partnership for Innovations Proposal

NSF Partnership did not get funded. It is a group of faculty members developing technology that may be applied to a myriad of medical devices. Campus may proceed with the project and resubmit application.

Update from Cores

Dr. Ed Breitschwerdt has resigned as the Leader of the Emerging and Zoonotic Diseases Core. Dr. Gregg Dean will function as Acting Leader. Dr. Dean will hold a meeting for interested members who want to be a part of NIH Vaccine Development Funding Opportunities (RFA-AI-07-008, Immune Mechanisms of Viral Control and RFA-AI-07-003, Cooperative Research Partnerships for Biodefense).