CRUK-EPSRC Early Detection Innovation Sandpit and Award

https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/funding-for-researchers/our-funding-schemes/early-detection-innovation-sandpit-and-award

Deadline: 23^rd May 2019, Workshop held on 14 – 17^th July 2019

Amount: £100k

Duration: 1 year

In partnership with EPSRC, Cancer Research UK administers the Early Detection Innovation Sandpit and Award which aims to catalyse new multidisciplinary collaborations to drive forward earlier detection of cancer.

Their goal is to improve deployment of early cancer diagnostics to the population, recognising that the innovations made at this sandpit workshop will likely be upstream of clinical impact.

Applicants attend an intensive and interactive three-day residential workshop where they have the opportunity to:

• Network and form new collaborations spanning diverse research areas and organisations.
• Work in broad, multidisciplinary teams to generate new and innovative research ideas.
• Pitch projects for seed funding to test the feasibility of their ideas.

The theme for the July 2019 workshop is applying robotics and robotic technologies for diagnostic delivery and cancer early detection. Research ideas developed at the workshop should:

• Consider how robotic technology could aid in diagnostic delivery/guidance.
• Aim to minimise invasiveness of diagnosis (e.g. through localised imaging, real-time histopathology/biopsy).
• Improve speed and precision of the diagnostic workstream, simplify delivery, lower costs.
• Explore opportunities for both cancer detection and delivery of treatment, if necessary.

Applicants from a wide range of disciplines are eligible including those working in the fields of cancer biology, healthcare professionals, computer scientists, mathematicians and statisticians, engineers, physical scientists, and those working in the digital and technology space.

Applicants must be:

• Creative, open-minded, and able to work effectively as part of a team.
• Willing to engage with those working in other disciplines from a variety of backgrounds, and other key stakeholders.
• Able to attend all three days of the workshop  in Oxfordshire, 14–17 July 2019.
• Based in the UK.

Applications from those working in clinical technologies, control engineering, human-computer interaction, image and vision computing approaches which have not previously been explored in cancer detection and from people representing organisations (large or small) that will contribute new expertise and new thinking in early detection research are particularly welcome.

Accommodation and meals are provided for the workshop, as well as standard class travel costs.

Teams who successfully pitch proposals at the workshop will receive seed funding for one year to cover the costs of pilot/feasibility studies (up to £100K).

Please ensure to read the full call text and workshop specification available through the link above.

Belmont Forum Collaborative Research Action: Climate, environment and health – Improving understanding of climate, environment and health pathways to protect and promote health

https://mrc.ukri.org/funding/browse/belmont-forum/climate-environment-and-health/

https://nerc.ukri.org/research/partnerships/international/belmont/ceh/#xcollapse4

Deadline: 6^th May 2019, Expressions of interest

Amount: €10.59 million for up to 10-12 projects. UKRI has committed £3m to the total

UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) partners: NERC, MRC & ESRC are participating with international partner organisations through the Belmont Forum in a new collaborative research action (CRA) in ‘Climate, environment and health’.

12 funders from 8 countries.

Expressions of Interest for multilateral, inter and transdisciplinary research projects that will investigate where significant uncertainties exist that are barriers to action; address complex climate, ecosystem and health pathways to determine processes underlying causal links; and foster the use of scientific information and climate-related decision support tools to better inform planning and enhance resilience. Such research will improve understanding of the pathways between climate, environment and health to support resilience and readiness of the health sector to respond to climate challenges.

The following themes are within the call remit:

• food systems and nutrition
• heat and health
• climate-sensitive infectious diseases.

This is an international, transdisciplinary call for proposals with the aims to:

• foster global transdisciplinary teams of natural (including climate), health and social scientists and stakeholders to co-produce world-leading research;
• increase knowledge of the complex linkages and pathways between climate variability and change and associated impacts on the environment, on exposure pathways for health, and on human behaviour and well-being; and
• provide useful information, scientific evidence and effective tools to support policy and decision-making for planning across various timescales related to climate, environment and health.

The intended outcomes and impacts are to improve planning, preparedness and response to health impacts that are climate driven.

Additionally, research outputs should be used to target prevention, adaptation or development measures that provide significant population health benefits.

Projects should employ a transdisciplinary, stakeholder-based participatory approach across a wide range of relevant disciplines to co-design and co-deliver research that meets the needs of users and bridges the knowledge gaps of climate impacts on health, particularly in relation to under-studied environmental exposure pathways. Projects are not restricted in their geographic focus- applicants should justify their choice according to the research challenges and needs of stakeholders.  Projects that seek to address the knowledge gaps and challenges in LMICs are welcome.

This CRA call is a two-stage process:

Expressions of interest will be assessed for eligibility according to the transnational criteria and against the scope of the call.

Participating funding agencies will also verify suitability for national funding according to their respective criteria.

Expressions of interest which fail at this stage will be notified that they are ineligible to submit a full proposal (deadline 23^rd July).

Proposals must be eligible to receive funding from at least three participating partner organisations established in three different countries and should include researchers from the natural sciences (including climate), health/medical sciences, social and economic sciences or humanities, as well as societal partners (such as public health organisations and civil society organisations). Researchers from countries not supported by any of the partner agencies can participate in the research project at their own expense.

Further details on eligibility and how to apply are provided within the ‘call text’ on the Belmont Forum: Grant Operations website.

The EoI form and guidance is available on the BFGO site: https://bfgo.org/opportunity/index.jsp#ceh2019

Please ensure to read the full call guidance documents, accessed via the links above.

180525 UB19 RFA v10

Holly Davidson (RFDM, SAgE) and Craig Clark (ARFDM, HaSS) will be running RESEARCHconnect training sessions, starting on 14 May (details here).

Newcastle University subscribes to RESEARCHconnect, an extensive database used by staff to identify funding opportunities.

We are running training sessions to provide staff with:

• Knowledge of what RESEARCHconnect is
• An understanding of the importance and usefulness of using RESEARCHconnect
• How to find funding opportunities relevant to their research interests using RESEARCHconnect
• A demonstration of RESEARCHconnect
• How to use various bespoke aspects of RESEARCHconnect, including how to set up ‘saved searches’, which send latest funding opportunities direct to a user’s email address
• An opportunity to ask questions about RESEARCHconnect

The workshop programme consists of:

• An overview of what RESEARCHconnect is
•   A demonstration on how to use RESEARCHconnect
• A question and answer session

You can access further details and sign up by clicking here.

Anyone who cannot attend this event but would like to know about RESEARCHconnect can find a webinar here: https://internal.ncl.ac.uk/medical/research/grantguide/

If you are in FMS and do not have an account or have problems accessing your account, please contact Gwen Averley or Darren Airey.

2019-03-11_Turing-AI-Fellowships_Briefing-Note_F

This will be of interest to those working with AI in the Humanities and Life Sciences.

Please note the internal deadline is Sunday 17th and interested parties should contact elena.gorman@ncl.ac.uk to discuss their suitability and next actions.

A flyer is attached above with further details of the scheme and process.

The Alan Turing Institute recently launched its first call for Turing AI Fellowships. Approximately 3-5 Fellowships are available through this call.

To help us manage this activity within Newcastle University, I’ve produced a briefing note (attached). Please may you distribute this information however you see fit within your School/Department?

Key points to note are:

• The Turing has invited applications from disciplines including mathematical sciences, statistical sciences, computational sciences, and engineering, as well as life sciences, social sciences, and humanities.
• The University is able to support a maximum of 3 applications.
• The 3 shortlisted applicants will need to work with colleagues from the relevant faculties/schools to produce costings (please note the short timeframe for this).
• Each application must be accompanied by a letter of intent, to be signed by the head of the host school.
• The timeframes are very short (see the submission deadlines below).
• More details about the Fellowships are available in the Call Document and FAQs.

Key dates are:

Please see email below and the following web link: https://www.medicalresearchfoundation.org.uk/grants/emergingleadersprize

The Medical Research Foundation invites applications for the 2019 Emerging Leaders Prize in antimicrobial resistance.

The Emerging Leaders Prize is intended to celebrate the achievements of outstanding researchers who have made an impact in their field and demonstrated their potential to be a research leader of the future. The prestigious prize will be awarded to recognise the work of up to five emerging research leaders who have made significant contributions to research on antibacterial and anti-fungal resistance.

This funding opportunity is now open and details can be found on our website: Emerging Leaders Prize Antimicrobial Resistance Application.

The Medical Research Foundation will award up to £200,000; a top prize of £100,000 will be awarded and smaller prizes of various amounts.

To apply, please see the guidelines for applicants and application form on our website.  The completed application and any queries should be sent to: research@medicalresearchfoundation.org.uk

Key dates:

Deadline for Submission: 12:00 Friday 31 May 2019

Interview and Panel Review: September 2019

Funding Decision: September 2019

Feedback on Funding Decision: October 2019

Please pass on to relevant department and interested colleagues.

This information has been sent to you following an online search for interested parties. If you do not wish to receive updates or information from the Medical Research Foundation about any of our funding calls in the future, please do let us know.

https://epsrc.ukri.org/funding/calls/transformativehealthcare2050/

Deadline: 2nd May 2019 (outline stage)

Amount: Up to £25 million to fund 4 – 6 projects

The Healthcare Technologies Theme aims to invest in research to support the next generation of underpinning science and emerging technologies.

The focus of this call is Transformative Healthcare Technologies for 2050; technologies expected to have an impact within the next 30 years for the NHS, community or home care and an ageing workforce.

EPSRC are looking to support visionary projects which could create a step change in how healthcare is delivered.

EPSRC wishes to encourage new thinking and collaborations which will bring about the technologies to impact the healthcare sector within the next 30 years.

EPSRC particularly welcome projects and collaborations which address underrepresented parts of the portfolio.

As such, the Transformative Healthcare Technologies for 2050 call will focus on the needs of the following two Healthcare Technologies Grand Challenges:

• Transforming Community Health and Care
• Frontiers of Physical Intervention

Applications to this call are encouraged across the breadth of engineering, physical sciences, mathematical sciences and ICT.

EPSRC are looking for applications that do not just consider health treatment but also homecare, prevention and wellbeing with the overall goal of keeping people physically and mentally healthy.

EPSRC encourages new ideas, thinking and collaborations, in areas currently underrepresented in our portfolio, to address what could be routine in the NHS in 30 years’ time. EPSRC are keen to develop and help realise the potential of:

• Next-generation digital healthcare systems
• Engineering healthier environments where people live and work
• Future affordable and inclusive healthcare solutions
• Technologies to improve healthcare treatment

The call will follow a non-standard format for submissions and assessment, including an anonymous outline stage.

There will be an information day about this call which will be held on 27 March 2019.

For details and to sign up to attend please visit the EPSRC website: https://epsrc.ukri.org/funding/calls/transformativehealthtech2050infoday/.

Principal Investigators can only lead on a maximum of one application and may be named as Co-Investigator on one other.

Please ensure to read the full call documentation available through the link above.

https://mrc.ukri.org/funding/browse/ukrmp2/uk-regenerative-medicine-platform-ukrmp2-strategic-call/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery

https://www.ukrmp.org.uk/latest/ukrmp2-strategic-call/

Deadline: Intention to Apply stage, deadline 11^th April 2019. Full stage deadline 9^th May 2019.

Amount: £300k – £600k (total budget = £3m)

Duration: Up to 3 years

Up to £3 million is available for translational research projects that will enhance the UKRMP investment to help further realise the exciting potential of regenerative medicine research.

In particular, this call is seeking to fund projects that address translational bottlenecks, such as safety science, and add value to the core programmes of the UKRMP.

This opportunity is also aimed at helping new groups connect to the Platform, and it is anticipated that the majority (60%) of funding will be allocated to principal investigators outside the current UKRMP Hubs.

The UKRMP2 strategic call will build upon the existing UKRMP investment and fund a small number of cutting-edge regenerative medicine research projects which extend and/or build on Platform capabilities in addressing the key challenges in translational regenerative medicine.

Overt connectivity to one or more of the Hubs, and complementarity to the UKRMP programme as a whole, is required for successful applications.

The challenge to be addressed, and the deliverable(s) from the project, must be clearly articulated.

This call will support pre-clinical research projects which focus on tractable challenges on the path towards translation.

While in-human studies are not anticipated under this call, bids should nevertheless clearly identify their place in the translational pathway towards clinical application.

Applications are welcome for projects which link and/or expand across core Hub science themes and/or provide interconnectivity between one or more cross-cutting areas.

The goal of the Platform is to unlock scientific knowledge and produce tools, reagents and approaches which are applicable to a broad range of diseases.

Organ or disease-based exemplars provide a necessary level of focus within the Hub programmes, and applicants under this call should similarly identify a clinical exemplar that will ultimately provide proof of concept.

In addition to current Hub exemplars (Parkinson’s disease, megakaryocytes, liver disease, cartilage, lung repair and eye disease) proposals with direct applicability to type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis are particularly encouraged, reflecting the key partnerships with JDRF UK and the MS Society in this call.

Supporting projects that address ‘safety’ considerations related to the development of regenerative therapeutics is a strategic priority.

Applications are particularly encouraged that focus on the development of analytical methods required for regenerative therapies relevant to the Hub and charity disease indications, for example potency assays that are credible and replicable, quantitative pre-clinical/clinical imaging technologies and marker technologies with the sensitivity and capability to answer key questions at the cellular level, cell bio-distribution, toxicity.

Additionally, bioinformatic approaches which unify or deconvolve currently available outputs to allow stop/go safety decisions are also welcomed.

The UKRMP2 strategic call includes a compulsory ‘Intention to Apply’ stage, deadline 11^th April 2019.

The Intention to Apply should be top level and a maximum of two sides of A4 (Arial 11pt, 2cm margins, no less than single line spacing).

This should briefly address the key strategic needs and challenges, setting out the proposal’s aims and objectives (using the information required for the full submission as a guide to critical issues) and identify the lead and key partners of the proposed research team.

Applicants who do not submit an Intention to Apply will be ineligible to submit a full application.

This is for administrative purpose only; feedback will not be provided other than confirmation that the proposed bid is within scope and can be submitted.

Early conversations with the Hub Directors and their teams are recommended in shaping proposals.

Please ensure to read the full call details available through the links above.

The Medical Research Foundation invites applications for the 2019 Emerging Leaders Prize in antimicrobial resistance.

The Emerging Leaders Prize is intended to celebrate the achievements of outstanding researchers who have made an impact in their field and demonstrated their potential to be a research leader of the future. The prestigious prize will be awarded to recognise the work of up to five emerging research leaders who have made significant contributions to research on antibacterial and anti-fungal resistance.

This funding opportunity is now open and details can be found on our website: Emerging Leaders Prize Antimicrobial Resistance Application.

The Medical Research Foundation will award up to £200,000; a top prize of £100,000 will be awarded and smaller prizes of various amounts.

To apply, please see the guidelines for applicants and application form on our website.  The completed application and any queries should be sent to: research@medicalresearchfoundation.org.uk

Key dates:

Deadline for Submission: 12:00 Friday 31 May 2019

Interview and Panel Review: September 2019

Funding Decision: September 2019

Feedback on Funding Decision: October 2019

Please pass on to relevant department and interested colleagues.

This information has been sent to you following an online search for interested parties. If you do not wish to receive updates or information from the Medical Research Foundation about any of our funding calls in the future, please do let us know.