CIHR: Team Grant: Preparation to Trial: Inflammation for Chronic Conditions

Sponsor

The CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity (III), in partnership with the Institutes of Aging (IA), Circulatory and Respiratory Health (ICRH), Gender and Health (IGH), Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (IMHA), and Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes (INMD), and the CIHR HIV/AIDS Research Initiative; and with Mitacs

For More Information

For additional information, please visit the program's websites for

• Program guidelines
• Application forms
• Evaluation criteria

Description

The purpose of Health Challenge in Chronic Inflammation Phase 2 (HCCI2) is to support a collaborative and interdisciplinary strategy on inflammation to accelerate the development of solutions for the prevention, diagnosis, prediction of treatment response, and management of inflammation in chronic conditions through:

• the development of new solutions; and/or
• the repurposing and optimization of existing solutions.

Building on the shared framework for inflammation research initiated through prior CIHR investments (HCCI Phase 1), HCCI2 is comprised of two distinct funding opportunities that together will accelerate the clinical translation of solutions that target shared pathways of inflammation in chronic conditions.

1. The first component of the HCCI2 initiative, the Preparation to Trial Funding Opportunity, will support the advancement of preclinical research towards the human intervention trial stage and/or a better understanding of the implementation context to enable the scale up of existing interventions.
2. The second component (launch anticipated in 2022) will support human intervention trials with clinical impact on inflammation in chronic conditions.

The overall vision of HCCI2 is to improve the health outcomes of people living with, or at risk of developing, chronic conditions by advancing the repurposing, development and optimization of innovative interventions. Interventions are to target biological (e.g. genetic, epigenetic), environmental (e.g. exposure to chemical products), social (e.g. socioeconomic status, education) and behavioral (e.g. tobacco or cannabis smoking, diet) triggers of shared pathways of inflammation across two or more chronic conditions.

The overall goal of the Preparation to Trial Funding Opportunity is to support preclinical research and its translation for the human trial stage and/or to promote a better understanding of contextual factors related to implementation and the scale-up of existing interventions. Additionally, it aims to create strategic collaborative opportunities for researchers, funding organizations, and partners from a variety of perspectives and sectors.

Eligibility

For an application to be eligible:

1. The Nominated Principal Applicant must be an independent researcher appointed at an eligible institution (see the CIHR Application Administration Guide – Part 4).
2. The Nominated Principal Applicant must have successfully completed one of the sex- and gender-based analysis training modules available online through the CIHR Institute of Gender and Health and have submitted a Certificate of Completion (see How to Apply). Please select and complete the training module most applicable to your research project. Applicants are encouraged to review the “How to integrate sex and gender in research” section on the CIHR website.
3. The team must include:
   • At least one Early Career Researcher identified as either a Principal Applicant or Co-Applicant. The Early Career Researcher(s) must be eligible at the time of the full application deadline date.
   • A Sex and Gender Champion listed as Nominated Principal Applicant, Principal Applicant or Co-Applicant. The champion will be a researcher who possesses or acquires expertise in the study of sex as a biological variable and/or gender as a social determinant of health in relation to inflammation. Select and complete the training module most applicable to your research project. See Additional Information for further important information on the Champion role.
4. Any research applications involving Indigenous Peoples must include a researcher or knowledge user who self-identifies as Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit or Métis) or provides evidence of having meaningful and culturally-safe involvement with Indigenous Peoples.

For Mitacs Eligibility, see Additional Information for more details.

Other Considerations

Participation in Phase 1 of the Health Challenges in Chronic Inflammation Initiative is not a requirement for application to this funding opportunity.

Funding Availability

The total amount available for this funding opportunity is $5,250,000, enough to fund approximately 7 grants.

Additional Partner Funding

There are two categories of funding partners: competition partners and applicant partners. Competition partners are brought to the program by CIHR and have an agreement with CIHR to provide support to this competition. Applicant partners are brought to the project by the applicant to contribute cash and/or in-kind resources, according to terms negotiated by the applicants.

1. Competition Level Partners: Mitacs: Accelerate Program and Elevate Postdoctoral Fellowship.  Read the sponsor guidelines for specific award amounts

2. Applicant Level Partners: Depending on the scope and budget needs of the research project, applicants may obtain contributions (cash and or in-kind) from partners, organizations or decision maker organizations that they identify themselves and with whom they negotiate. Such partners could be universities, foundations, voluntary health charities, hospitals, community groups, provider associations, government departments or the private sector.

Maximum Project Value

The maximum amount per grant is $250,000 per year -  total of $750,000 per grant.

Indirect Costs

0%

Project Duration

up to 3 years

Special Notes

Cystic Fibrosis Canada Partnership Opportunity

Cystic Fibrosis Canada is excited to encourage translational activities and is interested in partnering with a research team to advance the understanding of the mechanisms involved in chronic inflammation in cystic fibrosis to inform therapeutic strategies.

Funding is available to support one (1) project that will directly study material or individuals expressing mutant cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) and, therefore, has direct relevance for cystic fibrosis. In addition to the maximum grant value of $750,000, Cystic Fibrosis Canada will provide up to $100,000 per year for up to three (3) years for a total of $300,000 to a select Applicant Partner.

In order to be considered for partner funding, applicants must first submit a one-page research proposal to Tania Pellegrini, Manager, Research Operations (tpellegrini@cysticfibrosis.ca) by March 30, 2020. The proposal must clearly articulate the direct relevance for cystic fibrosis. Applicants will be notified of Cystic Fibrosis Canada’s decision to partner prior to the registration deadline in April.

Information For Co-applicants

If you need to meet a deadline set by the lead institution for this opportunity, please ensure that you provide the Office of Research with at least five days in advance of the lead institution’s deadline to review the application, or your proposed component of the project. Please be in touch with the Office of Research (contact information below) ahead of the deadline if it looks like it will be difficult for you to submit all the required documentation on time (i.e. budget, proposal, OR-5 Form).