The overall objectives of this program are to provide support for the purposes of testing innovative hypotheses which may have significant impact on digestive diseases research. Our hope is that the investigator can then develop enough preliminary data sufficient for funding of a research grant application by conventional mechanisms (e.g. R01). This program hopes to encourage young investigators and more established investigators in other field to approach problems which are relevant to our understanding of normal intestinal, liver and pancreatic function and to digestive diseases. We are particularly interested in projects that address issues in mucosal immunity, epithelial injury/repair, microbial interactions with intestinal, hepatic and pancreatic tissues. We would like to encourage efforts addressing intestinal motility and the application of novel genetic models (e.g. C. elegans, Drosophilia, etc) to address questions in GI tract development.
For questions concerning the relevance of potential applications, contact Ta-Chiang Liu, MD, PhD, Director, P&F Program ta-chiang.liu@wustl.edu
The primary objective of this program is to identify projects that will:
- Lead to further extramural, preferably NIH-funded, research support
- Utilize one of the four Core facilities
Who is eligible?
Full time faculty and senior post-doctoral fellows at Washington University including:
- Junior investigators without independent grant support (excluding career development awards) seeking to establish independence in digestive disease research.
- Investigators with independent grant support (past or present) unrelated to digestive diseases-related research, now wishing to enter the field of digestive disease research.
- Investigators with independent grant support who have previously worked in this field but wish to pursue a new research direction in the area of digestive diseases.
It is strongly suggested that you contact Dr. Liu at ta-chiang.liu@wustl.edu to discuss eligibility and relevance prior to submitting an application.