In 2004, NIAID and NIDDK began inviting investigators to apply for funds for research in transplantationtolerance in non-human primate models of islet and/or kidney transplantation. Funds for this novel researchwere awarded to the Non-Human Primate Transplant Tolerance Cooperative Study Group (NHPCSG).Emory University was asked to administer these funds through the awarding of Opportunities Poolsubcontracts under our existing parent grant. To date, fourteen proposals have been processed throughreview, resulting in the administration of five awarded subcontracts. We are currently actively solicitingproposals for a third round of funding and propose to lead the administration of efforts in subsequent rounds.In addition, in September, 2005, the Emory Transplant Center (ETC) hosted a Non-Human Primate (NHP)Assays Workshop at Emory University. This workshop brought together lab personnel from more than adozen labs across the NHPCSG to share assay protocols and techniques. As part of this Workshop, wecreated a website where NHPCSG investigators and their laboratories could access the workshop agenda,slides from presenters, protocols shared by laboratories, and information on the NIH-sponsored primatecolony. This website was highly successful and is evidence that the NHPCSG members and theirlaboratories would benefit from a tool to facilitate communication and information exchange. Thecornerstone of these electronic communications will be the proposed NHPCSG website, which will build onthe existing resources created for the ETC website and the adjunct NHP Assays Workshop pages. Webelieve that these two programs can be synergistic. As part of the NHPCSG website, we propose to bringadded value to the interactions and collaborative efforts of the consortium members initially through the useof the limited-access, web-based, collaborative software tool Blackboard. Immediately, Blackboard can beused by Consortium members to asynchronously post and review shared information, documents, data, andtools. In addition, we propose to use this program to improve the administration of the current and futureOpportunities Pool funding by creating a more secure and efficient venue for review of future OpportunitiesPool submissions. Later, the same capabilities can be utilized and expanded through a customized portal forthe NHPCSG. Through the use of Blackboard, and eventually a portal, we can further improve theprocesses of the Opportunities Pool as well as help to synergize the research of the investigators across theConsortium. Over the course of the past two and a half years, we have acquired the experience necessaryto streamline the processes associated with the administration of the Opportunities Pool. We propose tobuild on the skills we have developed thus far in the future implementation of both the Opportunities PoolDiscretionary Fund and the expanded NHPCSG website.
Showing the most recent 10 out of 73 publications
