Internal funding opportunity at Stanford ITI
PURPOSE
The primary goal of this RFA is to enhance our understanding and design of improved vaccines for infectious diseases that remain the world’s greatest killers. The ideal projects would address knowledge gaps on how to optimize the durability, breadth, and affinity of antibody responses to vaccines, or identify robust biomarkers of vaccine durability measurable early after immunization. In addition, we are calling for proposals in the field of mucosal and placental immunology.
There are three general categories of funding that we are focusing on:
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Application of Innovative Computational Tools: This category encompasses the application and development of advanced computational tools, including artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), to enhance our understanding of aforementioned aspects of global health research.
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Novel Technologies for Vaccine Platforms and Delivery Modalities: We are seeking to fund research applying groundbreaking technologies to contribute to the creation of new vaccine platforms and innovative delivery systems. These could include non-LNP formulations for RNA delivery or new therapeutic modalities to modulate gene expression.
- Novel Mucosal and Placental Immunology: We are interested in funding research that explores the mechanisms driving mucosal immunity (including vaginal mucosal immunology), and how this knowledge can be applied to develop improved vaccines for respiratory or intestinal pathogens. In addition, we seek to support the development of new tools to monitor the maternal-fetal interface and placental health.
Through these funding categories, we seek to support research that advances global health initiatives. We also encourage cross-disciplinary collaboration, with special consideration given to proposals that involve partnerships between technologists and clinical collaborators or immunologists.
- Application of Innovative Computational Tools
- Novel Technologies for Vaccine Platforms and Delivery Modalities
- Novel Mucosal and Placental Immunology
Stanford faculty with Pl eligibility and CE faculty, instructors, clinical instructors, academic staff-research, postdoctoral fellows and advanced graduate students. If the proposal is submitted by a non-faculty Pl, it is required that a Pl-eligible faculty mentor is named. This is an internal Stanford funding opportunity, so a Pl waiver is not needed.
At the request of the Gates Foundation, this RFA is exclusively available to researchers who have not previously received pilot project funding through CHSI.
GATES FOUNDATION TERMS WILL APPLY
Publication: Timely publication is expected in line with the Gates Foundation's Open Access Policy, requiring preprint sharing on relevant platforms. Grant funds cannot be used for publication fees.
Data Access: You agree to provide the Foundation access to cleaned data sets upon request and to make all data publicly available within six months after the project end date, unless otherwise agreed.
Humanitarian License and Global Access: The Foundation is granted a nonexclusive, royalty-free sub-licensable license for any intellectual property developed from this project, including related background IP. We recommend contacting Minxing Li (minxingl@Stanford.edu) from Stanford's Office of Technology Licensing for a more detailed discussion if needed.
No detailed budget requested for LOI submission. No NIH salary cap applies. Graduate student funding support allowable for salary and tuition, but not for stipends and health care insurance.
