After disruptions because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Michigan Medicine-Peking University Health Science Center Joint Institute (JI) has announced the reactivation of the 2020 grant awards cycle.

The request for proposals (RFP) was put on hold this spring as both institutions grappled with COVID-19 patient surges. The re-activated RFP includes a new project priority on COVID-related research. Letters of intent are due Dec. 2, 2020.

“We are pleased to be able to reinstate this opportunity for researchers from across the health science disciplines with active collaborations at Peking University Health Science Center,” said JI administrative lead Huang, MD, MHSA. “Our partnership remains strong, and both institutions feel the JI can play an important role in the global effort to confront the pandemic.”

Established in 2010, the JI is among the UM Medical School’s largest, longest-running institutional research partnerships, with 59 funded projects to date across a variety of disciplines. Awards in the current cycle are available in three types:

• Discovery Awards provide up to $100,000 (USD) a year for two years to promote new collaborations that have yet to be fully established.
• Pilot Awards provide up to $300,000 (USD) a year for two years and are intended to strengthen a partnership between investigators with a demonstrated track record of successful collaboration. Pilot Awards also include proposals that considered as interventional clinical trials.
• Innovation Bridge Awards – new for 2020 – provide up to $100,000 (USD) for one year to help investigator teams develop innovative technologies and to accelerate translation of research into a product. This award category will be evaluated based on the potential for successful technology commercialization.

Click here for detailed RFP information and application instructions.