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Seed Grant Program

Fall 2024

The Center for Vertebrate Genomics is not accepting seed grant applications at this time.
 The CVG will announce its next round of applications in early Fall 2025. Due dates are typically in late October.

Fall 2024 CVG Seed Grant Awards

The Center for Vertebrate Genomics is pleased to announce the recipients of this year's Seed Grant Awards. The PIs and collaborators of these outstanding proposals span 3 colleges (CVM, HumEc, CALS) and 6 different departments (MI, DNS, FS, NBB, BMS, MBG). We are really proud to support this outstanding cohort of collaborative and innovative colleagues! Thanks to all who applied, and to the excellent review committee for their valuable time, effort, and insight. Congratulations to this year's recipients:

  • Dr. Colleen Lau for "Epigenetic regulation of natural killer cell memory."
  • Dr. Angela Poole, collaborator: Abigail Synder, for "Genome scale profiling of the gut mycobiome to identify potential effects on human health."
  • Drs. Nilay Yapici and Eirene Markenscoff-Papadimitriou for "Genomic characterization of taste processing neurons in the brainstem."
  • Dr. Jacquelyn Evans for "Transcriptomic analysis of canine gastric adenocarcinoma."
  • Dr. Jongmin Kim, collaborator: Charles Danko, for "Polycomb regulation of Pol II dynamics and chromatin structure in spermatogenesis."
  • Dr. Ayshwarya Subramanian, collaborators: David Russell and Jen Grenier, for "Systems biology approaches to decode macrophage signaling in diabetic kidney disease."

Program Information

Seed grants are intended to support genome-scale studies that stimulate collaborations within Cornell, particularly those involving computational and experimental scientists, and ultimately strengthen extramural grant applications that feature vertebrate genomics research. The larger awards are intended to provide an opportunity for researchers to assemble highly competitive single-PI or multi-PI grant applications to external funding agencies.

While the CVG is focused on vertebrates, we will consider applications on invertebrates, especially if: (a) there is clarity about how the study of the invertebrate will substantively inform understanding of vertebrate biology down the road, and (b) the application comes from a lab with clear past and/or current commitment to bridging invertebrate and vertebrate biology.

CVG encourages applicants to leverage the increasing number of genomic resources and facilities available on campus. This includes but is not limited to the TREx Facility, the Genomics Innovation Hub, and the BRC Genomics Facility. If you are not funded by the CVG in this round, we encourage you to apply the following year or to consider seed grant opportunities offered by the Genomics Innovation Hub or the Institute for Biotechnology.

Application Procedure

Eligibility

The PI for the proposal must be an active faculty member of the CVG and, if not a tenure track professor, must hold an academic title such as Research Professor that qualifies to apply independently for external funding. However, the project may involve a collaborator that is not a CVG faculty member.

Evaluation Criteria

Applications are reviewed by the seed funding committee and the center director. Selections will be made based on the following criteria:
  • Emphasis on genome-scale biology
  • Quality and promise of the project
  • Likelihood that the data obtained will increase extramural fundability
  • Need of the investigator
  • Collaborative/interdisciplinary projects, particularly those involving computational and experimental scientists
  • Active involvement of the PI and his/her lab in CVG activities
  • Track record with previous CVG funding
  • Proposed use of university genomic resources and facilities

Application Package

  • Cover page which should include:
    • Project title
    • PI name
    • Co-PI/collaborator names, if applicable
    • Total Requested Budget
  • Project Summary (limited to 5 pages) which should include:
    • Introduction summarizing the motivations and circumstances behind the request.
    • Project Aims
    • Background and Significance
    • Project Plan and Methods Used
    • External Funding Potential: How you expect the results to translate into external funding. If applicable, describe if the seed grant application is intended to generate prelimiary data in preparation to respond to an RFA from a funding agency, and please provide the application deadline for that RFA.
    • Supporting Figures and Tables which may be embedded in the previous sections.
  • Proposed Budget Detail and Budget Justification: Applicants should budget either for $30K or $20K; whichever is the best fit for the proposed work. Some applications with a $30K budget may receive partial funding at $20K if the review committee feels $20K will be sufficient to execute most of the proposed work.
  • Supplemental Material which may include:
    • Letters of support from collaborators
    • PI Biosketches or CVs
    • IACUC protocol required for model organism studies.
      IBC approval required for recombinant studies.
    • References

Previously awarded CVG Seed Grants