Wayne State University


MRI Pilot Project Program

The MRI Pilot Project Program (PPP) aims to promote the use of the MR Core Research Facility (MRRF) and stimulate new MRI research. It provides institutional support to investigators for acquiring feasibility and preliminary MR data. This data will support the submission of external grant applications. The program applies to research utilizing either the Siemens 3T Cima.X human MRI or the Bruker 7T BioSpec animal MRI system, both operated by the MRRF.

Program Objectives:

  • Support scanning costs for new research projects initiated by early-career and junior investigators.
  • Acquire new imaging data to demonstrate feasibility and provide preliminary evidence to support proposed hypotheses in grant applications.
  • The focus is exclusively to acquire pilot data for external grant applications and not for extending data collection for existing research studies or publishing research results.

Program Details:

  • Maximum Support: Up to 20 scanning hours over a 12-month period, with costs split as follows:
    • 75% covered by the MRRF supported by the Division of Research and Innovation (DORI).
    • 25% covered by the investigator or their department.
    • Investigators will be billed for the first 25% of scanning hours, while DORI will cover the remaining 75%.
  • Final Report Requirement: Awardees must submit a report to the MR Research Committee (MRRC) within four months after the project's conclusion. The report should include a summary of data collected, its relevance to the grant application such as grant mechanism and the targeted submission date, and an accomplishment report on the goals and aims.
  • Review Process: The MRRC will evaluate proposals to ensure alignment with program criteria.
  • Pilot Project Period: Funding expires 12 months after the award notification.

Eligibility:

  • Open to all Wayne State University faculty members.
  • Priority will be given to faculty new to MRI research and junior faculty without external funding.

2025 Competition Timeline:

  • Submission Deadline: March 31, 2025.
  • Award Notification: June 30, 2025.
Proposals must be submitted as a single PDF file to the MR Core Manager, Vivian Truong (vtruong@wayne.edu), with a copy to the Director of the MRRF, Dr. Yongsheng Chen (ys.chen@wayne.edu).

Consultation:

Applicants are encouraged to consult the MRRF before submission to discuss imaging capabilities and technical feasibility.

Proposal Submission Guidelines:

Your proposal must include the following:
  1. Face Page (One page, NIH Format):
    • Faculty name, department/unit, academic rank, and title.
    • Project title.
    • Co-applicant(s), if any.
    • Status of IRB or IACUC approval (if applicable).
    • Valid index number for the first 25% of scanning costs.
    • Abstract in lay language.
    • A paragraph on the significance and impact of the research.
  2. Research Strategy (Not exceed two pages, NIH Format):
    • Specific aims and hypotheses.
    • Background and rationale.
    • Approach.
  3. Biosketches (NIH Format):
    • Include biosketches for the applicant and all co-applicants.
  4. Departmental Letter of Support:
    • A letter guaranteeing the first 25% of the funding.