TSD Program Special Projects

TSD Program Special Projects

Funding opportunity number

PCCR-TSD-FY2027-01

Funding opportunity title

TSD Program Special Projects

Key dates
Announcement:	October 8, 2026
Deadline:	November 30, 2026
Award amount:	Varies

Administrative contact

Doug Cuttell (dcuttell@purdue.edu)

Funding opportunity description

The Targets, Structures and Drugs (TSD) Program of the Purdue Institute for Cancer Research (PICR) would like to allocate funds to support the following project options:

TSD Collaborative Pilot Grant (up to $20,000)

For projects supporting the TSD drug development pipeline. A collaborative team must be composed of members of either two different Research Clusters in TSD (Target Validation, Chemical and Structural Biology, and Medicinal Chemistry) or of two different Programs in the cancer institute. These grants can provide some trainee support and supplies for projects. Preference will be given for those featuring a new collaboration either between divisions of TSD or with other PICR programs, or for an existing collaboration striking out in a new direction and/or building off of prior work funded by the PICR that is necessary for a future R01 submission.  Proposals featuring efforts that are moving compounds or biologics along the PICR translational pipeline are strongly encouraged. 

TSD Shared Resource Grant (up to $5,000)

Funds to use cancer institute shared resources to advance cancer related projects relevant to the TSD drug development pipeline or to generate data that would strongly support future grant applications with a cancer focus. Cannot be used to support projects that have already received Shared Resource Funding from the cancer institute.

Trainee-Inspired Project (up to $10,000)

These awards are designed to jumpstart new collaborations initiated by doctoral or postdoctoral trainees in PICR laboratories. Applications must include two trainee investigators. The first trainee listed on the application will serve as the Lead Trainee Investigator for the award and will assume primary responsibility for proposal submission, project reporting, and award communications. The proposed project must represent a collaboration across the Research Clusters within TSD (Target Validation, Chemical and Structural Biology, and Medicinal Chemistry) or among PICR programs. Use of shared resources and supplies may be included in the budget; however, salary support is not allowed.

Submit your electronic application by 5 p.m. on the cycle due date. No exceptions. The electronic submission system will not allow applications beyond the deadline. Once there, you can enter your Purdue email and password.

Qualifications/restrictions

Applicants must be current members or trainee members of the Purdue Institute for Cancer Research and members of the Targets, Structures and Drugs program. Each lab may submit a maximum of two applications.

Cost share

This announcement does not require cost sharing.

Funds available and anticipated number of awards

The number of awards is contingent upon cancer institute endowments, gifts and other funds and the submission of meritorious applications. For projects involving members of PIIN there may be matching funding available if the project fits with the objectives of the institute.

Award budget

The proposal will be funded at a level appropriate for the proposed work. See restrictions.

Award project period

TSD Collaborative Pilot Grant (up to $20,000) & Trainee-Inspired Project (up to $10,000)

It is expected that work will commence within less than two (2) months of the date of award. A project period of no more than twelve (12) months will be assigned to projects. If funds are not spent in 12 months, funds will be returned to the PICR. If the regulatory process approvals exceed three (3) months, the award may be terminated. 

TSD Shared Resource Grant (up to $5,000)

It is expected that work will commence within less than two (2) months of the date of award. A project period of no more than twelve (6) months will be assigned to projects. If funds are not spent in 6 months, funds will be returned to the PICR. If the regulatory process approvals exceed three (3) months, the award may be terminated. 

Award restrictions

Restrictions are listed in the descriptions above.

Award requirements

Acceptance of an award will indicate your willingness to serve on the Institute’s Pilot Grants Review Committee and to possibly represent the Institute at the annual Indiana Elks Convention and other philanthropic events. The awardee MUST acknowledge the cancer institute. Suggested publication acknowledgement:

 “The authors gratefully acknowledge the <insert shared resource name, as appropriate> and support from the Purdue University Institute for Cancer Research, P30CA023168”

No cost extension (NCE)

Please note that while a one-time extension of up to six months may be requested after the award end date (for a maximum project period of 18 months), extensions are not automatic and require approval from PICR leadership. We encourage investigators to make reasonable progress toward utilizing the funds and advancing the proposed project within the original award period whenever possible. There will be no exceptions to this process.

Regulatory

Please note the award is contingent upon obtaining all of the necessary regulatory approvals (e.g., IRB, IACUC, PACUC) or a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) pertaining to the work that has pending approvals.

Award setup

The PICR Business Office will set up one account per award under the lead investigator. Account setup can take up to 4 weeks to complete. 

Reporting

Responding to periodic request of progress is required. Triage of future applications may occur if reporting requests are ignored.

Proposal guidelines

For TSD Collaborative Pilot Grant:

1. Proposal length: The proposal should be single-spaced and a combined maximum of five pages in length (Arial, 11pt) with no less than 0.5-inch margins.
2. Required proposal structure:
   1. One (1) page cover letter that indicates which type of grant is being requested and which TSD program members are involved in the proposal.
   2. Two (2) page proposal
      1. Proposal title
      2. Background
      3. Significance
      4. Preliminary data
      5. Research strategy
      6. Brief description of how the project will fit into long term plans to obtain grants, publications, or new therapeutic approaches
         1. If you were awarded prior TSD Special Project funds, provide a one paragraph summary of outcomes from that grant, such as publication or grant submitted based on preliminary data from that grant.
   3. One (1) page bibliography
   4. One (1) budget justification (budget amounts entered into the online portal)
3. Letters of support from directors of core facilities, CRO’s, or external collaborators, as appropriate. Letters do not count toward five (5) page limit.

For TSD Shared Resource Grant / Trainee-Inspired Project:

1. Proposal length: The proposal should be single-spaced and a maximum of two pages in length (Arial, 11pt) with no less than 0.5-inch margins.
2. Required proposal structure:
   1. Title, applicant(s) name, applicant’s program and proposed facility
   2. Brief significance and background
   3. Cancer-relevance: Describe clearly the cancer-relevance of your proposed project in the Background and Significance section.
   4. Approach: Please see the facility descriptions for specific information.
   5. Timeline and specific outcomes: Describe the expected outcomes and evidence that it will be ready to start within two (2) months. The applicant must specify the following:
      1. A peer-reviewed grant submission that will incorporate the data acquired from the shared resource, and/or
      2. Contributions of the shared resource data to a new or re-submission peer-reviewed publication.
      3. The granting agency or journal should be clearly identified as well as the timeline given for the submission. Preference will be given to proposals that have been scored but not funded and are in need of additional supporting data.
      4. If you were awarded prior TSD Special Project funds, provide a one paragraph summary of outcomes from that grant, such as publication or grant submitted based on preliminary data from that grant.
3. Interaction with the shared resource staff to plan the budget and design of experiments is required.
4. For the electronic submission, the items to upload should include (all combined into 1 file):
   1. Two-page proposal
   2. Cited literature (not included in the page limit)
   3. NIH biosketch (not required for Trainee-Inspired Project)
5. Current and pending funding (not required for Trainee-Inspired Project)

Announcement history and updates

Funding opportunity number	Summary of change
PICR-TSD-FY2027-01	Initiation of announcement