Research Enterprise Newsletter - January 2008: Grants & Contracts News
Human Subject Protections rules released
The DHHS Office of Human Research Protections has released the 2008 edition of the International Compilation of Human Subject Protections. The 2008 version lists about 900 laws, regulations, and guidelines from 84 countries on human subject protections. Many of the listings include the web address, allowing the reader to link directly to the law, regulation, or guideline of interest. New this year is a separate listing of the standards that govern research involving embryos, stem cells, and cloning. For more information, go to hhs.gov.
NIH posts mandatory Public Access policy
The NIH has posted its revised—and now mandatory—Public Access policy. The changes in policy correspond to recently enacted legislation, which reads "The Director of the National Institutes of Health shall require that all investigators funded by the NIH submit or have submitted for them to the National Library of Medicine's PubMed Central an electronic version of their final, peer-reviewed manuscripts upon acceptance for publication, to be made publicly available no later than 12 months after the official date of publication: Provided, That the NIH shall implement the public access policy in a manner consistent with copyright law."
Under the policy notice:
- The NIH Public Access Policy applies to all peer-reviewed articles that arise, in whole or in part, from direct costs funded by NIH, or from NIH staff, that are accepted for publication on or after April 7, 2008.
- Institutions and investigators are responsible for ensuring that any publishing or copyright agreements concerning submitted articles fully comply with the Policy.
- PubMed Central (PMC) is the NIH digital archive of full-text, peer-reviewed journal articles. Its content is publicly accessible and integrated with other databases (see pubmedcentral.nih.gov).
- The final, peer-reviewed manuscript includes all graphics and supplemental materials that are associated with the article.
- Beginning May 25, 2008, anyone submitting an application, proposal or progress report to the NIH must include the PMC or NIH Manuscript Submission reference number when citing applicable articles that arise from their NIH funded research. This policy includes applications submitted to the NIH for the May 25, 2008 due date and subsequent due dates.
For more information, go to: grants.nih.gov.
OOR's StarBRITE ready to shine
The Office of Research is pleased to introduce a new research tool called StarBRITE (Biomedical Research Integration, Translation and Education portal). StarBRITE is a web-based interactive system that provides one-stop shopping for research needs. Through a single portal, researchers and study personnel can identify resources, find experts, obtain regulatory support, access templates for research preparation and study conduct, obtain database development software, learn about educational requirements and opportunities, obtain a customized action plan for a proposed study, apply for a "Studio," a Voucher or an Investigator Advocate, and much more. To access StarBRITE go to mc.vanderbilt.edu/starbrite and sign in using your VUNet ID and password. StarBRITE is continually expanding, evolving, and improving, so begin exploring its capabilities and then provide user feedback via the suggestion box on the homepage. If you have any questions or need assistance navigating the site, contact Research Support Services at 322-7343.
DHHS increases grant salary cap
The DHHS salary cap has increased from $186,600 to $191,300 effective January 1, 2008 (see opm.gov). Please use this cap in all new, competing, or revised NIH, AHRQ, and MHSA grant applications, effective immediately. Vanderbilt University NIH Salary Cap Guidelines effective May 1, 2007 may be viewed by downloading VU_NIH_SalCapGuide.pdf. If you have questions, contact Grants & Contracts Management at 2-2281 or vumc.research.grants@vanderbilt.edu.
IRB releases electronic submission system
The IRB recently released an electronic submission system "DISCOVR-E." If you would like to submit a study, amendment, adverse event, or continuing review electronically, the system can be accessed at: irb.mis.vanderbilt.edu. Go to DISCOVR-E_manual.doc (DOC file, 6mb) to download a copy of the user manual, or call the IRB if you are experiencing problems.
