IDDRC - For Researchers | UC Davis MIND Institute

Benefits of including a research project on the MIND Institute IDDRC list of approved projects:

• Access to the services and resources of the five scientific cores at the MIND Institute IDDRC. Services are either free of charge or available at a greatly reduced rate depending on the service.
• Access to some of the services and resources of other 14 IDDRCs in the national network in the near future.
• Participation in an annual meeting of IDDRC investigators at which investigators provide input regarding new or existing core services and help define the scientific direction of the IDDRC.
• Priority status for MIND Institute IDDRC pilot grant funds.
• Membership in an elite group of 40+ scientists from five schools/colleges throughout the UC Davis campus.
• The ability to include a description of the resources, services, and expertise included in the IDDRC Cores and available to your proposed project in grant applications.

MIND Institute IDDRC Scope

Projects approved for access to IDDRC core services must be relevant to the mission of the MIND Institute IDDRC. The MIND Institute IDDRC has a broad focus consistent with the Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Branch of the NICHD, which is the administrative home of the IDDRC Network. In that vein, the MIND Institute IDDRC supports research on common and rare neuromuscular and neurodevelopmental conditions that include, but not are limited to:

• Chromosomal conditions that cause intellectual and developmental disabilities, such as Prader-Willi, Williams, and Down syndrome
• Conditions identified by newborn screening associated with cognitive impairment
• X-chromosome conditions, such as Rett and fragile X syndromes
• Conditions defined by a constellation of developmental challenges associated with alterations in specific genes, including ADNP, SYNGAP1, CDLK5, and FOXG1
• Behaviorally defined conditions that typically emerge in childhood and that can be associated with intellectual and developmental disabilities, such as autism, learning disability, and ADHD
• Conditions that involve biochemical processes and metabolic issues related to brain functioning, brain injury, or long-term consequences to the brain, such as hypoxia, very low birth weight, phenylketonuria, and prenatal malnutrition
• Biological or biochemical conditions that cause behavioral problems, such as self-injurious behavior, and neurological problems, such as seizures, that can cooccur with IDDs
• IDDs resulting from, or exacerbated by, environmental events, such as fetal alcohol syndrome

Also relevant to the mission of the MIND Institute IDDRC are studies of factors that produce adverse developmental outcomes, such as those associated with pollution and poverty; behavioral health conditions that cooccur with intellectual and developmental disabilities, such as anxiety disorders, provided that the research has clear implications for identification and treatment in intellectual and developmental disabilities; and schizophrenia and related conditions that have their origins in childhood, provided that the research focuses on understanding those origins or on description, prevention, or treatment in childhood or adolescence. Studies of adulthood and aging are relevant to the MIND Institute IDDRC mission only if those studies are especially designed to provide insight into IDD conditions, such as studies of the association between Alzheimer’s disease and Down syndrome, or share mechanisms with intellectual and developmental disabilities conditions, such as FXTAS and fragile X syndrome.

Requirements and obligations for investigators who participate in the MIND Institute IDDRC:

• Respond in a timely fashion to requests for information (e.g., for progress reports).
• Provide information and requested updates for the MIND Institute IDDRC webpage.
• Participate in the annual meeting of IDDRC investigators.
• Complete annual evaluation of MIND Institute IDDRC core services.
• Acknowledge the MIND Institute IDDRC funding (P50 HD103526) in all publications of research benefitting from IDDRC core services or funding.
• IDDRC investigators must abide by NIH policies regarding sharing of NIH-funded research resources. It is NIH policy that the results and accomplishments of the activities that it funds should be made available to the public. PIs and funding recipient institutions are expected to make the results and accomplishments of their activities available to the research community and to the public at large. Specific policies can be found at https://grants.nih.gov/.

IDDRC - Research Project Application Form

Eligibility criteria for IDDRC approval: The project must be extramurally funded and peer reviewed, in addition to being relevant to the IDDRC mission. The MIND Institute IDDRC mission is focused on three themes: Biobehavioral Characterization of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Environmental and Genetic Contributions to Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, and Treatments for Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. In addition, the project should have a need for one or more of the IDDC core services. Please note the extramural funding cannot be from a for-profit entity.

Project applications are reviewed by the IDDRC Executive Committee on a monthly basis starting on the 1st of the month. Investigators are notified of the status of their project applications by the 15th of the month. For questions, please contact Michele Ono, Project Manager myono@ucdavis.edu

Grant Presubmission Form

For MIND Institute Faculty members who are submitting applications for extramural funding and planning to use MIND Institute resources, please complete this electronic at least 1 month prior to your grant submission due date. It will be reviewed by members of the MIND Institute Executive Committee and notification of approval will be provided within 5 business days.