Dear Researchers,

We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday! The Fall semester is winding down. We hope it has been a good and productive one for you.

The Indiana CTSI annual meeting was held in Indianapolis on November 21, 2025. As soon as we have access to any details from that meeting, we'll pass those along.

See the information below for funding opportunities and other opportunities from the Indiana CTSI that can support and assist your research. Of note, new since last month, is the opportunity for undergraduate internships. Please encourage any students you think would be interested. Notre Dame will fund three students in this program this Summer.

All the best to you and yours for a blessed Christmas and a bright New Year!

Sincerely,

Melanie DeFord, Deputy Director and Assistant Vice President for Research
Prakash Nallathamby, Notre Dame Navigator of the Indiana CTSI

Take a moment to explore our past newsletters and summits. At Indiana CTSI, we’re committed to uniting Indiana’s life sciences community to drive research forward and improve health across the state.

Tuesday, December 9, 2025

12:00 – 1:00 p.m.

Regenstrief Institute Social Hub, 1101 West 10th Street Indianapolis, IN and via Zoom

This session will explore how AI can enhance the research experience for study participants, starting at enrollment. Discussion will focus on using AI to create and refine standard operating procedures, improve participant engagement scripts, automate study reminders, and strengthen hospitality and fidelity practices throughout study visits.

The Indiana CTSI is excited to announce that applications are now open for the 2026 Undergraduate Summer Internship cohort. The program's goal is to accept 12 students, four from each IU, Purdue and Notre Dame.

The program runs for eight weeks over the course of June and July and provides students the opportunity to work with faculty mentors and their teams on clinical and translational research projects while expanding their career development in biomedical and life sciences areas.

More information about the internship can be found on on our website, and interested students can apply between now and the February 1, 2026 deadline. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to Robyn E. Hawn or Matt Allen.

The Indiana CTSI Commercialization PDT is designed to provide early guidance to academic and clinical investigators interested in advancing their discoveries to the market. The programs are open to investigators from Indiana University (IU), Purdue University, or the University of Notre Dame; and includes a pool of advisors across these universities and industries around the state to provide investigators with a wide range of expertise and perspectives.

Submission Deadline: January 8, 2026

The Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute is seeking applications for K12 Early Career Investigator clinical – translational research proposals.

These awards are designed to provide promising early career faculty investigators the opportunity to be mentored in research-intensive, multi-disciplinary settings toward the goal of developing careers in clinical - translational research. Emphasis of the Indiana CTSI K12 Early Career Investigator Awards in Clinical - Translational Research are to move findings from basic laboratory and pre-clinical research toward the development of new treatment options or interventions or clinical trials to eventual dissemination or clinical implementation to studying population health outcomes and health metrics. The phases of translational research may not necessarily be linear and can jump steps depending on the research project and the starting point. The goal of the Indiana CTSI is to make awards at all of these stages. It is important that the clinical - translational research have clear applications to human disease and health outcomes.

Contact: ajzych@iu.edu

Submission Deadline: Rolling submission

Research Project Development Teams (PDTs) are groups of experienced senior faculty located on each of the Indiana CTSI campuses who will connect you with resources, collaboration opportunities, and small (typically up to $15,000) awards for preliminary or additional data. Each PDT is designed around a common research theme.

There are biostatisticians and regulatory experts on each team, and other experts are added as needed when you meet with the team to discuss your application. You will have access to the expertise and knowledge you need all in one place.

Contact: tsajdyk@iu.edu

ORA Submission Deadline: January 8, 2026

Full Submission Deadline (via WebCAMP): January 15, 2026

Submission Deadline: Rolling Submission

Letter of Intent Deadline: January 5, 2025

Full Submission Deadline: February 9, 2026

Rolling Submission

Rolling Submission

The Indiana CTSI has experts across a wide variety of fields and research areas of interest. Click the button below to have the latest research discoveries and developments making news and positively impacting health in Indiana delivered right to your inbox. 

The Indiana CTSI includes Indiana University, Purdue University, and the University of Notre Dame as the major academic partners along with a number of other institutions and entities in the state.

It is funded by a Clinical and Translational Sciences Award from the National Institutes of Health amounting to some $38 million for the current seven-year funding period of 2023-2030. This funding is supplemented by additional support from many other institutional and corporate partners.

Funding is provided to researchers by many mechanisms to promote translational and collaborative research among the partner institutions.

For more information, please visit: indianactsi.org

If you have any questions about Indiana CTSI grants, programs, or upcoming events please feel free to reach out to co-navigators Jessica Brookshire or Prakash Nallathamby.