SC EPSCoR/IDeA

The goal of the IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research  Excellence (INBRE) is to increase the NIH research capacity of the state by programmatic expansion and networking of research activities of faculty and students at academic institutions through the state.

These SC INBRE goals will be achieved through faculty expansion at the three research universities in South Carolina: Clemson University, the University of South Carolina and the Medical University of South Carolina.  These Mentor Institutions work closely with the four 4-year institutions that are at an earlier stage, but at the frontline in South Carolina, in developing their research activities:  The College of Charleston, Furman University, Winthrop University and Claflin University.  Twenty-four 4-year institutions in South Carolina with bachelor degree programs in chemistry and biology participate in SC INBRE as Outreach Institutions.

Main Goals of SC INBRE-

(1) Providing access to resources for support of research activity at all institutions in SC;

(2) Provide training and resources for preparation of competitive grant proposals; and

(3) Develop competitive grants programs to involve faculty at Mentored and Outreach institutions, and provide a unique opportunity to enhance productive interactions among academic institutions throughout the state and thereby accelerating growth of biomedical research activities in the state.

SC INBRE Cores

South Carolina INBRE is divided into two main cores to promote specific activities within the network. 

Bioinformatics Core
The Bioinformatics Core provides facilities and services for the collection and interpretation of data from research performed by scientists at the participating institutions.

Outreach Core
The Outreach Core provides opportunities for those researchers and institutions not directly receiving support from the INBRE grant through programs like the Summer Undergraduate Research Program and the Post-Doctoral Academic Career Development Program.

Recent Events

Southeast Microscopy Society Meeting
May 24 - 26, 2010
Charleston, South Carolina - Francis Marion Hotel
The Southeast Microscopy Society Meeting will be held at the Francis Marion Hotel in downtown Charleston from May 24-26. The meeting website is: http://www.southeasternmicroscopy.org/index-2.html. All information for submission of abstracts (deadline April 1) etc is on the website. One of the highlights of the SEMS meeting is the student competition (Ruska Awards) which is very similar in format to the Newton Award at the USC School of Medicine. This is an excellent venue for any students using microscopy to present their data to a friendly outside group and gain the added experience of speaking to researchers from other universities. For Ruska student participants meeting registration, banquet, and half of the room costs are covered by the Society making it a very inexpensive meeting for them to attend. There is also a cash prize for the winner.   

Workshop for Basic Confocal Microscopy
June 14 - 18, 2010
Columbia, South Carolina - USC School of Medicine
The University of South Carolina School of Medicine Instrumentation Resource Facility will be hosting the 6th Annual Workshop on Basic Confocal Microscopy from June 14th through the 18th.   Only a few spots remain, register soon!

The workshop is directed towards beginning and intermediate users of confocal microscopes and involves a series of lectures (specimen preparation, labeling strategies, proper set-up of instrument operating parameters, proper handling of 2D and 3D confocal images in programs such as Adobe Photoshop and AMIRA), hands on specimen preparation, and time on a number of different point scanning and spinning disk confocal microscopes.  

Companies scheduled to have instruments and applications experts on-site include BioVision Technologies, Leica, Nikon, Olympus, Perkin Elmer and Zeiss.   

Faculty will include Dr. Jay Jerome of Vanderbilt University, Dr. Ralph Albrecht of the University of Wisconsin Madison, Dr. John Mackenzie of North Carolina State University, Dr. Tom Trusk of the Medical University of Wisconsin, and Dr. Bob Price of the University of South Carolina.  

For further information please see: http://dba.med.sc.edu/price/irf/irf.htm or contact Anna McNeal (anna.mcneal@uscmed.sc.edu) or Bob Price (bob.price@uscmed.sc.edu).

NIH, NCRR Third Biennial National IDeA Symposium of Biomedical Research Excellence (NISBRE)
June 16 - 18, 2010
Bethesda, Maryland
Marriott Bethesda North Hotel & Conference Center

2009 Southeast IDeA Regional Meeting
November 9-11, 2009
The 2009 Southeast IDeA Regional Meeting, hosted by the South Carolina INBRE, was held in Charleston, South Carolina on November 9-11, 2009.  This three-day meeting offered presentations by NCRR staff and IDeA faculty, staff and students.  http://www.scepscoridea.org/SoutheastIDeAMeeting.

Oversight

Oversight for the activities performed as part of the INBRE grant are overseen by two committees:  the External Advisory Committee, comprised of researchers and administrators from non-IDeA jurisdictions, and the Steering Committee, comprised of leadership from the participating Mentor and Mentored institutions.

Research Projects

The presentations below were given at the 2008 SC INBRE Research Symposium.  They highlight some of the research being performed by INBRE researchers in South Carolina.

Material on this site is based upon work supported by the National Institutes of Health Grant Number P20 RR-016461 from the National Center for Research Resources.  Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the South Carolina EPSCoR/IDeA Program and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Institutes of Health.