IDCRC Launches New Website

IDCRC.org

IDCRC.org is an internal- and external-facing resource for IDCRC news, partnerships, links to NIAID, CoVPN, and VTEUs, entry to the IDCRC shared drive, concept proposal submission, IDCRC contact information and leadership structure/roles, communication tools, approved manual of procedures, and IDCRC training opportunities. 

Training

IDCRC Mentorship Program

The IDCRC Mentorship Program is designed to offer mentoring and development of junior investigators and fellows in clinical and translational infectious diseases research. The IDCRC Mentorship Program is structured as a two-year program which includes mentoring advisory meetings, lectures and seminars, and other opportunities tailored to the mentee’s career goals. Welcome the first cohort of IDCRC mentees!

IDCRC Box Migration to OneDrive

Leadership at Emory University, the primary institution for the IDCRC, has made the decision to end its contract with the Box platform and transition all file storage to Microsoft OneDrive by April 2021 with most of the migration completed by the end of 2020. The IDCRC is working to ensure a seamless transition for our network’s file sharing and storage needs. 

As we gather data and consider the available options, one key element to ensuring a smooth transition is to verify which of our users do NOT have an email address that is associated with a Microsoft account. If you do NOT use an email address with an associated Microsoft account (feel free to verify with your institution’s IT support), please email snpasch@emory.edu. 

In The News

Washington Post: "Black Participation in COVID-19 Vaccine Trials is Key to Black Economic Recovery"

Published October 27, 2020

Vaccine trials need Black people. And the Black economic recovery needs a vaccine.

The economic downturn from the novel coronavirus has had a staggering financial impact on Blacks. Job losses from the pandemic have overwhelmingly affected low-wage, minority workers. Black men and women are among those taking the longest time to regain their employment.

Black Americans account for about 13 percent of the U.S. population but 24 percent of coronavirus deaths, the Pew Research Center reported in June.

NIH Director's Blog: "COVID-19 Vaccine Appears Well-Tolerated and Effective in Developing Antibodies in Small Study of Older Adults"

Published October 13, 2020

The following is an excerpt from Dr. Francis Collins' NIH blog post:

A team at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, Seattle, and Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, expanded the initial Phase 1 trial to include 20 healthy volunteers ages 56 to 70 and another 20 healthy volunteers ages 71 and older. Ten volunteers in each of the two older age groups received a lower dose of the vaccine (25 micrograms) in two injections given about a month apart. The other 10 in each age group received a higher dose (100 micrograms), given on the same schedule.

Publication

View a recent journal article featuring IDCRC-supported work below:

• Remdesivir for the Treatment of Covid-19 — Final Report

Manual of Procedures Sections

View approved IDCRC Manual of Procedures (MOP) sections which describe structure, operating policies, roles and responsibilities of entities and individuals within the unit/consortium:

• Manual of Procedures – Key Function Committees
• Manual of Procedures – Site Selection for IDCRC Studies

Events

NIH SARS-CoV-2 Antiviral Therapeutics Summit
November 6, 2020 | 11 a.m. - 3:25 p.m.

This summit will provide an overview of the current state of direct antiviral targets and therapeutics for SARS-CoV-2, available tools, and challenges as we move towards the goal of combination antivirals for treating SARS-CoV-2 infection. Drs. Collins, Fauci, and Austin will open the summit, and presenters/moderators from across pharma, academia, and government will discuss the current state of antiviral drug development, lessons from the past, and challenges as we work towards effective combination antiviral medications. A key discussion point will be public-private partnerships.

The meeting will be recorded and can be accessed afterwards at videocast.nih.gov. No registration is required (meeting is open to all), and a calendar invite can be downloaded from the meeting page.

Virtual IDCRC Annual Meeting
January 19 (10 a.m. - 4 p.m.) and January 20 (10 a.m. - noon), 2021

In planning the agenda for the Annual Meeting in January, it has been proposed that a second day be added for breakout reviews and discussion. This very important session on Day Two would only be a two-hour meeting from 10 a.m. to noon (EST).

IDCRC Concept Quick Stats

Communications Resources

Access IDCRC communications resources on Box or visit the web-based toolkit.