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Core Funding

Core Coins Program (SOM Only)
The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Core Coins Program is a funding mechanism designed to encourage investigators to access core services and facilities. Our goal is to accelerate research by providing rapid, targeted funding to address small but critical gaps in basic, clinical and translational research work currently not funded by other sources. Core Coins will be awarded on a competitive basis to individual PIs and subsequently administered through the iLab program through a distinct account provided to you within an iLab core.
Core Coin Applicant Eligibility
Faculty that have an appointment through School of Medicine are eligible for Core Coins. School of Medicine Core facilities receiving Core Coins funding must have adopted iLab Solutions or have signed up for implementation. For additional information about iLab Solutions, please contact either Shawn Franckowiak or Jeff Smith from the Office for Faculty Research Resources.
Funding and Timing
The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (SOM) Core Coins Program has provided over $350,000 in Core Coins to faculty in calendar year 2019. Core Coin funding is awarded directly to individual faculty to complete faculty-generated projects at any of the SOM cores using the iLab core management system. Additional Core Coin funding opportunities for calendar year 2020 and beyond will be communicated through this website and through faculty email distribution.
To qualify for Core Coin funding, faculty should be aware of the following eligibility criteria listed below:
- Faculty member must have a SOM faculty appointment
- A brief research plan must be submitted through the Core in the Box Website application (link below)
- Feedback to application questions should be brief and is limited to 1 page total for all responses (~500 words)
- For each project, services can only be requested from one research core
- Funding requested can range from $2,500 to $20,000
- Requested funding should include relevant core service pricing and volumes to complete the research project
- Faculty are limited to one application per Core Coin funding offering
Faculty interested in applying can access the application at the link below, and should provide the following information:
- http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/research/resources/synergy/core-in-a-box/funding/core-coins-application
- Amount and justification for funds requested?
- SOM core where services are requested (the core must use the iLab system)?
- Brief description of the proposed research project (project aims, scope, how core services will be used to answer research hypothesis)?
- If applicable, feedback on previous funding for currently requested core coin project (why additional funds are being requested)?
If there are questions about the Core Coins Program, please contact Shawn Franckowiak, Director of the Office for Faculty Research Resources at sfrancko@jhmi.edu or 410-614-0484. For a complete listing of iLab cores, please visit the link below and click on the Core Facilities by School tab.
https://johnshopkins.corefacilities.org/landing/42
Past Core Coin Awardees (funds awarded to cores and distributed to faculty)
2018 Core Coin Awardees
- ICTR Center for Clinical Data Analysis (CCDA): To offer preliminary, anonymous data for feasibility assessment and grant applications to unfunded junior investigators. Additionally, the core will expand the capabilities of their new Natural Language Processing (NLP) data extraction projects and offer those services to awardees.
- Genetics Research Core Facility (GRCF): To offer single molecule sequencing on the Oxford Nanopore GridION platform, with a focus on rapid sequence identification, utilizing long reads for improved genome assembly, analysis of full length RNA transcripts from cDNA, direct sequencing of RNA molecules, metagenomic analysis, structural variant detection, copy number detection in complex regions, and support of experimentation where short reads are insufficient.
- Johns Hopkins Drug Discovery (JHDD) Group: To offer chemical synthesis of small molecules when they are not commercially available. The chemical synthesis services include but are not limited to literature compound synthesis, scale-up synthesis (for in vivo studies), and analog synthesis for preliminary structure-activity relationship (SAR) analysis.
- SKCCC Analytical Pharmacology Shared Resource Core: To offer quantitation of small molecules (i.e., drugs and metabolites) in biological fluids utilizing any of four chromatographic (UPLC or UHPLC) instruments with a UV/Vis detector, triple stage quadruple mass spectrometer, and a QTrap system with ion trap capabilities.
- SKCCC Experimental and Computational Genomics Core (ECGC): To support projects that integrate measurements across different sequencing modalities, either by collecting multiple data types or using publicly available data to supplement data generated by the ECGC. Measurements supported through core coins include ChIPseq, whole exome or whole genome sequencing, and methylation assessment.
2018 Core Coin Applications and RFAs
- ICTR Center for Clinical Data Analysis (CCDA): Application, RFA
- Genetic Resources Core Facility (GRCF): Application, RFA
- Johns Hopkins Drug Discovery Group (JHDD): Application, RFA
- SKCCC Analytical Pharmacology Shared Resource Core: Application, RFA
- SKCCC Experimental and Computational Genomics Core (ECGC): Application, RFA
2017 Core Coin Awardees
- Computational Biology Consulting Core: To offer project support for exploratory projects involving deep sequencing of RNA (RNAseq) and metagenomic data analyses.
- Eukaryotic Tissue Culture Facility: For projects requiring specialized expertise and equipment required for culturing insect and mammalian cells for high-yield protein expression in suspension.
- Genetics Research Core Facility (GRCF): To offer specialized services for genomic analysis of single cells, including isolation of cells for capture, library preparation and deep sequencing RNA (RNAseq) with project design / data analysis.
- Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics Facility: To offer protein quantification and protein modification quantification services using isobaric mass tags and high-resolution mass analysis.
- Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center Analytical Pharmacology Shared Resource Core: To offer quantification of drugs and metabolites in biological fluids utilizing any of the four chromatographic (UPLC or UHPLC) instruments with a UV/Vis detector, triple stage quadruple mass spectrometer, and a Qtrap system with ion trap capabilities.
The Animal Behavioral Core: To offer comprehensive neurobehavioral phenotyping of untested animal models with various disease models and development of new behavioral assays.
2017 Core Coin Applications and RFAs
- Computational Biology Consulting Core: Application , RFA
- Eukaryotic Tissue Culture Facility: Application , RFA
- Genetics Research Core Facility (GRCF): Application , RFA
- Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics Facility: Application , RFA
- Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center Analytical Pharmacology Shared Resource Core: Application, RFA
- The Animal Behavioral Core: Application, RFA
2016 Core Coin Awardees
- Center for Proteomics Discovery: To offer comprehensive profiling of post-translational modifications, quantitative analysis of proteomes, and top-down and middle-down proteomics services.
- Genetics Resources Core Facility: For projects utilizing the novel 10x Genomic Single Cell Platform for the isolation of cells from four treatment groups (a maximal 24,000 cells) and downstream RNAseq (100,000 reads per cell), or the utilization of the new Fluidigm C1 for 4 treatment groups (a maximal 384 cells) and downstream RNAseq (100,000 reads per cell).
- Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics Facility: To offer protein quantification and protein modification quantification services using isobaric mass tags as part of this RFA. These services will be offered for global quantitative proteomic experiments as well as quantitative experiments focusing on a specific protein or the protein’s modifications.
- Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center Flow Cytometry and Immune Monitoring Core: For projects to receive approximately five hours of cell sorting on the BD Influx or one FLUOROSPOT assay.
2016 Core Coin Applications and RFAs
- Center for Proteomic Discovery: Application and RFA
- Genetic Resources Core Facility - Application and RFA
- Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics Facility - Application and RFA
- Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center Flow Cytometry an Immune Monitoring Core - Application and RFA
Contact Information
Please direct questions about the Core Coins Program to Shawn Franckowiack, Barbara Daily or Jeff Smith from the Office for Faculty Research Resources.
Other Funding Opportunities
Instrumentation grants are reviewed centrally by the Johns Hopkins University Research Administration, Research Development - Limited Submissions Programs office. Please contact resapp@jhu.edu with inquiries.