We are in Phase 3* of the Resumption of Research Phased Plan
* For principal investigators who have had a plan approved for resumption.
Email research-covid@uky.edu with questions concerning research and COVID-19 policies.
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COVID-19 Testing for Faculty and Staff
UK employees — faculty and staff — will continue to have access to free COVID-19 testing throughout the Spring 2021 semester.
Testing sites include:
- The Blue Lot at Kroger Field (drive-thru)
- K-Lair, located in Haggin Hall on the central campus (walk-up)
- The Blue Box Theater in the Gatton Student Center (walk-up)
Employees can find more information at the Main Campus Employee Testing site. |
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COVID-19 Vaccine Information
As referenced in President Eli Capilouto's email from 1-15-21, our vaccination plans moving forward:
- On Tuesday, January 19, we will centralize all the COVID-19 vaccinations UK HealthCare is providing into one large clinic located at Kroger Field.
- There, we have significant parking and space to increase in a dramatic fashion the number of people being vaccinated.
- Those being vaccinated will park in the Blue Lot, proceed to check in at Gate 11 and then be directed to a large vaccination clinic in the Club Area on the first floor. They will be given directions at each step of the process.
- The clinic will operate six days a week – Monday through Saturday. We are working on the hours of operation and will communicate those soon.
- PLEASE NOTE: YOU MUST HAVE AN APPOINTMENT TO GET A VACCINATION. THOSE WHO SHOW UP WITHOUT AN APPOINTMENT WILL BE TURNED AWAY.
- View a map of the location for the central clinic.
Who will be vaccinated there and in what order?
- A signup tool has been developed through which people will answer screening questions and then be invited to consent to be vaccinated, according to the state’s prioritized guidelines. The signup is available here.
- People with questions about this process should call 859-218-0111.
- We will begin next week vaccinating teachers and employees in kindergarten through grade 12 in schools in our community. We are working directly with school officials on that process. We are excited to partner with the state and our schools.
- We will prioritize, as the state has directed, health care workers and providers at UK and in the community, as well as emergency first responders in the region. UK HealthCare has been designated by the state as a regional distribution center for this purpose.
- Individuals covered by the university’s health insurance program also will be prioritized.
- Members of our campus community, in alignment with state guidelines, will continue to be vaccinated.
As we work in a fluid and rapidly changing environment, we ask for your patience. As always, if you have questions about this vaccination process, email vaccine@uky.edu . We also are maintaining a running list of current information and frequently asked questions: go.uky.edu/vaccine . |
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Biological Safety and Division of Environmental Health & Safety Updates
The Department of Biological Safety and Division of Environmental Health & Safety encourage all personnel to continue to mask up, wash your hands, complete daily health screenings, and physically distance. We remind all research staff that lab safety practices and procedures in place prior to COVID-19 should continue to be followed. Additional COVID-19 information and resources are available on our website, https://ehs.uky.edu.
Please be advised that TOPAZ, the online registration system for the UK Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) will be shut down and inoperable starting next Wednesday, January 20, 2021, at 5pm for software upgrades. TOPAZ is scheduled to come back online early the following week. During this time, users will not be able to access their protocols. Please plan your IBC protocol submissions accordingly. An announcement will be made early the following week when TOPAZ is operational again. We apologize for the inconvenience.
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PPE Supplies Available
The UK Supply Center currently has a significant supply of the following items available for departmental ordering:
- Lysol spray
- Ear loop face masks (disposal and cloth)
- Wipes
- Nitrile gloves
- Hand sanitizer
- Sanitizer (Beam)
Departments can order many needed items through the UK Supply Center online catalog available via their website. Departments should consider utilizing the Supply Center for these items prior to sourcing similar items from external suppliers.
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UK Protein Core Announces the Availability of Reagents to Study COVID-19
The following reagents are for UK researchers only and for research purposes only. Contact Lou Hersh ( lhersh@uky.edu).
- Nanobodies to SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain (RBD) protein
50 μg of the following purified nanobodies available at no charge to UK investigators:
- Nanobody RDBC6
- Nanobody RDBC
- Nanobodies to SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) protein
50 μg of the following purified nanobodies available at no charge to UK investigators:
- Nanobody 464G7 (N)
- Nanobody 464E10 (WN)
- Nanobody 74B1
- Nanobody 74B7
- Nanobody 74B11
- Nanobody 74C12
- Nanobody 464E3
- Nanobody 464F3
N = neutralizing nanobody as determine by Genscripts SARS-COV-2 surrogate virus neutralization test
WN = weakly neutralizing nanobody
- SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain (RBD) protein – His tagged
- 100 μg - $70.00
- 1 mg - $450
- SARS-CoV-2 receptor spike (S) protein – His tagged
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Promoting Research on COVID-19 and Rheumatic, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases
NOT-AR-21-012 | First available: February 5, 2021 | Expires: November 19, 2021
This Notice of Special Interest NOSI) from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) encourages, but is not limited to, research applications focused on:
- Susceptibility to, prevalence, risk assessment, and clinical management of COVID-19 among patients with underlying rheumatic, musculoskeletal, and/or skin diseases;
- The impacts of drugs or other targeted therapies that are used to treat diseases within the mission of NIAMS on susceptibility, severity, and management of COVID-19;
- Health disparities and social/behavioral factors that contribute to risk of infection, organ injury and adverse outcomes in COVID-19 patients with underlying rheumatic, musculoskeletal, and/or skin diseases;
- Impact of COVID-19 vaccination of patients with underlying rheumatic, musculoskeletal, and/or skin diseases;
- Characterization of long-term post-acute sequelae occurring in recovered COVID-19 patients with co-existing rheumatic, musculoskeletal, and/or skin diseases;
- Characterization of NIAMS-mission related long-term post-acute sequelae (e.g. muscle pain, joint pain, biobehavioral changes, skin rash, arthritis, etc.) occurring in recovered COVID-19 patients.
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Availability of Emergency Administrative Supplements to Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) Program Awards to Address 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Public Health Needs
NOT-TR-21-011 | Expiration date: June 2, 2021
The National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) is issuing this Notice of Special Interest (NOSI) to highlight the urgent need for projects that address the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency. The Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) Program is uniquely qualified to contribute to these efforts. NCATS expects to issue 2-9 awards (anticipated to be $30,000 to $60,000 Direct Costs) for provision of clinical data in specified formats to support illness/infection status/surveillance determinations and/or clinical study data. |
Research to Address Vaccine Hesitancy, Uptake and Implementation among Populations that Experience Health Disparities
NOT-MD-21-008 | First available: February 5, 2021 | Expires: January 08, 2022
Key questions to be addressed include but are not limited to:
- What interventions and strategies are most effective to increase the reach, access, acceptance, and vaccine completion among populations that experience health disparities?
- How can evidence-based interventions that have reduced vaccine hesitancy and increased both access and uptake of other vaccinations (e.g., influenza and HPV) be adapted and/or adopted to increase the uptake of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine?
- How can social media, digital marketing, and other innovative technologies (such as smart phone applications) be integrated into vaccine promotion interventions to identify and address the sources of misinformation regarding vaccination?
- How can vaccine-related communications on coronavirus, HPV, influenza, and other vaccines be generated and promoted by clinicians and healthcare systems to be community and culturally appropriate?
- What are effective culturally specific and/or community competent approaches for reducing barriers and increasing the vaccination uptake and completion?
- What service delivery or organizational level policies are effective in facilitating broad vaccination uptake and reducing barriers such as stigma, distrust, fear, discrimination, and exposure to misinformation?
- What are effective dissemination and implementation strategies related to vaccination in clinical and community settings?
- What rapid data collection methods (e.g., rapid ethnographic assessments) can be used to identify and prioritize vaccine interventions in communities?
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Administrative Supplements for COVID-19 Impacted NIMH Research
NOT-MH-21-120 | First Available: January 05, 2021 | Expires: June 02, 2023
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is supporting administrative supplements (in scope of parent award) to cover unanticipated costs caused by the COVID-19 pandemic or related mitigation efforts that could not be covered by rebudgeting existing funds. NIMH acknowledges that we will not be able to fund all requests. To stretch these resources, the NIMH asks that non-monetary solutions be considered and exhausted before requesting additional funds and that investigators apply only in cases of significant need. In addition, to distribute the costs of these supplements over the next few years, the NIMH encourages the submission of administrative supplements only in the last year of award, although special consideration may be given in unusual circumstances. Supplement applications for funding consideration during the first year of the parent award (new and competing renewals) will not be considered responsive to this NOSI. This NOSI is not intended to support COVID-related research. Applicants requesting support for COVID-related research should submit a supplement in response to NOT-MH-20-047 “Notice of Special Interest (NOSI) regarding the Availability of Administrative Supplements and Urgent Competitive Revisions for Mental Health Research on the 2019 Novel Coronavirus.” |
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If you have general questions related to research operations during the COVID-19 pandemic or would like to report non-compliance of a laboratory or PI as it relates to the UK Resumption of Research Plan please email research-covid@uky.edu.
Below are specific contacts that provide specialized services to support our research community:
Biological Safety
Brandy Nelson, brandy.nelson@uky.edu, (859) 257-1049
Office of Sponsored Projects Administration (OSPA)
Contact your college RA or CGO, call (859) 257-9420, or visit www.research.uky.edu/office-sponsored-projects-administration
Office of Research Integrity (ORI) rs_ori@uky.edu, (859) 257-9428
Proposal Development Office (PDO) pdo@uky.edu
Office of Technology Commercialization (OTC) otcinfo@uky.edu, (859) 323-1054
Office of the Attending Veterinarian
Mark Suckow, msuckow@uky.edu, (859) 257-1117 |
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Contact Stacy Gaylor to manage your subscription
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An Equal Opportunity University
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