U of T graduate, undergraduate, and medical students, postdoctoral and clinical fellows and medical residents are invited to submit an abstract for this competition. 

NEW THIS YEAR:   All 2011/2012 BBDC Graduate Studentship and Post-doctoral Fellowship recipients are expected to submit an abstract of their work for this competition.

Trainees not funded by the BBDC are also invited to submit an abstract.

Members of the BBDC Research Committee will screen all abstracts submitted to this competition.  The best twelve abstracts will be selected for poster judging at the BBDC Annual Scientific Day to be held on Friday, May 11, 2012 at The Old Mill Inn.  We are delighted to announce that the twelve posters will be judged by Dr. Randy Levinson, Senior Editor of Nature Medicine, during the morning Poster Session. The prize winners will be announced and prizes will be presented to the recipients by Dr. Levinson at the end of the Scientific Day program.

IMPORTANT NOTES: 
All 2011/2012 BBDC Graduate Studentship and Post-doctoral Fellowship recipients must present a poster at the Scientific Day regardless of whether or not their abstract is one of the twelve selected to be judged by Dr. Levinson.

Non-BBDC funded individuals who submit an abstract and are selected as one of the twelve to be judged by Dr. Levinson will present a poster at the Scientific Day.

• The trainee must be either:
  A) a registered University of Toronto graduate, undergraduate or medical student
  B) a post-doctoral fellow having received a PhD within the last 5 years
  C) a medical resident or clinical fellow having received an MD within the last 9 years
• The trainee's supervisor must hold a full-time faculty appointment with the University of Toronto, and must be a registered member* of the BBDC at the time of abstract submission. (*Faculty who are new to the field of diabetes research and are not members of the BBDC can request free membership by contacting the Centre prior to submitting an abstract. For more information, please see the Membership section of this web site.)
• The content of the abstract must specifically state the direct relevance of the work to diabetes.
• The trainee must be first author and must have made the major contribution to the work presented. If two trainees are co-first authors, both trainees will be considered. If the abstract is selected to receive a prize, then the value of one prize will be split equally between the two trainees.
• Trainees may not submit more than one (1) abstract.
• Abstract must have been written within the last year and the current supervisor must be listed as one of the authors.
• Trainees cannot submit an abstract which received a prize in last year’s Annual Trainee Awards competition.

Under normal circumstances, six prizes will be awarded.  Prizes may vary and normally range between $100 and $400 in value.

Winners will receive their prizes at the end of the Annual Scientific Day to be held on Friday, May 11, 2012 at The Old Mill Inn, Toronto.

Abstracts are reviewed by a sub-group of the BBDC Research Committee and will be evaluated on the following criteria to select the best 12 abstracts which will be judged by Dr. Levinson at the Scientific Day:

• Clearly stated direct relevance of the work to diabetes
• Well-written and clear
• Demonstration of novel findings with a clear significance to diabetes
• A minor component of the evaluation may be based on any other criteria that the reviewers consider relevant to this competition.

Although the BBDC takes a broad view of cellular and molecular biology in diverse model systems and possible relevance to diabetes, the content of the abstract must specifically state the direct relevance of the work to diabetes in order to receive a favourable score.

Submit a completed application form, abstract, and 3 blind copies of the abstract to the BBDC by the deadline date.  See the application form for complete instructions.

Download the Annual Trainee Awards application form (PDF)

5 p.m., Wednesday, February 1, 2012.
Late or incomplete submissions will not be considered.

All applicants will be notified by early March as to whether or not their abstract is one of the twelve selected to be judged by Dr. Levinson at the BBDC Scientific Day on May 11, 2012.

Banting & Best Diabetes Centre:
Phone: (416) 978-4656   Fax: (416) 978-4108
E-mail: diabetes.bbdc@utoronto.ca