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Roadmap Plans for the Next PhaseDuring the summer and in early fall, NIH is meeting with scientists nationwide to uncover new ideas for the FY 2008 Roadmap initiatives. Roadmap funding gives investigators five to ten years of incubator space for initiatives that meet all the following criteria:
Institutes will be developing their ideas this summer. This fall, NIH will post these ideas in a request for information, so you can comment or propose your own. We'll let you know as soon as that happens. NIH will fund new projects staying within the Roadmap budget by using monies freed from existing projects that are either ending or changing. The Roadmap funds biomedical and behavioral research to speed the discovery and translation of scientific knowledge into public health benefits. Go to NIH Roadmap.
Front Office Changes in DAIDSAs an initial move in a planned reorganization, NIAID's Division of AIDS has created two new management posts. Carl Dieffenbach, Ph.D., is interim principal deputy director, the second in command for the division. He will also keep his position as director of the Basic Sciences Program. In the position of deputy director for program development, Jonathan Kagan, Ph.D., will focus on knowledge management, program development, and coordination with external stakeholders, such as the NIH Office of AIDS Research.
Try Foundations as Another Funding SourceAlthough the NIH budget has leveled, the need for research of emerging diseases continues to surge. A stepped-up funding flow from non-governmental sources is helping to fill the gap. For example, the Gates Foundation has committed $1.5 billion to research in areas related to NIAID, including HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria. A main thrust of this global health effort is the discovery of practical and affordable health solutions for developing countries. Find more information at For Grant Seekers. Contact your office of sponsored research for other funding ideas. If you would like us to create a list of foundations that support research relevant to NIAID's investigators, drop us a line at deaweb@niaid.nih.gov.
Neglected Diseases Funding -- It Takes Two to SambaRecently, Brazil's public and private sectors have begun stepping up efforts to combat infectious diseases affecting that country's population. Though Brazilian researchers will be the primary funding recipients, the new influx may open opportunities for U.S. scientists to become partners on research projects or to tap into the local infrastructure and gain access to local resources. The Brazilian Development Bank has set up a new fund that will spend $9 million to develop drugs for neglected diseases. Earlier this year, Brazil's Ministry of Health put out a solicitation for grants on these diseases, including tuberculosis, leprosy, Chagas' disease, filariasis, leishmaniasis, malaria, and schistosomiasis. For more information about collaborating with Brazilian investigators, call Dr. Karl Western, acting director of NIAID's Office of Global Research, at 301-496-6721, or email kwestern@niaid.nih.gov.
Grants.gov: Staying on MessageSigning up for funding opportunity announcement (FOA) updates from Grants.gov is a good idea, though recent messages have left some applicants scratching their heads. Here are some of the issues. Nonspecific messages. When your FOA changes, Grants.gov sends out a standard automated message. You get the same message for any change, major or minor. An example of the former would be your Grant Application Package now requires Version 2, and you must redo your application. See the sample message below. Confusing messages. When Grants.gov sends you its form message because of the version switch, the system enters the open and close dates of the Version 1 application package. This has led some applicants to believe that the FOA has closed. That is not so -- it simply means that Version 2 is ready and waiting for you to retrieve it. Here's the body of the automated message verbatim:
Adding to the confusion, the statement "You can download the new application package . . . " sends you to the Version 1 package! Don't go there. Once Version 2 appears, you should consider Version 1 to be as enticing as Bethesda in August. Always go to the FOA page to see which version is the latest, and download the most current application package. For now, you'll use "VERSION-2-FORMS" if they are listed in the table in the FOA where the versions are on display. When Version 3, 4, and beyond roll around, it will be time to switch again. Read more about the versioning issue in our previous article "Electronic Applications: Version Diversion." Message flooding. If you sign up for many opportunities, you'll receive a lot of messages. If you're relying on this system to alert you when Version 2 is out, that important message may get lost in the crowd. The main point is this: Before you send your application, make sure you're using the correct version, giving yourself enough time to switch if needed. At NIH Funding Opportunities Relevant to NIAID, follow the link to the Guide notice and then click the "Apply for Grant Electronically" button to reach the download page for your opportunity. To get help outside NIAID, call the Grants.gov Contact Center at 1-800-518-4726, Monday through Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. EST. For the eRA Commons Help Desk, call 301-402-7469, 1-866-504-9552 (toll free), or 301-451-5939 (TTY) Monday to Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET.
Reader Questions"Must trainees receive support at NRSA levels?"Stipends must be paid at the appropriate NRSA level, and all funds must come from the training grant. For FY 2006 stipend levels, see the January 9, 2006, NIH Guide notice. Check with the PI of the grant for items such as health insurance, scientific travel, and research supplies. "The funding opportunity announcement says I should apply on paper, but it expires after the mechanism moves to electronic application. May I apply on paper after the transition date?"No. You must submit electronically even if the mechanism makes the transition to electronic application during the period the announcement is open. As soon as the transition occurs, you can no longer submit a paper application. See the Transition Timeline. The situation with this announcement is typical of opportunities published before NIH set its electronic application timeline. Announcements such as this one, which are caught in the middle of a transition, can meet different fates. Institutes may take one or both of these approaches:
If the institute takes no action, NIH issues a blanket Guide notice to resolve the opportunity's status. Watch the NIH Guide for updates that might affect your opportunity, and sign up for Grants.gov updates on the funding opportunity announcement page -- see the article above, Grants.gov: Staying on Message. For more information, call the program officers listed in the announcement.
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