April 30, 2007
News Articles
Opportunities and Resources
Advice Corner
New Funding Opportunities
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News Articles |
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NIH Extends Pilot Study to Shorten the Review Cycle
As part of NIH's continuing
commitment to new investigators, NIH has added 46 more study sections to the Pilot
Study to Shorten the Review Cycle for New Investigator R01 Applications, beginning
with the May and June 2007 review meetings. See the April
4, 2007, Guide notice.
The pilot allows new
investigators to revise and resubmit R01 applications for the
next
review cycle,
four
months earlier
than they normally could. By the end of 2007, the Center for Scientific Review plans to extend
the pilot to all new investigator R01 applications.
In 2006, NIH began the pilot with 40 study sections. After 15 percent of eligible investigators took advantage of the opportunity
to
submit early, the pilot was extended to 22 more study sections. For background, see the January
8, 2007, Guide notice.
Seeking Your Input on Roadmap Concepts
NIH's Roadmap is progressing to its next phase, known here as version 1.5. The NIH-wide program provides five to ten years of incubator space to innovative research projects.
To draw new projects into the incubator for fiscal years 2008 and 2009, NIH is seeking ideas for the next Roadmap initiatives from diverse outside scientists, NIH staff, and the public.
While none of the newly identified candidates are guaranteed to go forward, NIH does expect to publish some initiatives next fiscal year.
Proposed Major Initiatives for FY 2008
NIH institute and center directors have selected five major areas for future initiatives:
- Microbiome
- Protein capture, proteome tools
- Phenotyping services and tools
- Epigenetics
- Inflammation as a common mechanism of disease
NIAID is leading the Inflammation Working Group, which will develop three concepts into focal areas for potential initiatives: biomarkers, small molecule therapeutics, and systems biology. See detailed descriptions at Inflammation as a Common Mechanism of Disease: Opportunity for Public Comment on Concepts.
Funded research would uncover immune mechanisms and mediators of inflammation as well as genetic factors, potential new drug targets, and the early detection of inflammation to predict and prevent disease.
We'd like your input to help develop these topics. Please contact Dr. Chuck Hackett at 301/496-8973 or chackett@niaid.nih.gov.
Drs. Anthony Fauci and John Gallin are co-chairing the Inflammation Working Group, which includes participants from a dozen NIH ICs, including NIAID.
In addition to the major initiatives, smaller pilots are planned for the following areas:
- Genetic Connectivity Map
- Transient Molecular Complexes
Setting Priorities
During the next few months, NIH will plan new Roadmap initiatives with input from the Council of Councils and the Council of Public Representatives.
This spring, NIH's institute and center directors will give these plans a final review. Then this summer or fall, the NIH director will select the new initiatives with advice from the Advisory Committee to the Director.
Roadmap Funding
For Roadmap 1.5, NIH will use funds originally slated for Roadmap 1.0 initiatives that did not move forward.
In fiscal years 2008 and 2009, the President's Budget requests $486 million, about 1.7 percent of NIH's budget, to fund the Roadmap through the Common Fund, an annual set-aside. Some of the funding is from the NIH Office of the Director, and the rest is from each institute and center.
For general information, go to New Roadmap Emphasis Areas for 2008 and NIH Roadmap Initiatives.
Grants.gov Will Use Platform-Independent Adobe Forms
Electronic applications will soon be platform-independent courtesy of Adobe Acrobat-based PDF forms. On Thursday, May 3, you can participate in Adobe eSeminar -- Learn About Grants.Gov. Use the link to register.
Testing is already underway to replace PureEdge with the new approach. Once the transition plan is final, NIH will notify the community through the NIH Guide, the eSubmission listservs, and presentations. Watch the "What's New This Week at Grants.gov" section at the bottom of the Grants.gov front page for other announcements.
Meanwhile, as described at Download Software, non-Windows applicants can continue to use these options:
- PureEdge Viewer for Macintosh. The viewer has some limitations, so we suggest you read the documentation carefully before choosing this approach.
- NIH-hosted Citrix® servers. These servers allow non-PC users to prepare and submit applications using the PureEdge forms viewer. Many applicants have used this service successfully over the past year.
- Windows emulation software. Commercial emulators allow you to use the PureEdge viewer.
- Service Providers. These services offer a wide range of platform-independent services -- from low-cost, single transaction options through full scale, end-to-end grants management solutions.
Your institution's grants office can give you more guidance on which approach to take.
Electronic Application Guides Updated
NIH has updated the Grants.gov Application Guides. You can read a summary of Notable Changes Made to SF 424 (R&R) Application Guides. Thanks for your feedback.
Administrative Burden Too Much for Research Faculty?
According to a recent Faculty Burden Survey Report, "the level of administrative burden is high enough to routinely take our nation's most qualified scientists away from their research for significant amounts of time."
The study’s key findings include the following:
- Of the time allotted for government-funded research, researchers spend an average of 42 percent on administrative tasks.
- 95 percent said that they would have more time for active research if they had help with research-related administrative tasks.
- 76 percent were willing to reallocate direct costs to get help with research-related administrative tasks.
See the full report for details and new ideas for how to streamline administrative tasks at the institutional and federal levels.
The program side of the Federal Demonstration Project collected and analyzed survey data in a four-year effort that led to this report.
Welcome Courtney Billet to the Office
of Communications and Government Relations
Please join us in welcoming Courtney R. Billet, the new head of NIAID's Office
of Communications and Government Relations.
Courtney will lead NIAID's efforts to interpret
and disseminate the goals and results of NIAID research programs
and
projects to the biomedical community, Congress,
the media, physicians and healthcare providers,
and the general public at national and international levels.
Previously, Courtney served as deputy administrator of
legislative
and
public affairs at USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, providing direction to APHIS'
external communications for agricultural issues such as avian influenza, bovine
spongiform encephalopathy,
biotechnology, and animal welfare.
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Opportunities and Resources |
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NIH Director's Bridge Awards
A new NIH program similar to NIAID's R56-Bridge award is in the works. The NIH Director's Bridge Awards will give eligible investigators a year of support while they strengthen their revised applications.
Once the program is in place, you will be eligible if your original or first amended R01 renewal scored within 10 points of the payline for that year.
NIAID will be continuing its own R56-Bridge award, which has broader eligibility. See the NIAID R56-Bridge Award SOP.
You can't apply for either of these programs, but NIH will automatically consider all eligible applicants.
NIH announced its intention in the March
14, 2007, NIH Guide notice.
Get New Reagents From the NIH Tetramer Core Facility
Find new reagents from the NIH Tetramer Core Facility, located at Emory University and supported by NIAID and NCI. The facility provides custom synthesis and distribution of soluble MHC-peptide tetramer reagents that can be used to stain antigen-specific T cells.
Here are brief descriptions of the new reagents they offer:
Other human and mouse class II alleles such as Mouse I-Ad and I-Ag7 are in the works.
If your lab would like to include other class II alleles in the development pipeline, please email the Tetramer Facility Manager Dr. Amy Stout at akstout@emory.edu.
New Checklist for Managing Your Grant Award
Get a handy highlight of all the requirements for your grant at Checklists for the NIH Grant Cycle. They start with just-in-time
information through negotiating your award, continue with your ongoing obligations and reporting requirements, and wrap up with your annual and final reports.
They are based on and link to our All
About Grants tutorials.
Please let us know at deaweb@niaid.nih.gov if you come across anything that is unclear or not addressed,
and we will update the document.
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Advice Corner |
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Your Notice of Award -- Improved, Renamed
NIH has revised the format of its Notice of Award (formerly Notice of Grant Award) and has begun sending it as a PDF email attachment.
Some people still aren't set up to receive Notices by email. Your authorized official should fill out the Notice of Award email field in your institution's Commons profile.
For more detail on the new reader-friendly format and sections included, see the April 11, 2007, Guide notice.
Reader Questions
Kurt L. Krause, M.D., Ph.D., University of Otago, asks:
"When an investigator relocates to a new country, can he take the NIH-funded equipment
with him?"
Yes. If the grantee organization agrees, the PI may take the equipment to
a new site. The organization needs to submit PHS 3734. NIAID grants management and program staff will review the form and then send it
to the NIAID Advisory Council for approval.
Michelle Flenniken, Ph.D., University of California, San Francisco, asks:
“Should I enter the program announcement number in item 3 of
the PHS 416-1 form for the NIH-wide postdoctoral fellowship program announcement?”
No. Because you are applying to the parent program announcement, you should leave item
3 of the PHS 416-1 form blank. If you were applying for an institute-specific program announcement, you would use that PA number instead.
You can read more about the difference between parent PAs and institute-specific PAs at Application Approach: What Are Your Choices?
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New Funding Opportunities |
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See these and older announcements on our NIH Funding Opportunities Relevant to NIAID. |
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