Stem Cells and Cancer (R21) Funding Opportunity
The National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the National Institute on Aging (NIA) have issued a funding opportunity announcement to encourage research in all aspects of tumor stem cell biology, including the molecular and biochemical regulation of embryonic and adult stem cell behavior relevant to tumor formation. This opportunity intends to stimulate efforts on isolation and characterization of tumor stem cells from a large spectrum of tumors. Individuals with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research are invited to work with their institution/organization to develop an application for support. The total project period for an application submitted in response to this funding opportunity may not exceed 2 years. Direct costs are limited to $275,000 over an R21 2-year period, with no more than $200,000 in direct costs allowed in any single year. More information on this program can be found at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-08-165.html.
Posted 6/23/2008
NIH-Supported Midcareer Development Award Program.
The NIH announces a Midcareer Investigator Award in Patient-Oriented Research. Under this program, mid-career health-professional doctorates or equivalent who are typically at the Associate Professor level or the equivalent will receive support for protected time to devote to Patient-Oriented Research and to act as research mentors primarily for clinical residents, clinical fellows and/or junior clinical faculty. Candidates must commit 3-6 person months (equivalent to 25 to 50% effort) to conducting patient-oriented research and mentoring. Applicants may request three to five years of support (at least three years are required). For more information please visit: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-08-151.html.
Posted 6/23/2008
NHLBI (R01) Request for Applications: Developmental Origins of Altered Lung Physiology and Immune Function
The purpose of this NHLBI R01 is to solicit applications that propose to perform research that will enhance the understanding of how the pre- and postnatal environments affect the interplay of the lung and immune system during development resulting in sustained changes in lung physiology and immune function that compromise respiratory health and outcomes. More information can be found at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-HL-08-009.html.
Posted 6/04/2008
Revision of NIH Policy Concerning Concurrent Support from Mentored Career Development (K) Award and a Research Grant
NIH mentored K awards are intended to support a period of mentored career development in preparation for a role as an independent researcher in biomedical and behavioral science. NIH allows K awards recipients to hold concurrent support from their K award and a competing research grant when recognized as a Principal Investigator (PI) or subproject Director of a multi-project NIH grant. Currently mentored K award recipients in the last two years of their support period are permitted to reduce the level of effort required for the K award and replace that effort with effort on an NIH research grant or subproject provided they remain in a mentored situation. The new policy change detailed at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-08-065.html expands eligible grants to include research grants obtained from any Federal agency; clarifies when the research grant may be obtained relative to the years remaining on the K award; and clarifies that status as a PI on a multiple PI award also confers eligibility.
Posted 4/23/2008
NHLBI Does Not Accept R21 Applications Primarily Related to Cancer Research
The purpose of this Notice is to advise investigators who plan to submit applications under the parent FOA (PA-06-181) for the NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant (R21) award mechanism that the NHLBI does not accept the assignment of applications which focus primarily on cancer. Since there are some areas of overlapping interest, e.g., basic aspects of hematological malignancies resulting from disruptions in hematopoiesis, myeloproliferative and myelodysplastic disorders, or the use of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and other cellular therapies, applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the NHLBI before submitting an application in response to this FOA.
For More Information: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-HL-08-113.html
Posted 3/12/2008
NIH Gives Reviewers New Flexibility Submitting Applications
Green Light for Continuous Submission: NIH has just increased the incentives for scientists to serve as chartered or permanent members on its peer review groups so it can improve reviewer recruitment to better identify the most promising research for funding. These researchers, who typically serve four years reviewing NIH grant applications, now have more flexibility in submitting their own grant applications.
A recent NIH Guide Notice explains a new policy that gives these reviewers the option to submit—as soon as they are developed—R01, R21 or R34 applications that would normally be submitted for standard submission dates. Chartered members are strongly encouraged to add a cover letter to their applications requesting this option. This new policy was developed to help chartered reviewers, who can be disadvantaged by deadlines that force them to develop their own applications while reviewing those submitted to NIH by others. These reviewers may still request a review by a standing study section other than their own. In this case, they must submit their applications in accord with established deadlines. The current windows for reviewers to submit many of these applications late will remain available. These windows will also remain available for temporary reviewers and those serving on Special Emphasis Panels.
Continuous submission will be carefully evaluated to see whether eligibility should be extended. View the NIH Guide Notice at http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-08-026.html.
Posted 2/7/2008
NIH Notice: Salary Limitation on Grants
Every year since 1990 Congress has legislatively mandated a provision limiting the direct salary that an individual may receive under an NIH grant. For FY 2008, Public Law 110-161: Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 restricts the amount of direct salary to Executive Level I of the Federal Executive Pay scale. The Executive Level I annual salary rate was $186,600 for the period January 1 through December 31, 2007.
EFFECTIVE January 1, 2008, the Executive Level I salary level increased to $191,300.
For more details on the implementation of the new salary limitation, please visit: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-08-035.html
Posted 2/5/2008
AATS Progress in Achieving Goals for Peer Review of Cardiothoracic Surgical Grant Proposals to NIH
By Dr. Andrew S. Wechsler
For some years there has been growing concern for the peer review process put into place by the NIH about five years ago. The current method disperses grants by a system designation, irrespective of origin. Many grants previously reviewed by specially constituted study sections with strong surgical representation are now being reviewed by study sections, oftentimes unpopulated by any surgeons. Moreover, grants submitted by surgeons are no longer clustered in study sections particularly knowledgeable in the nuances of surgical investigation, appreciative of the translational nature of many grant applications and frequently are composed of members with a strong bias towards more fundamental investigation.
This trend was documented recently by Drs. Mann, Tendulkar, Birger, Howard and Ratcliffe in an article available in e-print and scheduled to appear in the December or January issue of the “Annals of Surgery”. During the interval from 1982 to 2004 the number of applications from surgical scientists failed to keep up proportionately with applications from other scientists by about 50%. Moreover, the success rate of grants from surgical scientists was importantly lower than the success rate for total NIH awards. Ratcliffe and his coauthors indicated that only about 2% of all NIH awards are to surgeon scientists.
The AATS Scientific Affairs and Government Relations committee has worked diligently to reverse the current method of grant assignment, initially by appealing to the CSR but more recently through direct contact with the director of NIH and the director of the NHLBI. On August 29,2007 the AATS represented by Drs. Pedro DelNido, Irving Kron and Andrew Wechsler had the opportunity to meet with NIH Director Zerhouni, Dr. Scarpa the Director of the CSR, and the Directors of the Surgical Sciences, Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering Integrated Review Group and Cardiovascular Sciences Integrated Review Group. The meeting was facilitated by Mr. John Porter and Ms. Beth Halpern of Hogan and Hartson who have been working with the AATS to help the organization gain greater access to the key decision makers.
The meeting was cordial and frank. The position of the AATS was received quite sympathetically and there appeared to be accord that more surgical representation in study groups assessing surgical grants was needed as well as an effort to promote clustering of those grants. Several key issues emerged that will be addressed by AATS leadership which include:
- A need for more, high quality surgical reviewers to participate in the grant review process. The AATS has committed to providing names of those willing to serve to NIH and NIH is considering ways to facilitate the review process for clinically busy surgeons. Moreover, for those who serve as reviewers, the NIH has approved a policy of allowing continuous submission for their own grants, rather than using the usual deadlines associated with grant cycles.
- A general willingness to “cluster surgical grants” with some burden of responsibility on the person submitting to identify the study section they deem most appropriate to review the work being indicated in a letter at the time of submission.
- A desire to evaluate “peer reviewed” grants that have reviews thought to be of poor quality or which demonstrate a lack of understanding of the importance of the proposed work in the surgical clinical or investigative domain.
Posted 1/7/2008
