Find Funding Opportunities

The purpose of this Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA) for Undergraduate-Focused Institutions is to support small scale research grants at institutions that do not receive substantial funding from the NIH, with an emphasis on providing biomedical research experiences primarily for undergraduate students, and enhancing the research environment at these applicant institutions. Eligible institutions must award baccalaureate science degrees, and have received less than 6 million dollars per year of NIH support (total costs) in 4 of the last 7 fiscal years.

Although invention and proof-of-concept testing of new technologies are a key component of the BRAIN Initiative, to achieve their potential these technologies must also be optimized through feedback from end-users in the context of the intended experimental use. This seeks applications for the optimization of existing and emerging technologies and approaches that have potential to address major challenges associated with recording and manipulating neural activity, at or near cellular resolution, at multiple spatial and temporal scales, in any region and throughout the entire depth of the brain. This FOA is intended for the iterative refinement of emergent technologies and approaches that have already demonstrated their transformative potential through initial proof-of-concept testing, and are appropriate for accelerated development of hardware and software while scaling manufacturing techniques towards sustainable, broad dissemination and user-friendly incorporation into regular neuroscience practice. Proposed technologies should be compatible with experiments in behaving animals, and should include advancements that enable or reduce major barriers to hypothesis-driven experiments. Technologies may engage diverse types of signaling beyond neuronal electrical activity for large-scale analysis, and may utilize any modality such as optical, electrical, magnetic, acoustic or genetic recording/manipulation. Applications that seek to integrate multiple approaches are encouraged. Applications are expected to integrate appropriate domains of expertise, including where appropriate biological, chemical and physical sciences, engineering, computational modeling and statistical analysis.

Understanding the dynamic activity of neural circuits is central to the NIH BRAIN Initiative. This FOA seeks applications for proof-of-concept testing and development of new technologies and novel approaches for largescale recording and manipulation of neural activity to enable transformative understanding of dynamic signaling in the nervous system. In particular, we seek exceptionally creative approaches to address major challenges associated with recording and manipulating neural activity, at or near cellular resolution, at multiple spatial and/or temporal scales, in any region and throughout the entire depth of the brain. It is expected that the proposed research may be high-risk, but if successful could profoundly change the course of neuroscience research. Proposed technologies should be compatible with experiments in behaving animals, and should include advancements that enable or reduce major barriers to hypothesis-driven experiments. Technologies may engage diverse types of signaling beyond neuronal electrical activity for large-scale analysis, and may utilize any modality such as optical, electrical, magnetic, acoustic or genetic recording/manipulation. Applications that seek to integrate multiple approaches are encouraged. Where appropriate, applications are expected to integrate appropriate domains of expertise, including biological, chemical and physical sciences, engineering, computational modeling and statistical analysis.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) encourages Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant applications from small business concerns (SBCs) for projects to transfer technology out of the NIH intramural research labs into the private sector. If selected for SBIR funding, the SBC will be granted a royalty-free, non-exclusive patent license agreement for internal research use for the term of and within the field of use of the SBIR award to technologies held by NIH with the intent that the SBC will develop the invention into a commercial product to benefit the public.

The purpose of the administrative supplement is to provide support for NIH-funded investigators to participate in an entrepreneurship training course, the Concept to Clinic: Commercializing Innovation (C3i) Program. The C3i Program is designed to provide medical device innovators with the specialized business frameworks and essential tools for successful translation of biomedical technologies from the lab (concept) to the market (clinic). Through this program, the NIH fosters the development and commercialization of early-stage biomedical technologies by engaging investigators who are interested in better understanding the value of their innovation in addressing an unmet market need. The curriculum and customized mentoring provided by the C3i Program are intended to guide investigators as they assess the commercial viability and potential business opportunity for their innovation. Prospective applicants are strongly encouraged to contact NIH Scientific/Research staff for more information about the program before applying.

This funding opportunity announcement(FOA) supports the development of PET radioligands that identify proteinopathies or pathological processes associated with the human biology of Alzheimer's disease related dementias (ADRDs). Activities supported under this FOA include, but are not limited to the in vitro screening of existing ligands against human ADRD brain tissue, medicinal chemistry support for improvement of ligand specificity and selectivity, initial screening of ligands in appropriated animal models, and radioligand formulation and first-in-human testing. Applications must include an administrative core, a medicinal chemistry core, a clincial core, a scientific governance structure, and a minimum of two research projects with milestone plans that address workflows for screening of existing and newly derived ligands against human ADRD tissue and appropriate animal models. Synergy must be evident among Center research projects and cores, such that successful completion of the aims could not be accomplished without the Center structure. This FOA is in response to the Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (ADRD) challenges outlined in the 2016 update to the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease.

A central goal of the BRAIN Initiative is to understand how electrical and chemical signals code information in neural circuits and give rise to sensations, thoughts, emotions and actions. While currently available technologies can provide some understanding, they may not be sufficient to accomplish this goal. For example, non-invasive technologies are low resolution and/or provide indirect measures such as blood flow, which are imprecise; invasive technologies can provide information at the level of single neurons producing the fundamental biophysical signals, but they can only be applied to tens or hundreds of neurons, out of a total number in the human brain estimated at 85 billion. Other BRAIN FOAs seek to develop novel technology (RFA-NS-17-003) or to optimize existing technology ready for in-vivo proof-of-concept testing and collection of preliminary data (RFA-NS-17-004) for recording or manipulating neural activity on a scale that is beyond what is currently possible. This FOA seeks applications for unique and innovative technologies that are in an even earlier stage of development than that sought in other FOAs, including new and untested ideas that are in the initial stages of conceptualization. In addition to experimental approaches, the support provided under this FOA might enable calculations, simulations, computational models, or other mathematical techniques for demonstrating that the signal sources and/or measurement technologies are theoretically capable of meeting the demands of large-scale recording or manipulation of circuit activity in humans or in animal models. The support might also be used for building and testing phantoms, prototypes, in-vitro or other bench-top models in order to validate underlying theoretical assumptions in preparation for future FOAs aimed at testing in animal models.

This FOA encourages research relevant to the development of therapeutic interventions for potentially fatal or disabling conditions that have been identified through newborn screening, as well as "high priority" genetic conditions where screening may be possible in the near future. Demonstrating the benefits of treatment is often a primary criterion for including a condition on a newborn screening panel; therefore, this FOA, a "high priority" condition is one where screening is not currently recommended but would significantly benefit from early identification and treatment.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) encourages grant applications from institutions or organizations that propose multidisciplinary, investigator-initiated basic translational and clinical research in developmental pharmacodynamics This FOA seek grant applications that propose studies to increase and establish data on developmental pharmacodynamics in the pediatric age groups and allows the determination of pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic relationship of drugs used in this population.

The purpose of the NINDS Postdoctoral Mentored Career Development Award is to support the ability of outstanding, mentored postdoctoral researchers to develop a potentially impactful research project with a comprehensive career development plan that will enable them to launch an independent research program. Candidates are encouraged to apply for support from this NINDS K01 any time between the second through fourth year of cumulative mentored postdoctoral research experience, and may be supported by this NINDS K01 within the first 6 years of cumulative postdoctoral research experience. Because the completion of a strong, well-planned, thorough career development plan, in addition to development of an impactful research project, is a critical aspect of this K01, applications are strongly encouraged early in the postdoctoral eligibility window. By the end of the proposed K01 award period, the candidate should be poised to begin an independent research career with a well-developed, impactful research project and the expertise required to become a leader in the field.