Shared Resources for Cancer Research
Ten to 15 grants totaling $3 million in first-year support are available under the National Cancer Institute's Shared Resources Program for scientists outside NCI-funded cancer centers. This program provides shared resource support to groups of six or more investigators in institutions that do not have NCI-funded cancer centers. Full proposals are due 13 November 1998.
Shared resources can include tissue and data resources, unique database resources supporting research activities, radiopharmaceutical services or the provision or evaluation of novel therapeutic or diagnostic agents, assay support for research activities, animal models for diagnostic or therapeutic applications, and core facilities to provide researchers with access to state-of-the-art instrumentation and technology for cancer research.
Contact: Roger L. Aamodt, Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis, NCI, 6130 Executive Boulevard, Room 700, Bethesda, MD 20892-7399 USA, 301-496-7147, fax: 301-402-7819, e-mail: ra32u@nih.gov. Reference: PAR-98-092
Brain Tumor Research
Research is sought on genetic, molecular, cellular, and physiological mechanisms of radiation-induced cell injury and recovery, and on the sensitizing and protective mechanisms in the central nervous system under radiation treatment for brain tumors.
This program is jointly sponsored by the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and seeks research that uses state-of-the-art neurobiological and neuroimaging approaches to study tumor and normal brain cell injury and repair induced by radiotherapy, including stereotactic radiosurgery procedures.
Some examples of potential areas of research include identification of tissues, cells, and substrates critical to radiation susceptibility and resistance; mechanisms of radiation-induced damage and repair in glia, neurons, endothelia, smooth muscle cells, etc.; immune, inflammatory, neuron, glial, and glioma cell-cell interactions; the role of inflammation and the complex network of cytokines in radiation-induced brain injury and repair mechanisms; causal relationships between DNA damage and pathological central nervous system responses to tumors; genes, enzymes, and receptors that contribute to DNA injury and repair in brain tumor cells, neurons, and vascular wall cells; and interactions of brain extracellular matrix proteins and trophic factors in glial and glioma cell function in the brain with and without radiation.
Other examples include the biology of neural precursor cells to include the regulation of growth, migration, and differentiation in the irradiated brain; effects of chemotherapeutic agents on radiation sensitivity of the normal brain; exploration of the functional characterization of glia and glioma cells through electrophysiological approaches; the role of the blood-brain barrier and angiogenesis in cell and tissue survival; imaging methods to measure gene expression noninvasively in the brain; the biological basis for cognitive loss following brain radiation; and clinical outcomes associated with stereotactic radiosurgery for the treatment of primary and recurrent brain tumors.
Contact: Thomas P. Jacobs, Division of Stroke, Trauma, and Neurodegenerative Disorders, NINDS, Federal Building, Room 8A13, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA, 301-496-4226, fax: 301-480-1080, e-mail: tj12g@nih.gov. Reference: PA-98-094
Urology Research
One grant of $725,000 per year is available in FY 1999 to operate a Urology Research Center under a joint program of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases and the National Cancer Institute. This program seeks to attract new scientific expertise into the study of basic mechanisms of urological diseases and disorders, encourage multidisciplinary research on the causes of these disorders, and extend the development of innovative clinical and epidemiological studies of the causes, therapy, and possible prevention of urological disorders.
The NCI's support will focus on prostate cancer. Studies may include the full range from laboratory to clinical investigations encompassing biology, etiology, detection, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and control. These efforts will entail extensive collaboration between individuals in the clinical and basic sciences.
Full applications are due 20 November 1998. Eligible applicants include individual institutions with both basic and clinical research capabilities; interinstitutional collaborative research arrangements are also encouraged.
Contact: For noncancer program issues--Charles H. Rodgers, Division of Kidney, Urologic, and Hematologic Diseases, NIDDK, 45 Center Drive, Room 6AS-19J, Bethesda, MD 20892-6600 USA, 301-594-7717, fax: 301-480-3510, e-mail: rodgersc@extra.niddk.nih.gov; for cancer-related program issues--Jorge Gomez, Office of Centers, Training, and Resources, NCI, Executive Plaza North, Suite 512, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA, 301-496-8528, e-mail: jglw@nih.gov. Reference: RFA DK-98-018
Population Research Centers
Full proposals are due 10 November 1998 for grants under the Population Research Centers Program of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). These centers support interdisciplinary collaboration among investigators conducting population-related research in the clinical, behavioral, and social sciences. The NICHD intends to support three new centers in FY 1999 with individual awards of $500,000-600,000 in first-year funding.
Examples of potential research topics include the interrelationship between health and socioeconomic status, causes and consequences of migration of human population groups, and interrelationships between population and the physical environment.
Contact: Jeffery Evans, Center for Population Research, NICHD, 6100 Executive Boulevard, Room 8B13, MSC 7510, Bethesda, MD 20892-7510 USA, 301-496-1174, fax: 301-496-0962, e-mail: Jeff_Evans@nih.gov. Reference: RFA HD-98-014
Neurotoxins in the Military
Research on the pathophysiology and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson's disease, as well as environmental and stress exposure factors encountered in military operations, is sought by the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command. Projects can extend from two to four years. Approximately $20 million is available for the life span of these projects.
Proposals may be submitted on a broad range of basic and applied science, including but not limited to the following: 1) mechanisms of damage and protection against neural cell death, including regulation of excitotoxins such as glutamate, oxidative stress effects, regulation of inflammatory processes, and the protective role of antioxidants and anticonvulsants; 2) new approaches to neuropsychological testing to improve early detection of neurodegenerative diseases; 3) new therapeutic strategies for treating neurodegenerative disease, including neural cell transplantation, neuroprotection, and alteration of cell biology through gene regulation and other novel methods; and 4) influence of environmental factors such as environmental toxins, toxic military threat agents, and chronic psychological and physiological stress in the mediation of neural cell death.
Contact: Craig Lebo, Contracting Officer, USAMRAA, 820 Chandler Street, Fort Detrick, MD 21702-5014 USA, e-mail: craig_lebo@ftdetrick-ccmail.army.mil. Reference: Sol. 9804-0001
Quantitative Biology
Postdoctoral and senior fellowships are available from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) to support training in quantitative biology. Scientists with training in traditional quantitative disciplines (e.g., mathematics, physics, engineering, computer science) are eligible, as are those with backgrounds in biology.
Proposed training may address any area within the mission of the NIGMS, including biomedical engineering, cell biology, molecular biophysics, genetics, developmental biology, pharmacology, physiology, biochemistry, structural biology, bioinformatics, modeling of complex and interacting systems, and population genetics and evolution.
Contact: James C. Cassatt, Division of Cell Biology, NIGMS, 45 Center Drive, MSD 6200, Bethesda, MD 20892-6200 USA, 301-594-0828, fax: 301-480-2004, e-mail: cassattj@nigms.nih.gov. Reference: PA-98-082
Molecular Genetic Testing
Proposals to characterize the spectrum and complexity of molecular genetic testing (MGT) currently offered in the United States and Europe are invited by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This work also will entail designing a demonstration model performance evaluation plan for MGT and preparing a monograph titled Recommendations for Laboratory Proficiency Testing for MGT.
Contact: Allyson R. Shoe, Contract Specialist, Room 500, Procurement & Grants Office, Program Acquisition Branch, CDC, 255 East Paces Ferry Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30305 USA, 404-842-6636, fax: 404-842-6727, e-mail: azs4cdc@cdc.gov. Reference: Sol. 98A178(N)
Geospatial Data
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has awarded a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement to the Environmental Systems Research Institute of Redlands, California, for the management and distribution of geospatial data related to elevation, hydrologic, watershed, national atlas, and image data programs. Other organizations interested in pursuing the possibility of such an agreement for similar kinds of activities should contact the USGS.
Contact: Ernest B. Brunson, Acting Chief of Research, USGS, National Mapping Division, 500 National Center, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA 20192 USA, 703-648-4643, fax: 703-648-4706, e-mail: ebrunson@usgs.gov
Quantitative Analyses of Biological Systems
Research to develop quantitative approaches to describe, analyze, and predict the behavior of complex biological systems is sought under a program jointly sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS). These projects are expected to require the participation of individuals with diverse expertise and, thus, to be of a collaborative and cross-disciplinary nature.
Examples of projects of interest to NIMH include the following: 1) self-organizing neural systems in perception and behavior; 2) neural encoding of natural scenes; 3) nonlinear systems analysis of functional properties of the hippocampus; 4) mathematical approaches to modeling nonstationary processes; 5) periodic orbits as applied to neuronal control systems; 6) models of oscillatory behavior in neuronal cell cultures and simple nervous systems; 7) nonequilibrium behavior of brain enzyme and receptor systems; 8) analyses of information processing revealed by voltage-sensitive dyes; 9) development of columnar organization in cerebral cortex; 10) choice (i.e., principles of behavior selection in model systems); 11) principal component analysis of neuronal temporal patterns during discriminatory behavior; 12) analysis of cyclic behavior in affective disorders and schizophrenia; and 13) stochastic processes in neural structures that represent spatial location.
Examples of projects of interest to the NIGMS include the following: 1) computationally based modeling of such phenomena as the cell cycle, pattern formation during embryogenesis, the flux of substrates, and intermediates in metabolism; 2) the application of network analysis to understanding the integrated systemic host responses to trauma, burn, or other injury; 3) the development of methods (e.g., acquiring simultaneous measurements of key cellular parameters); and 4) the elaboration of theory that can guide the formulation of hypotheses.
Contact: James Cassatt, Division of Cell Biology, NIGMS, 45 Center Drive, MSD 6200, Bethesda, MD 20892-6200 USA, 301-594-0828, fax: 301-480-2004, e-mail: cassattj@nigms.nih.gov. Reference: PA-98-077
Energy Invention and Innovation
Up to $3 million is available under the FY 1998 Inventions and Innovation Program of the U.S. Energy Department's Office of Industrial Technologies. This program seeks to improve energy efficiency through the promotion of innovative ideas and inventions that have a significant potential energy impact and a potential future commercial market. Current focus industries of this program are the dominant energy users and waste generators in the U.S. manufacturing sector (aluminum, chemicals, forest products, glass, metal casting, and steel).
There are no eligibility restrictions for this program, although individual inventors, entrepreneurs, and small businesses are especially encouraged to participate. Grants will be awarded at two levels: up to $40,000 for the early stages of development and up to $100,000 for later stages of development.
Contact: Jennifer Squire, Department of Energy, 1617 Cole Boulevard, Golden, CO 80401 USA, fax: 303-275-4788
Autoimmunity Centers of Excellence
Grants to support centers of excellence that will conduct basic, preclinical, and clinical research on autoimmunity are available from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, and the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, as well as from the Office of Research on Women's Health.
These centers will 1) conduct single and multisite cooperative clinical studies of mechanisms of action of tolerance induction and new immune modulation interventions in multiple autoimmune diseases, 2) accelerate early translation of basic findings into clinical application, 3) facilitate the utilization of clinical materials for basic research studies, 4) enhance the exchange of information between basic scientists and clinicians, and among specialists involved in treating autoimmune diseases, and 5) establish a collaborative approach to clinical and basic research among multiple institutions in various geographic areas.
Each center should include a clinical component incorporating multiple clinical specialists to conduct trials of new immunotherapies for autoimmune diseases in cooperation with other center clinical components. Each center also should include two or more multidisciplinary, interactive basic or preclinical research components focused on elucidation of basic mechanisms of autoimmunity, self-tolerance, and immune modulation. Three awards totaling $2.9 million in first-year support are anticipated. Letters of intent are requested by 8 December 1998; full proposals are due 8 January 1999.
Contact: Elaine Collier, Division of Allergy, Immunology and Transplantation, NIAID, 6003 Executive Boulevard, Room 4A20, Bethesda, MD 20892-7640 USA, 301-496-7104, fax: 301-402-2571, e-mail: ec5x@nih.gov. Reference: RFA AI-98-010
Discretionary Funding from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Areas of special emphasis have been described by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) for its FY 1999 and FY 2000 discretionary funding programs. The NICHD will fund projects that fall in other areas but are still within its mission, but the agency especially encourages proposals in the areas of special emphasis.
These areas include the following: 1) alleviation of reproductive disorders; 2) behavioral studies and interventions to prevent injuries and diseases of adults with origin in childhood; 3) normal and abnormal development of the central nervous system; 4) childhood antecedents of adult disease; 5) contraceptive development; 6) environmental factors and behavioral adaptation in persons with chronic disability; 7) etiology and prevention of low birth weight and prematurity; 8) interrelationships of health with demographic and social processes; 9) population movement and its interrelationship with social, economic, health, and environmental factors; 10) processes of normal and abnormal development, with emphasis on germ cell biology and birth defects; 11) rational strategies for developing drugs for pregnant and lactating women, children, and persons with disabilities; 12) reproductive endocrinology; 13) reproductive epidemiology; and 14) secondary complications of disabling conditions.
Contact: Sumner Yaffe, Center for Research for Mothers and Children, NICHD, 6100 Executive Boulevard, Room 4B05, MSC 7510, Bethesda, MD 20892-7510 USA, 301-496-5097, fax: 301-402-2085, e-mail: yaffes@exchange.nih.gov
Drinking Water Disinfectants
One three-year cooperative agreement for $1.2 million is available from the U.S. EPA for collaborative research to measure the occurrence of newly identified drinking water disinfection by-products, and to determine their fate in the distribution system.
Only nonprofit organizations are eligible to submit proposals. Offerors should have credentials in drinking water research, and the ability to quantitatively measure chemicals not covered by a Standard Methods procedure.
Contact: Annie Smith, National Exposure Research Laboratory, Ecosystems Research Division, 960 College Station Road, Athens, GA 30605-2700 USA, 706-355-8030, fax: 706-355-8007, e-mail: rfa9802@epamail.epa.gov, Internet: http://www.epa.gov/athens/rfa9802.htm. Reference: Sol. RFA-9802
Cancer Epidemiology
7Grants are available from the National Cancer Institute for studies with a primary focus on etiologic cancer research. These short-term awards are intended to support pilot projects, testing of new techniques, or development of innovative or high-risk projects that could provide a basis for more extended research.
Grants will not exceed $100,000 or three years in duration. Costs in any one year will not exceed $50,000. Applications may be submitted by hospitals, colleges and universities, state and local government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and for-profit entities. Upcoming application deadlines include 20 November 1998 and 20 March 1999.
Potential projects include the following: 1) planning a complex epidemiologic investigation; 2) developing or validating a laboratory or statistical procedure that has potential for improving the quality of cancer epidemiologic research; 3) obtaining support to study cancer epidemiology in special situations, such as the availability of special personnel for limited time periods, or limited access to an important resource; 4) analyzing previously collected data for epidemiologic purposes, such as combining data from several studies to examine consistency or strength of observed associations; 5) resolving methodologic problems, such as documenting the accuracy of a customary procedure; 6) investigations of urgent or emergent issues in cancer epidemiology; and 7) support of certain dissertation research.
Contact: A.R. Patel, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, NCI, 6130 Executive Boulevard, Suite 535, MSC 7395, Bethesda, MD 20892-7395 USA, 301-496-9600, fax: 301-402-4279, e-mail: Patela@epndce.nci.nih.gov. Reference: PAR-98-023
Early Signals of Environmental Problems
A new grants program, Futures: Detecting the Early Signals, is planned by the U.S. EPA. Research under this program should help the EPA anticipate and identify environmental or other changes that may portend future risk, integrate futures planning into ongoing programs, and promote coordinated preparation for and response to change.
Approximately $1 million is expected to be available in FY 1998, with 6-8 individual awards of up to $150,000 for one year. Eligible applicants include U.S. academic and nonprofit institutions, and state or local government agencies, but not federal agencies or for-profit entities.
The EPA requests applications in two areas: 1) natural sciences--applicants should choose an area where there are scattered scientific data that could portend a future environmental problem, examine these scattered data, and write a synthesis giving possible interpretations (examples of problems that might have profited from such early examination in the past include acid rain and environmental effects of PCBs); and 2) socioeconomics--applicants should address possible changes in the way we (the United States, the industrialized nations, the world, etc.) will think, do things, live, consume, invent, reproduce, etc., in the next 5-20 years, and what effects these changes will have on environmental problems, how these problems are handled, the tools that will be available to handle them, the costs and benefits of handling them, etc.
Contact: Roger Cortesi, EPA (8701R), 401 M Street SW, Washington, DC 20460 USA, 202-564-6852, e-mail: cortesi.roger@epamail.epa.gov
Respiratory Pathogens
Research on particular respiratory pathogens is invited under a joint solicitation of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Upcoming proposal deadlines for this ongoing program include 1 February 1999, 1 June 1999, and 1 October 1999. Eligible applicants include hospitals, colleges and universities, laboratories, state and local government entities, and other public or private nonprofit or for-profit entities, whether domestic or foreign.
Areas of interest include the following: 1) immunogenic mechanisms and virulence factors for Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Burkholderia cepacia, and Chlamydia pneumoniae; 2) factors in the progression to lower tract disease or other complications due to infections with non-influenza respiratory viruses; 3) events associated with the invasion and carriage of meningococci and pneumococci; 4) novel structural and secretory proteins of human bacterial respiratory pathogens and novel host defense molecules; and 5) new vaccine approaches for parainfluenza viruses, Chlamydia, Neisseria meningitidis, and other pathogens.
Contact: Christopher Taylor, Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, NIAID, 6003 Executive Boulevard, Solar Building, Rockville, MD 20852 USA, 301-496-5305, fax: 301-496-8030, e-mail: ct18m@nih.gov. Reference: PA-97-111
Genome Mapping
Proposals for exploratory or feasibility studies to develop new or significantly improved technologies that will accelerate genome mapping, sequencing, or analysis are invited by the National Human Genome Research Institute. This program encourages high risk but potentially high payoff projects that are not yet developed fully enough to successfully compete for regular project grants. Upcoming deadlines for this program include 1 February 1999 and 1 June 1999.
Contact: Bettie Graham, Program Director, NHGRI, Building 38A, Room 614, Bethesda, MD 20892-6050 USA, 301-496-7531, fax: 301-480-2770, e-mail: bettie_graham@nih.gov. Reference: PA-97-045
Cancer Diagnostics
Grants of up to $75,000 per year for two years are available from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) for innovative studies in cancer diagnostics. Upcoming application deadlines include 1 February 1999, 1 June 1999, and 1 October 1999.
This initiative seeks the discovery of new molecular or cellular abnormalities in tumors that will be useful for cancer diagnosis. Investigators should consider the broadest range of biological alterations in tumor cells and tissues, not simply conventional genetic or immunologic markers, and to explore the application of emerging new technologies. The NCI seeks translational studies that identify promising new means for cancer diagnosis and that provide the initial, critical information necessary to decide whether potential clinical utility justifies further investment.
Contact: Tracy G. Lugo, Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis, NCI, 6130 Executive Boulevard, Room 700, MSC 7388, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA, 301-496-1591, fax: 301-402-7819, e-mail: TL82S@nih.gov. Reference: PA-98-022
Blasker Awards for Water, Energy
The first Blasker Award for Environmental Science and Engineering will be given for contributions to environmentally sustainable water supplies adequate to assure the well-being of people throughout the world while maintaining the integrity of natural ecosystems. Applications for this award are due 15 November 1998.
The second Blasker Award for Environmental Science and Engineering will be given for contributions to environmentally sustainable energy supplies adequate to assure the well-being of people throughout the world while maintaining the integrity of natural ecosystems. Applications for this award are due 15 October 1999.
These $250,000 prospective awards, sponsored by the San Diego Foundation, are neither standard research grants nor recognition of past achievements, but are designed to inspire new thinking toward solving critical world environmental issues. The awards thus recognize creativity and innovation. Any individual or group of individuals may apply for these awards.
Contact: Virginia Rybski, San Diego Foundation, Blasker Award, First (or Second) Topic, PO Box 81107, San Diego, CA 92138-1107 USA, 619-455-5500, extension 113, e-mail: vrybski@mentusonline.com, Internet: http://www.blasker.org
AAAS/EPA Environmental Science and Engineering Fellowships
This fellowship program is designed to provide an opportunity to learn firsthand how scientific and technological information is used in environmental policy making. Broad areas of research interest within EPA include human and environmental risk assessment, ecosystem health, pollution prevention, sustainability, community-based solutions, environmental socioeconomic concerns, hazardous air pollutants, global environmental hazards, pesticides (including biologicals), municipal waste water, drinking water, management and control of hazardous substances, chemical testing and assessment, radiation, and innovative technologies such as green technologies. Fellows will work for one year at the U.S. EPA headquarters in Washington, DC, on an array of projects relating to science, policy, and the environment.
In selecting AAAS/EPA Environmental Science and Engineering Fellows, every effort is made to select the best environmental scientists and engineers from the applicant pool. An additional consideration is selecting persons whose experiences and interests fit within the mission of the EPA. Applicants must have earned a Ph.D. by January 1999 and must show exceptional competence in some area of science or engineering related to environmental science. Applicants should have a good scientific and technical background, and have a strong interest and some experience in applying scientific or other professional knowledge toward the identification and assessment of future environmental problems. Applications are invited from individuals in any physical, biological, or social science, any field of engineering, or any relevant interdisciplinary field. Up to 10 fellows will be selected for 1999-2000. The stipend is $43,000, with allowances for relocation and professional travel. The continuation of this program is contingent upon the availability of funds.
Applications must be postmarked by 15 January 1999. Applicants must be U.S. citizens. Federal employees are not eligible for the fellowships. Programs begin in September 1999.
Contact: AAAS Fellowship Programs, 1200 New York Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005 USA, 202-326-6700, fax: 202-289-4950, e-mail: science_policy@aaas.org, Internet: http://www.aaas.org
Last Update: September 21, 1998
