Wednesday, October 30, 2019

International Summit in Human Genetics and Genomics (August 31 – October 1, 2020) NIH

The International Summit in Human Genetics and Genomics is a 5-year initiative (2016-2020) designed to help developing nations build and expand their knowledge base, infrastructure, systems, research efforts and technologies in human genetics and genomics. Increasing their access to these resources will help them build capacity in these areas and will help resource-poor countries address their public health challenges in genetic diseases. This will ultimately help build healthier nations worldwide.

The curriculum will be in English and at the graduate school level (Master’s degree and beyond) for healthcare professionals (Researchers, Physicians, Dentists/Scientists, Nurses, Counselors, Graduate and Medical School trainees) from developing nations. It is re-constructed annually to meet the goals and will include the following:

  • Two weeks of general courses in genetics and genomics research and medicine, and one week of field trips and hands-on workshops for all attendees.
  • Followed by one week of personalized meetings, observer ship, clinics etc. with experts in the field of interest indicated in the cover letter and based on the needs of their countries, where identified. This may not include hands-on training unless feasible.
  • Field visits to state-of-the-art laboratories such as GeneDx, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Maryland Public Health Laboratories, National Center for Advancing Translational Science, National Intramural Sequencing Center, etc. for learnings in cytogenetics, molecular genetics, biochemical genetics, newborn screening, pharmacogenomics, sequencing, clinical bioinformatics and systems management.
  • Detailed learning and/or training at world-renowned clinical and research facilities and hospitals, such as the National Institutes of Health, the Institute of Genetic Medicine at Johns Hopkins University Hospital, Division of Genetics and Metabolism at Children's National Health System, the Maternal and Fetal Medicine program at MedStar Washington Hospital Center, and at the Maryland Public Health Laboratories.
  • Introduction to technologies such as next-generation sequencing, exome sequencing, gene panels, MRIs, sonograms etc., for their role in research and prevention, diagnosis and treatment of genetic disease; data collection, analysis, interpretation and submission.
  • The role of genetic and genomic counseling, and support groups in managing inherited diseases.
  • Usefulness of telecommunications and long-distance learning modules, in research and medicine, in remote areas with limited facilities.
  • Lectures in ethical, legal and social implications of genomic information.
  • Introduction to precision medicine and the importance of newborn screening.
  • Provide candidates with numerous opportunities for a one-on-one interaction with experts in the field to foster collaborations (research and/or clinical) and to address other concerns related to the field.
  • Provide a networking platform that will facilitate communication, partnerships and collaborations, between research groups and professionals involved in the summit.
  • Interaction with members of the United Nations, USAID, NGOs and other agencies to learn about the ways and means of successfully sustaining programs in genetics and genomics in developing nations, and strategies for their inclusion and implementation as a nation-wide program.

Eligibility

The program is intended to train healthcare professionals and trainees from developing nations that are in their early-mid careers. The curriculum is designed in English for healthcare professionals with an advanced understanding of the biological sciences. 

How to Apply

We are now accepting applications for the 2020 Summit. A ‘complete’ application package must be submitted via email to ishgg@nih.gov and cc: mkaur@mail.nih.gov by Nov 29th, 2019. Selections are on a rolling basis and seats are limited so please apply early. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Link to Full Details:


Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Accelerating Discovery of Efficacious Pre-erythrocytic Stage Malaria Vaccines (NIH)

Accelerating Discovery of Efficacious Pre-erythrocytic Stage Malaria Vaccines (U01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)

U01 Research Project – Cooperative Agreements

Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) Numbers: RFA-AI-19-059

Funding Opportunity Purpose

The purpose of this initiative is to stimulate basic research, discovery, and early translational research to enable and accelerate the generation of highly efficacious pre-erythrocytic stage malaria vaccines, including sporozoite-based vaccines. Cross-fertilization and collaboration among investigators from malaria vaccine research and other basic research areas such as parasite biology, parasite genomics, pathogenesis, and host immunology are highly encouraged. The goal is to generate one or more promising vaccine candidates against human malaria that exhibit performance superior to currently available sporozoite-based vaccines and are suitable for further downstream process development and future clinical evaluation.

Eligibility

Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are eligible to apply
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are eligible to apply
Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.

Award Budget

The application budget may not exceed $750K in direct costs per year and should reflect the actual needs of the project.

Award Project Period

The scope of the proposed project should determine the project period. The maximum project period is 5 years.

Key Dates

Open Date (Earliest Submission Date): December 17, 2019

Letter of Intent Due Date(s): December 17, 2019

*Applicants are encouraged to apply early to allow adequate time to make any corrections to errors found in the application during the submission process by the due date.

Expiration Date: January 18, 2020

Deadline
Application Due Date(s)

January 17, 2020
Standard dates apply, by 5:00 PM local time of applicant organization. All types of non-AIDS applications allowed for this funding opportunity announcement are due on these dates.

Full details: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-AI-19-059.html

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Mobile Health: Technology and Outcomes in Low and Middle Income Countries (NIH)

Mobile Health: Technology and Outcomes in Low and Middle Income Countries (R21/R33 - Clinical Trial Optional)

R21/R33 Phased Innovation Award

Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) Numbers: PAR-19-376

Funding Opportunity Purpose

The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to encourage exploratory/developmental research applications that propose to study the development, validation, feasibility, and effectiveness of innovative mobile health (mHealth) interventions or tools specifically suited for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) that utilize new or emerging technology, platforms, systems, or analytics. The overall goal of the program is to catalyze innovation through multidisciplinary research that addresses global health problems, develop an evidence base for the use of mHealth technology to improve clinical and public health outcomes, and strengthen mHealth research capacity in LMICs. Applicants are required to propose partnerships between at least one U.S. institution and one LMIC institution.

Research Objectives and Scope

This FOA encourages research projects that study the development, feasibility, validation, and effectiveness of mHealth tools and/or interventions for the prevention, diagnosis, management, and treatment of specific health conditions or for disease agnostic/cross-cutting applications. Applicants are encouraged to propose research projects that have the potential to provide an understanding of principles underlying effective mHealth interventions or tools that are generalizable to the field. Research projects may include some mHealth technology development along with feasibility, acceptability, usability, validation, and effectiveness studies. User-centered and iterative design are highly encouraged during development stages. Applications should include as rigorous study designs as possible.

Eligibility

Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are eligible to apply
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are eligible to apply
Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.

Award Budget

The R21 phase may not exceed $125,000 in direct costs in any single year of the R21 phase. The R33 phase may not exceed $200,000 in direct costs in any single year of the R33 phase.

Award Project Period

The project period is limited to 2 years for the R21 phase and up to 3 years for the R33 phase. The total project period may not exceed 5 years.   

Key Dates

Open Date (Earliest Submission Date): October 19, 2019

Letter of Intent Due Date(s): October 19, 2019

*Applicants are encouraged to apply early to allow adequate time to make any corrections to errors found in the application during the submission process by the due date.

Expiration Date: December 04, 2020

Deadline
Application Due Date(s)

November 19, 2019
Standard dates apply, by 5:00 PM local time of applicant organization. All types of non-AIDS applications allowed for this funding opportunity announcement are due on these dates.

Full details: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-19-376.html

Wednesday, September 4, 2019

Notice of NIH Participation in the Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases Program (EEID)

Notice Number: NOT-TW-19-007

NIH is collaborating on the multi-agency funding opportunity, the Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases (EEID) (NSF-19-592)

Funding Opportunity Purpose

The central theme of submitted EEID projects must be quantitative or computational understanding of pathogen transmission dynamics. The intent is discovery of principles of infectious disease transmission and testing mathematical or computational models that elucidate infectious disease systems. Projects should be broad, interdisciplinary efforts that go beyond the scope of typical studies.

Award Budget and Project Period

It is anticipated the EEID program will issue approximately ten awards (through all EEID partners combined) in Fiscal Year 2020 for projects to begin in the summer of 2020, subject to the availability of funds. The maximum total (for all years) award size is $2.5 million, including indirect costs, and the maximum award duration is five years. Awards made by components of the NIH may receive support of up to $350,000 in direct costs per year for up to five years. The NIH will consider both EEID research applications and Research Coordination Network (RCN) applications.

Release Date: August 28, 2019

Applications must be submitted to the NSF in accordance with NSF-19-592, and not to the NIH

*Applicants are encouraged to apply early to allow adequate time to make any corrections to errors found in the application during the submission process by the due date.

Expiration Date: November 20, 2019 (current cycle)

Deadline

The deadline for submission to NSF is November 20, 2019. In subsequent years, the deadline is the third Wednesday in November.


Full details: https://www.fic.nih.gov/Programs/Pages/ecology-infectious-diseases.aspx
                    https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-TW-19-007.html

Thursday, April 11, 2019

International Research Ethics Education and Curriculum Development Award (PAR-19-244)

Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) Number PAR-19-244

The over-arching goal of this R25 program is to support educational activities that foster a better understanding of biomedical, behavioral and clinical research and its implications.
  • Courses for Skills Development
  • Mentoring Activities
  • Curriculum or Methods Development
The goal of this initiative is to support educational activities that foster a better understanding of the ethics of international biomedical, behavioral and clinical research and enhance the application of research ethics principles in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This program aims to increase the number of LMIC research intensive institutions that can provide advanced education in international research ethics. 

Eligibility

Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are eligible to apply

Applications may be submitted by U.S., HIC or LMIC research intensive institutions, however, all applications from U.S. or other HIC institutions must include a collaborating institution from a LMIC (defined by the World Bank classification system- also refer to NOT-TW-12-011"Notice of Change in Country Eligibility for Fogarty International Training Grants", for additional information)

Key Dates


Open Date (Earliest Submission Date) 
May 04, 2019

Letter of Intent Due Date(s)
30 days before application due date.

Application Due Date(s)
June 4, 2019

Award

Funding Instrument
Grant: A support mechanism providing money, property, or both to an eligible entity to carry out an approved project or activity.

Award Budget
Applications may request up to $230,000 direct costs per year..

Award Project Period
The total project period may not exceed 5 years.


Thursday, April 4, 2019

*UPDATED* NIH-NSF Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases Initiative (EEID) (NSF-19-592)

Status: Accepting applications
Apply through NSF program solicitation

Announcement(s)

Deadlines
  • Upcoming application deadline: November 20, 2019
  • Estimated future deadlines: third Wednesday in November, annually

Eligibility information

Who May Submit Proposals: Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) and Foreign Organizations.
Who May Serve as PI: There are no restrictions or limits.
Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization: There are no restrictions or limits.

Award information

Anticipated Type of Award: Standard Grant or Continuing Grant
Estimated Number of Awards: 8
Anticipated Funding Amount: $20,000,000

Program Overview

This joint National Institutes of Health (NIH) - National Science Foundation (NSF) initiative supports efforts to understand the underlying ecological and biological mechanisms that govern relationships between human-induced environmental changes and the emergence and transmission of infectious diseases. The highly interdisciplinary research projects funded under this program apply both ecological and biomedical methods, and study how environmental events such as habitat alteration, biological invasion, climate change, and pollution alter the risks of emergence and transmission of viral, parasitic, and bacterial diseases in humans and other animals. Projects are encouraged to consider how integrated environmental and biomedical approaches to infectious diseases may enhance our ability to predict and control them.

Global Infectious Disease Research Training Program (D43 Clinical Trial Optional) (PAR-18-840)

Status: Accepting applications

Announcement(s)

Deadlines

  • ​Letter of intent due dates: 30 days prior to the application due date
  • Upcoming application due dates: July 25, 2019

Eligibility


Eligibility: Global Infectious Disease Research Training Program (D43)
  • U.S. Institutions with a demonstrated collaboration with a researcher in low- and middle-income country (LMIC) institutions may apply.
  • Foreign institutions in LMICs may also apply.
  • Applicant institution must have robust and high-quality research ongoing in the area(s) proposed.
Eligibility: Planning Grant for Global Infectious Disease Research Training Program (D71)
  • Applicants may only be submitted by foreign institutions in LMICs, as defined by the World Bank Classification system .
  • Foreign applicants should apply in collaboration with U.S. institutions and must name an individual in the proposed institution as the major collaborator.
Applicant institutions for both the full institutional grant and the planning grant may submit more than one application, provided that each application is scientifically distinct.

Program Overview

The Global Infectious Disease (GID) program addresses research training needs related to infectious diseases that are predominantly endemic in or impact upon people living in developing countries. The training programs include a variety of research training options to match the needs of the developing country institution. The ultimate goal is to build a critical mass of researchers and support staff to conduct independent infectious disease research in developing country institutions.

Monday, March 4, 2019

The e-ASIA JRP 8th Call for Research Proposals on the topic of “Infectious Diseases, Antimicrobial and Multidrug Resistance”

Call for Research Proposals 2019
Deadline for submission: 14 May 2019


The e-ASIA Joint Research Program (e-ASIA JRP) is a collaborative funding program from ASEAN member countries and Japan, Korea, U.S., Russia, New Zealand, Australia created to support the multinational research projects contributing to the development of future technology.

Participating Member Organizations (listed in alphabetical order):
1) Cambodia: Ministry of Health (MOH)
2) Indonesia: Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education (RISTEKDIKTI)
3) Japan: Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED)
4) Myanmar: Ministry of Education (MOE)
5) New Zealand: Health Research Council (HRC)
6) Philippines: Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCHRD)
7) Russia: Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFBR)
8) Thailand: National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA)
9) USA: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
10) USA: National Cancer Institute (NCI)

A project consortium must be consisted of at least three eligible research teams from at least three different participating countries listed above. Each research team shall be led by a Principal Investigator (PI), and a consortium shall be led by a Lead Principal Investigator (Lead PI) specified among the PIs. 


Thailand: National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) 
I. Eligibility for Thai applicants The applicants must be researchers and/or university professors/instructors who work in public research institute or university in Thailand, and are competent in conducting a research with international partners.

"NSTDA will provide support only for Infectious Diseases and AMR while cancer research will be supported by TCELS".

II. Support   The total budget for the Thai researcher over a full 3-year period is up to                   5, 000,000 THB. The budget for a project may differ each year, depending on the content of activities.

III. Evaluation of Project Proposals Proposals will be peer-reviewed, and evaluated by a committee. The final selection will be done by the international selection committee of e-ASIA.

III.I Evaluation Criteria To be funded, proposals must be internationally competitive. It should lead to the advancement of the research field, or novel applications or increased of research capacity.

Key evaluation criteria are:

 Significance and impact of the research
 Scientific Rationale: novelty, importance and timeliness of the research
 Design and feasibility of the project plan
 Partnership: including strength and clarity of collaborations and opportunities provided, quality of the project management structure proposed;
 Quality and suitability of the research environment and of the facilities;

 Ethical considerations and governance arrangements

Deadline: 
17:00 (Thai Standard Time, UTC+7) 14th May 2019


Contact Information
Thailand:

Ms. Jirawadee Matoon
International Relation Officer, International Collaboration
National Science and Technology Development Agency
111 Thailand Science Park
Klong Luang, Pathumthani 12120

Tel.  +662 117 6932
email: jirawadee.matoon@nstda.or.th

Secretariat
Mr. Yoshihide Kobayashi
e-ASIA JRP Secretariat / Japan Science and Technology Agency

Room 218 Innovation Cluster1 Building
National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA)
111 Thailand Science Park, Phahonyothin Road
Khlong Nueng, Khlong Luang, Pathum Thani 12120 THAILAND
Tel: +66-2-564-7713   H/P: +66-61-421-0316

E-mail: easia_secretariat@jst.go.jp

Website: http://www.the-easia.org/jrp/index.html

Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Neglected Tropical Diseases Data Innovation Incubator (BMGF)

The Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) team at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation supports global efforts to control, eliminate, and eradicate NTDs. The team focuses on seven of the ten London Declaration diseases, as well as on cross-cutting efforts to improve the quality and impact of NTD programs through a variety of levers, including data systems. Strengthening NTD data systems and ensuring use of quality data for programmatic decision-making at the country, regional, and global levels are priority components of these cross-cutting efforts.

National NTD programs rely on timely and quality data to make decisions throughout the duration of the program. The quality of these data ultimately depends on the systems, tools, and processes at the points-of-collection, collation, and analysis at sub-national and national levels. Many of the current data-related tools and approaches used by NTD programs are sub-optimal and hinder the ability of the national program to deliver. Specifically, a limited NTD data system can lead to an inaccurate understanding of program performance and reduced likelihood of achieving control and elimination goals. Moreover, poor quality country data and data systems introduces delay and inaccuracies in regional and global reporting, drug forecasting, and inefficient allocation of resources.

This Grand Challenge seeks innovative ideas for how to improve the quality, completeness, and timeliness of routine NTD data and ensure programmatic decision-making is based on the best available data. Such outcomes will help target interventions to all at-risk populations and achieve high intervention coverage and maximal impact on infection and morbidity.

Eligibility
Grand Challenges is open to both foreign and domestic organizations, including non-profit organizations, for- profit companies, international organizations, government agencies and academic institutions.

Award Budget
For Round 1, we are suggesting a maximum budget of $200,000 USD for up to 6 months of work. For Round 2, we have decided not to specify funding limits or expectations. The number of awards and quantity of each award amount will depend upon the quality of the proposals received.
Proposers are expected to develop a budget commensurate with the scope and scale of the work
necessary to achieve their detailed objectives; however, the objectives should be achievable within 12-18 months from onset of Round 2 funding.

Award Project Period
The Incubator funding will be structured in two rounds. Round 1 funding will support proof-of-concept testing of the proposed solution over 3 to 6 months. After this initial stage, we then expect to invite a subset of the most successful Round 1 grantees to apply for Round 2 funding to test their solutions more broadly over 12-18 months. As results from Round 2 would ultimately inform country scale-up, your proposal should identify the necessary conditions for its success

Deadline
Application Due Date: The application deadline for this RFP is March 25, 2019, at 11:30 a.m. U.S. Pacific Daylight Time, after which time applications will no longer be accepted.

Inquiries
Please direct all questions about this initiative, selection criteria or application instructions by e-mail to the following address: grandchallenges@gatesfoundation.org.

Full Details and Supporting Materials:

https://gcgh.grandchallenges.org/challenge/neglected-tropical-diseases-data-innovation-incubator

Friday, January 18, 2019

MMV 17th Call for proposals Drug Discovery Projects

17th Call for Proposals
Drug Discovery Projects

All applications for any of the below must use the specified templates and should be sent electronically to proposals@mmv.org by 10.00 AM (Bangkok time) Friday, 29 March 2019.

Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) welcomes proposals in the following three areas:


1. Compounds addressing the key priorities of the malaria eradication agenda

Novel families of molecules in the hit-to-lead or lead optimization stages are sought without G6PD deficiency liabilities that either:

kill or reactivate hypnozoites for use as part of a P. vivax radical cure; or  
have activity against sexual stage V gametocytes and evidence of transmission blocking in SMFA.

2. Compounds having activity against asexual liver and/or blood stages

Novel chemical series with EC50<500nM and which have one or more of the following key features:

A known, novel mechanism of action;
An inability to select resistant mutants in vitro;
Activity at more than one life-cycle stage;
A long half-life (ideally >4h in rodents) and confirmed in vivo efficacy.
For advanced series, we are seeking novel compounds with, ideally, a predicted human half-life >100h and a predicted oral single human dose <500mg or an i.m. dose that can be administered in <1mL and sufficient for up to 3 months’ protection in humans.

3. Novel approaches for screening

To help identify new phenotypic and/ or target based hits, as well as confirm activity of MMV compounds on all human malaria asexual blood stages, new screening proposals are sought amongst the three categories below:

Validated Plasmodium target-based assays, ideally with evidence of target essentiality beyond asexual blood stages.  Biological validation should be supported by a biological target based screening assay suited for identification of novel chemical series. 
Novel whole cell phenotypic screening paradigms to potentially identify new relevant chemistry.
Asexual blood stage assays for vivax and ovale malaria.
Please complete the 3-page Letter of Interest template.. Proposals involving a biological target should also include the target information templateSee further instructions  on how to complete the LOI.


Compounds for Target Identification
MMV also welcomes requests for support to investigate the mechanism of action of compounds:

MMV is a founder member of the Malaria Drug Accelerator (MalDA).  MalDA, a consortium funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and led by Prof. Elizabeth Winzeler (UCSD), is working on a project to identify mechanisms of action of antimalarial compounds having phenotypic activity.  Compounds can be considered for such target identification activities provided that the following criteria are met:

  • The Plasmodium whole cell EC50 <1uM and the chemical structure can be shared
  • A minimum of 10mgs of compound can be provided to the consortium

A one page Excel template needs to be completed to submit a compound for target ID.

Full announcement- https://www.mmv.org/research-development/information-scientists/call-proposals/17th-call-proposals