Full Text PA-96-025
 
NICHD SMALL GRANTS PROGRAM
 
NIH GUIDE, Volume 25, Number 3, February 9, 1996
 
PA NUMBER:  PA-96-025
 
P.T. 34

Keywords: 
  Grants Administration/Policy+ 
  Population Studies 
  0775013 
  Biomedical Research, Multidiscipl 
  Behavioral/Social Studies/Service 

 
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
 
PURPOSE
 
The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Small Grants Program provides limited financial support for new
research projects relevant to the NICHD mission.
 
Applications may be submitted by new or more established
investigators for support of research in any scientific area relevant
to the Institute's programs in the Center for Population Research,
the Center for Research for Mothers and Children,  and the National
Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research.  While proposals may
involve a wide variety of biomedical, biobehavioral, or clinical
disciplines, relevance to the mission of NICHD must be clear.
 
HEALTHY PEOPLE 2000
 
The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed to achieving the health
promotion and disease prevention objectives of "Healthy People 2000,"
a PHS-led national activity for setting priority areas.  This program
announcement, NICHD Small Grants Program, is related to the priority
areas of Nutrition, Family Planning, Educational and Community-Based
Programs, Unintentional Injuries, Maternal and Infant Health,
Diabetes and Chronic Disabling Conditions, HIV Infection, Sexually
Transmitted Diseases, and Immunization and Infectious Diseases.
Potential applicants may obtain a copy of "Healthy People 2000" (Full
Report: Stock No. 017-001-00474-0) or "Healthy People 2000" (Summary
Report: Stock No. 017-001-00473-1) through the Superintendent of
Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402-9325
(telephone 202-512-1800).
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
 
Applications for small research grants may be submitted by domestic
public and private, for-profit and non-profit institutions such as
university, college, hospital, or laboratory; units of State or local
government; and authorized units of the Federal Government.  Foreign
institutions and organizations are not eligible.  Racial and ethnic
minority individuals, women, and persons with disabilities are
encouraged to apply as principal investigators.
 
Small grant support is for new projects and may not be used to
supplement research projects already being supported or to provide
interim support of projects under review.  Simultaneous submissions
of both small and regular research grant applications on the same
topic will not be accepted.  Small grant support may not be requested
for thesis or dissertation research.
 
Only one small grant application from an individual principal
investigator will be considered by NICHD during a given Council
round, and only one revision of a previously reviewed small grant
application may be submitted.
 
Applications for studies aimed at problems outside the NICHD mission
will be returned to the applicant without review.  The Institute's
programs and contact persons are listed under INQUIRIES below.
Potential applicants are strongly encouraged to discuss their
proposed work with the appropriate program contact prior to
submission of an application.
 
MECHANISM OF SUPPORT
 
This program will use the small grant (R03) mechanism.  Support may
be requested for up to 2 years at $50,000 per year in direct costs,
plus allowable indirect costs.  These grants are not renewable.
 
INCLUSION OF WOMEN AND MINORITIES IN RESEARCH INVOLVING HUMAN
SUBJECTS
 
It is the policy of the NIH that women and members of minority groups
and their subpopulations must be included in all NIH-supported
biomedical and behavioral research projects involving human subjects,
unless a clear and compelling rationale and justification are
provided that inclusion is inappropriate with respect to the health
of the subjects or the purpose of the research.  This new policy
results from the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993 (Section 492B of
Public Law 103-43) and supersedes and strengthens the previous
policies (Concerning the Inclusion of Women in Study Populations, and
Concerning the Inclusion of Minorities in Study Populations), which
have been in effect since 1990.  The new policy contains some
provisions that are substantially different from the 1990 policies.
 
All investigators proposing research involving human subjects should
read the NIH Guidelines for Inclusion of Women and Minorities as
Subjects in Clinical Research, which have been published in the
Federal Register of March 28, 1994 (FR 59 14508-14513) and reprinted
in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, Volume 23, Number 11,
March 18, 1994.
 
Investigators may obtain copies of the policy from the program staff
listed under INQUIRIES.  Program staff  also can provide additional
relevant information concerning the policy.
 
APPLICATION PROCEDURES
 
Applications are to be submitted on grant application form PHS 398
(rev. 5/95) and will be accepted at the standard application
deadlines as indicated in the application kit.  Applications kits are
available at most institutional offices of sponsored research and may
be obtained from the Grants Information Office, Office of Extramural
Outreach and Information Resources, National Institutes of Health,
6701 Rockledge Drive, MSC 7910, Bethesda, MD 20892-7910, telephone
301/710-0267, email:  girg@drgpo.drg.nih.gov.
 
The following instructions are to be used in conjunction with the
information accompanying application form PHS-398 (rev. 5/95).  They
refer only to selected items in the application form.  All PHS-398
requirements should be adhered to, with the exception of those items
affected by the following instructions; for example, the Research
Plan is limited to 10 pages.  Applications not conforming to the
requested format will be returned to the applicant without review.
Please note that some of the information to be omitted from the
application at submission may be requested following review if the
possibility of funding exists.
 
Face Page
 
Item 2,  Response to Specific Program Announcement:  Check the box
marked YES.  Enter PA-96-025 and NICHD Small Grants Program.
 
Item 6,  Dates of Proposed Period of Support:  Up to a total of 2
years of support may be proposed.
 
Detailed Budget for Initial Budget Period (Page 4)
 
Do not complete or submit this page.
 
Budget for Entire Proposed Period of Support (Page 5)
 
Composite Budget Table:  Enter total direct costs requested, up to a
maximum of $50,000, for each year of support (up to two).
 
Justification:  Provide a narrative justification for each proposed
personnel position, including role on the project and proposed level
of effort
 
Provide narrative justification for the additional resources
requested for the conduct of the project.
 
Biographical Sketch (Page 6) (Complete for each of the key personnel
listed on Form Page 2.)
 
Research and Professional Experience:  List current position(s) and
those previous positions directly relevant to the application.
 
List selected peer-reviewed publications directly relevant to the
proposed project, with full citations.
 
Provide information on research projects completed and/or research
grants in which the  investigator participated during the last 5
years which are relevant to the proposed project.  For each project
or grant listed, provide title, name of principal investigator,
funding source, and role on project (if not principal investigator).
 
Other Support (Page 7)
 
Do not complete or submit this section.
 
Research Plan
 
Items a - d of the Research Plan (Specific Aims, Background and
Significance, Preliminary Studies, and Research Design and Methods)
may not exceed a total of 10 pages.  Please note that a Progress
Report is not needed; no competing continuation applications will be
accepted for an R03.
 
Appendix
 
No appendix material may be submitted.
 
Checklist
 
New Applications:
The Checklist should not be submitted.
 
Revised Applications:
Only the section of the Checklist pertaining to type of application
should be completed.
 
Submission Procedures:
 
Submit a signed original of the application and four signed copies in
one package to:
 
Division of Research Grants
National Institutes of Health
6701 Rockledge Drive, Room 1040 - MSC-7710
Bethesda MD 20892-7710
Bethesda MD 20817 (for express/courier service)
 
At the time of submission, one additional copy of the application
must be sent to:
 
Susan Streufert, Ph.D.
Division of Scientific Review
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Building 61E, Room 5E03 MSC-7510
6100 Executive Boulevard
Bethesda MD  20892-7510
Rockville MD 20852-7510 (for express/courier service)
 
REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS
 
Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated by NICHD staff  to
determine whether they meet the eligibility requirements stated in
this announcement.  Applications that are judged not eligible will be
returned to the applicant without review.
 
Eligible applications will be evaluated for scientific and technical
merit by a review committee of the NICHD Division of Scientific
Review, in accordance with the standard NIH peer review procedures.
 
Review Criteria
 
o  Scientific, technical, or clinical significance of the proposed
research;
 
o  Innovativeness or promise of the research idea;
 
o  For pilot studies, the potential of the proposed study as a
building block in the development of future research;
 
o  Basis or grounding of the project in the relevant literature;
 
o  Reasonableness and adequacy of the proposed approach/methodology;
 
o  Qualifications and research experience of the principal
investigator and staff, particularly, but not exclusively, in the
area of the proposed research;
 
o  Availability of the resources necessary to perform the proposed
research;
 
o  Adequacy of the provisions for protection of human and/or animal
subjects and the environment;
 
o  Adequacy of plans to address NIH policy on inclusion of women and
minorities;
 
o  Reasonableness/appropriateness of the requested budget in relation
to the proposed research.
 
AWARD CRITERIA
 
Applications will compete for available funds with all other
favorably recommended applications assigned to NICHD.  The following
will be considered in making funding decisions:  Scientific and
technical merit of the application as determined by peer review;
program priorities; consideration of the principal investigator's
overall level of research support from all sources; and availability
of funds.
 
INQUIRIES
 
Inquiries are encouraged.  The opportunity to clarify any issues or
questions from potential applicants is welcome.
 
CENTER FOR POPULATION RESEARCH
 
Contraceptive and Reproductive Evaluation Branch
Steven Kaufman, M.D.
Building 61E, Room 8B07 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:  (301) 496-4924
FAX:         (301) 496-0962
E-Mail:      KaufmanS@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Contraceptive and Reproductive Evaluation (CARE) Branch
encourages R03 applications of all kinds related to its mission:  the
discovery and dissemination of new knowledge concerning the safe and
effective use of contraceptive and noncontraceptive drugs, devices,
and surgical procedures affecting reproductive health.  The CARE
Branch is particularly interested in supporting applied research in
these areas.
 
Contraceptive Development Branch
Lynn McCourt, R.N.
Building 61E, Room 8B13 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 496-1661
FAX:         (301) 496-0962
E-Mail:      MccourtL@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Contraceptive Development (CD) Branch supports basic and applied
research and development, as well as clinical research, on novel
methods of contraception and improvements on existing methods.  The
CD Branch is particularly interested in funding small grants for
pilot studies of new forms of male contraception and innovative
approaches to contraception which reduce the spread of sexually
transmitted diseases.
 
Demographic and Behavioral Sciences Branch
Christine Bachrach, Ph.D.
Building 61E, Room 8B13 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 496-1174
FAX:         (301) 496-0962
E-Mail:      BachracC@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Demographic and Behavioral Sciences (DBS) Branch supports
research related to population size, growth, and composition,
including demographic and behavioral research on fertility;
contraceptive and sexual behavior; behavioral aspects of AIDS and
other sexually transmitted diseases; family demography; mortality,
infant mortality and morbidity; immigration, migration and population
movement; and population-environment interrelationships.  The DBS
Branch particularly encourages R03 applications to conduct
feasibility studies of innovative ideas or methodologies,
applications to support secondary analyses of existing data, and
applications from new investigators.
 
Reproductive Sciences Branch
Koji Yoshinaga, Ph.D.
Building 61E, Room 8B01 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 496-6515
FAX:         (301) 496-0962
E-Mail:      YoshinaK@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Reproductive Sciences (RS) Branch supports research in
reproductive biology (male and female fertility/infertility) as
announced in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts (Vol. 24, No. 31,
August 25, 1995).  The RS Branch is particularly interested in
supporting small grants for pilot studies or feasibility studies to
obtain preliminary data for preparation of fully developed,
independent research grant applications.
 
CENTER FOR RESEARCH FOR MOTHERS AND CHILDREN
 
Developmental Biology, Genetics and Teratology Branch
Allan Lock, D.V.M.
Building 61E, Room 4B01 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:  (301) 496-5541
FAX:        (301) 402-4083
E-Mail:     LockA@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Developmental Biology, Genetics and Teratology (DBGT) Branch
supports basic and clinical research on normal and abnormal
development that relates to the causes and prevention of congenital
and genetic defects.  The major focus is on basic research using a
variety of vertebrate and invertebrate model systems to elucidate the
biochemical, molecular, genetic, and cellular mechanisms of gene
expression, early embryonic development, limb development,
chondrogenesis, myogenesis, neurologic development, teratogenesis,
immunologic development, and maternal/fetal immunologic interaction.
Priority will be accorded to small grants for research
methodology/technology development, collection of preliminary data
for the development of  more comprehensive research projects, and
innovative and high risk/high impact pilot feasibility studies.
 
Endocrinology, Nutrition and Growth Branch
Gilman Grave, M.D.
Building 61E, Room 4B11 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 496-5593
FAX:         (301) 402-2085
E-Mail:      GraveG@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Endocrinology, Nutrition and Growth (ENG) Branch supports
research on nervous system development; biobehavioral development;
somatic growth and development; developmental nutrition; diagnosis,
treatment, and prevention of developmental abnormalities; and pre-
and postnatal infection.  The ENG Branch is interested in supporting
R03 applications from investigators who have not previously held an
NIH research grant (R01 or R29), particularly investigators who are
receiving or have received NIH support through career development
mechanisms such as K08 awards or New Program Development funds of the
Child Health Research Centers.
 
Human Learning and Behavior Branch
Norman Krasnegor, Ph.D.
Building 61E, Room 4B05 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 496-6591
FAX:         (301)402-2085
E-Mail:      KrasnegN@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Human Learning and Behavior (HLB) Branch supports research in
behavioral pediatrics, risk taking, developmental psychobiology,
learning and cognition (learning disability), speech, language and
communication, social and emotional development, and AIDS.  The
Branch encourages studies designed to gather pilot data. Applications
from new investigators are particularly welcomed.
 
Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Branch
Felix de la Cruz, M.D.
Building 61E, Room 4B09 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:  (301) 496-1383
FAX:        (301) 496-3791
E-Mail:     CruzF@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (MRDD) Branch
supports research concerned with the prevention, treatment, and
amelioration of mental retardation and related developmental
disabilities.  Its activities include the full range of biomedical,
behavioral, social, and family research on the etiology,
pathophysiology, diagnosis, epidemiology, treatment, and assessment
of MRDD.  The MRDD Branch is interested in small grants of any type,
including pilot projects, feasibility studies, applications from new
investigators, and high risk/high impact research.
 
Pediatric, Adolescent and Maternal AIDS Branch
Anne Willoughby, M.D.
Building 61E, Room 4B11 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 496-7339
FAX:         (301) 496-8678
E-Mail:      WillougA@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Pediatric, Adolescent and Maternal AIDS (PAMA) Branch will
support small grants for the study of the natural history,
epidemiology, pathogenesis, and treatment of infection with the human
immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in women, pregnant women, fetuses,
infants, children, and adolescents.  The PAMA Branch is interested in
small grants of any type, including pilot projects, feasibility
studies, and high risk/high impact research.
 
Pregnancy and Perinatology Branch
Scott Andres, Ph.D.
Building 61E, 4B03 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 496-5575
FAX:         (301) 496-3790
E-Mail:      AndresS@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Pregnancy and Perinatology (PP) Branch is interested in
supporting small grants of any type in the following scientific
areas:  high risk pregnancy; fetal pathophysiology; premature labor
and birth; disorders of the newborn; and Sudden Infant Death
syndrome.
 
NATIONAL CENTER FOR MEDICAL REHABILITATION RESEARCH
 
Applied Rehabilitation Medicine Research Branch
Louis Quatrano, Ph.D.
Building 61E, Room 2A03 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 402-2242
FAX:         (301) 402-0832
E-Mail:      QuatranL@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Applied Rehabilitation Medicine Research (ARMR) Branch funds
research that provides a scientific basis for the development of new
treatments and technologies designed to improve the health of persons
with disabilities.  The ARMR small grant program is intended to
provide support for pilot projects, testing of new techniques, and
innovative or high risk projects which could provide a basis for more
extended medical rehabilitation  research.
 
Basic Rehabilitation Medicine Research Branch
Danuta Krotoski, Ph.D.
Building 61E, Room 2A03 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 402-2242
FAX:         (301)402-0832
E-Mail:      KrotoskD@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
The Basic Rehabilitation Medicine Research (BRMR) Branch supports
basic and clinical research to provide a strong scientific basis on
which to develop effective medical rehabilitation interventions.  The
BRMR Branch is interested in supporting pilot projects in the
neurosciences, particularly  neural plasticity and regeneration in
the chronically injured nervous system, as well as studies in
biomaterial development, fundamental and clinical studies on wound
healing, and physiological and pharmacological interventions designed
to improve mobility.  The Branch also has a strong commitment to
enhancing the health and quality of life of women and children with
disabilities, and seeks small grant applications in these areas.
Innovative, high-risk studies are encouraged.
 
Direct  inquiries regarding fiscal matters to:
 
GRANTS MANAGEMENT BRANCH
 
Maternal and Child Health Research Grants Management Section
Douglas Shawver
Building 61E, Room 8A17 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 496-1303
FAX:         (301) 402-0915
E-Mail:      ShawverD@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
Population Research Grants Management Section
Melinda Nelson
Building 61E, Room 8A17 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 496-5481
FAX:         (301) 402-0915
E-Mail:      NelsonM@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research Section
Mary Ellen Colvin
Building 61E, Room 8A17 MSC-7510
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
Telephone:   (301) 496-1303
FAX:         (301) 402-0915
E-Mail:      ColvinM@hd01.nichd.nih.gov
 
AUTHORITY AND REGULATIONS
 
This program is described in the Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance No. 93.3.  Awards are made under authorization of the
Public Health Service Act, Title IV, Part A (Public Law 78-410, as
amended by Public Law 99-158, 42 USC 241 and 285) and administered
under PHS grants policies and Federal Regulations 42 CFR 52 and 45
CFR Part 74.  This program is not subject to the intergovernmental
review requirements of Executive Order 12372 or Health Systems Agency
review.
 
The PHS strongly encourages all grant and contract recipients to
provide a smoke-free workplace and promote the non-use of all tobacco
products.  In addition, Public Law 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of
1994, prohibits smoking in certain facilities (or in some cases, any
portion of a facility) in which regular or routine education,
library, day care, health care or early childhood development
services are provided to children.  This is consistent with the PHS
mission to protect and advance the physical and mental health of the
American people.
 
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