Full Text PA-97-030
 
OPPORTUNITIES FOR AIDS-RELATED RESEARCH AT RPRCs
 
NIH GUIDE, Volume 26, Number 3, January 31, 1997
 
PA NUMBER:  PA-97-030
 
P.T. 34

Keywords: 
  AIDS 
  Animal Breed. & Facil., Scientific 

 
National Center for Research Resources
 
Application Receipt Dates:  May 1; September 1; January 2
 
PURPOSE
 
It is recognized that nonhuman primate research resources may not be
readily available to all investigators who wish to use them in
AIDS-related research.  The purpose of this Program Announcement (PA)
is to offer a mechanism through which these resources can be made
more readily accessible to AIDS researchers. The National Center for
Research Resources (NCRR) thereby invites investigator-initiated
research grant (R01) and First Independent Research Support and
Transition (FIRST) (R29) applications for AIDS-related research which
utilizes nonhuman primates and other research resources at the seven
Regional Primate Research Centers (RPRCs).  The overall objectives of
this initiative are 1) to promote cutting edge scientific research to
identify basic pathogenic mechanisms of HIV/SIV infections and
therapy which are oriented toward the prevention and treatment of
AIDS and related diseases; 2) to enhance utilization of  nonhuman
primates and other resources within the RPRCs; and 3) to promote
coordinated research efforts with Center staff scientists at the
seven RPRCs.
 
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 PA,
Opportunities for AIDS-Related Research at RPRCs, is related to the
priority areas of human immunodeficiency virus/AIDS and cancer.
Potential applicants may obtain a copy of "Healthy People 2000" (Full
Report: Stock No. 017-001-00474-0 or 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 may be submitted by foreign and domestic, for-profit and
non-profit organizations, public and private, such as universities,
colleges, hospitals, laboratories, units of state and local
governments and eligible agencies of the Federal government.
Racial/ethnic minority individuals, women and persons with
disabilities are encouraged to apply as Principal Investigators.
Foreign institutions are not eligible for First Independent Research
Support and Transition (FIRST) Awards (R29).
 
The proposed research must be conducted at one of the seven Regional
Primate Research Centers (RPRCs), in collaboration with one or more
RPRC staff scientists.  To be eligible, the Principal Investigator
must not currently be a center/core staff member receiving support
(salary and/or other research support) from the NCRR-supported RPRC
grant and may not be located at an RPRC. If the Principal
Investigator's grantee institution is different than the grantee
institution of the RPRC, a consortium or contractual agreement must
be established with the RPRC.  A consortium or contractual agreement
is an agreement whereby a research project is carried out by the
grantee and one or more other organizations that are separate legal
entities; i.e. an agreement between two institutions.  (See page 24
in the instruction booklet for "Application for a Public Health
Service Grant, Form 398")
 
MECHANISM OF SUPPORT
 
Research support may be obtained through applications for an
investigator-initiated  research project grant (R01) or a FIRST (R29)
Award.  Applicants may request support for up to five years. FIRST
Award applications must request five years of support. Total direct
costs for the FIRST Award five-year period may not exceed $350,000,
or $100,000 in any one budget period.  FIRST awards are not
renewable, but grantees may apply for R01 support to continue
research on the same topics.
 
FUNDS AVAILABLE
 
Although NCRR desires to stimulate research in this area, the
specific amount of funding available for this research area will
depend on the level of annual appropriated funds, quality of research
applications and program priorities at the time of the award.  It is
estimated that approximately $2.5 million will be available annually
for this activity.
 
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
 
Nonhuman primate species have played a key role in advancing our
knowledge base in understanding HIV and it is important that research
efforts utilizing the nonhuman primate models be expanded.  Although
much progress has been made in the development of nonhuman primate
animal model systems for AIDS-related research during the past 10
years, a cure for this disease and effective preventive measures are
still in the future.  It is clear that further studies are needed to
identify the basic mechanisms of the disease process in order to
develop methods for its prevention and/or control.
 
The major objective of this announcement is to encourage the
establishment of  well integrated and coordinated research programs
by active AIDS investigators who will effectively utilize nonhuman
primate resources at the RPRCs through the investigator-initiated
research project grant (R01) and FIRST Award (R29) mechanisms in
collaboration with an RPRC-based investigator.  This will be
accomplished by:
 
1) Encouraging mechanistic studies on HIV/SIV to improve our
understanding of its basic etiology and pathogenesis and, at the same
time, to develop effective therapy to control and/or prevent the
disease;
 
2) Providing support for maintenance and further development of
nonhuman primate models at the relevant RPRCs.
 
3) Providing support for scientists (currently not receiving support
from a RPRC)  to utilize RPRC facilities, animals and the primate
expertise of staff at the RPRCs to expand their AIDS-related
research.
 
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 is provided
that inclusion is inappropriate with respect to the health of the
subjects or the purpose of the research.  This policy results from
the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993 (Section 492B of Public Law
103-43).
 
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.
 
APPLICATION PROCEDURES
 
Applications are to be submitted on the grant application form PHS
398 (rev. 5/95) and will be accepted at the standard AIDS-related
grant application deadlines indicated on page 21 of the application
kit.  Applications kits are available at most institutional offices
of sponsored research and may be obtained from the Office of
Extramural Outreach and Information Resources, 6701 Rockledge Drive,
MSC 7910, Bethesda, MD 20892-7910, telephone 301-710-0267, email:
asknih@odrockm1.od.nih.gov.  The title and number of this program
announcement must be typed in Section 2 on the face page of the
application.
 
Prior to application submission, an applicant must confirm the
availability of resources at one of the RPRCs, and the application
must contain a letter from the relevant RPRC director confirming the
availability of the center resources.  The research application must
also propose a collaborative research arrangement with at least one
RPRC-based investigator.  In addition to a description of the
proposed relationship with the RPRC, the application must also
include appropriate budget expenses for utilization of the RPRC,
including animal per diem costs.  Detailed procedures for accessing a
RPRC are published in the NIH Guide to Grants and Contracts, Volume
25, January 1997. A RPRC Director (see list below) may be contacted
directly or contact the NCRR program individual listed below
regarding accessing RPRCs.  The applicant must also acquire protocol
approval from the RPRC Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee.
 
Applications for the FIRST award (R29) must include at least three
sealed letters of reference attached to the face page of the original
application.  FIRST award (R29) applications submitted without the
required number of reference letters will be considered incomplete
and will be returned without review.
 
The completed original application and five legible copies must be
sent or delivered 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)
 
REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS
 
Upon receipt, applications will be reviewed for completeness by DRG.
Incomplete applications will be returned to the applicant without
further consideration.
 
Applications that are complete and responsive will be evaluated for
scientific and technical merit by an appropriate peer review group in
accordance with the standard NIH peer review procedures.  As part of
the initial merit review, all applications will receive a written
critique and undergo a process in which only those applications
deemed to have the highest scientific merit, generally the top half
of the applications under review, will be discussed, assigned a
priority score, and receive a second level review by the appropriate
national advisory council.
 
Review Criteria
 
Criteria for scientific/technical merit review of applications for
regular research grants (R01) are as follows:
 
o  scientific, technical, or medical significance and originality of
proposed research;
 
o  appropriateness and adequacy of the experimental approach and
methodology proposed to carry out the research;
 
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 research;
 
o  appropriateness of the proposed budget and duration in relation to
the proposed research;
 
o  adequacy of plans to include both genders and minorities and their
subgroups as appropriate for the scientific goals of the research.
Plans for the recruitment and retention of subjects will also be
evaluated.
 
The initial review group will also examine the provisions for the
protection of human and animal subjects and the safety of the
research environment.
 
The review criteria for FIRST Awards (R29) are contained in the
program announcements for that mechanism.
 
AWARD CRITERIA
 
Applications will compete for available funds with all other approved
applications.  The following will be considered in making funding
decisions:  quality of the proposed project as determined by peer
review, availability of funds, and program priority.
 
INQUIRIES
 
Inquiries are encouraged.  The opportunity to clarify any issues or
questions from potential applicants is welcome.
 
Direct inquires regarding programmatic issues to:
 
Jerry A. Robinson, Ph.D.
Comparative Medicine
National Center for Research Resources
6705 Rockledge Drive, Suite 6030 - MSC 7965
Bethesda, MD  20892-7965
Telephone:  (301) 435-0744
FAX:  (301) 480-3819
Email:  jerryR@ep.ncrr.nih.gov
 
Direct inquiries regarding fiscal matters to:
 
Mr. Paul W. Karadbil
Office of Grants and Contracts Management
National Center for Research Resources
6705 Rockledge Drive, Suite 6086 - MSC 7965
Bethesda, MD  20892-7965
Telephone:  (301) 435-0844
FAX:  (301) 480-3777
Email:  paulk@ep.ncrr.nih.gov
 
Direct inquiries regarding a respective Regional Primate Research
Center to:
 
Andrew G. Hendrickx, Ph.D., Director
California Regional Primate Research Center
University of California, Davis
Davis, CA  95616
Telephone:  (916) 752-0420
FAX:  (916)752-8201
URL: http://www.primate.ucdavis.edu/crprc/homepage.html
 
Ronald D. Hunt, D.V.M., Director
New England Regional Primate Research Center
One Pine Hill Drive
Southborough, MA  01772
Telephone:  (508) 624-8002
FAX:  (508)460-0612
 
M. Susan Smith, Ph.D., Director
Oregon Regional Primate Research Center
505 N.W. 185th Avenue
Beaverton, OR  97006
Telephone:  (503) 645-1141
FAX:  (503) 690-5532
URL:  http://www.teleport.com/~orprc
 
Peter J. Gerone, Sc.D., Director
Tulane Regional Primate Research Center
18703 Three Rivers Road
Covington, LA  70433
Telephone:  (504) 892-2040
FAX:  (504) 893-1352
URL:  http://www.tpc.tulane.edu
 
William R. Morton, V.M.D., Director
Washington Regional Primate Research Center
P.O. Box 357330
University of Washington
Seattle, WA  98195-7330
Telephone:  (206) 543-0440
FAX:  (206) 685-0305
 
Joseph W. Kemnitz, Ph.D., Interim Director
Wisconsin Regional Primate Research Center
University of Wisconsin - Madison
1220 Capitol Court
Madison, WI  53715-1299
Telephone:  (608) 263-3500
FAX:  (608) 263-4031
URL:  http://www.primate.wisc.edu
 
Thomas R. Insel, M.D., Director
Yerkes Regional Primate Research Center
Emory University
954 Gatewood Road, N.E.
Atlanta, GA  30329
Telephone:  (404) 727-7707 & 727-7721
FAX:  (404) 727-0623
URL:  http://www.cc.emory.edu/YERKES
 
AUTHORITY AND REGULATIONS
 
This program is described in the Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance No. 93.306.  Awards are made under authorization of the
Public Health Service Act, Title III, Part A, and Title IV of the
Public Health Service Act and administered under PHS grants policies
and Federal Regulations 42 CFR 52 and 45 CFR 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 routing 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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