NEUROINFORMATICS INSTITUTIONAL MENTORED RESEARCH SCIENTIST DEVELOPMENT AWARD Release Date: August 5, 1999 (see replacement PAR-03-034) PA NUMBER: PAR-99-136 National Institute of Mental Health National Institute on Drug Abuse National Science Foundation National Institute on Aging National Institute of Child Health and Human Development National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders National Library of Medicine Fogarty International Center National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Letter of Intent Receipt Dates: August 15, 1999; April 1 and October 1 in 2000 and beyond Application Receipt Dates: October 20, 1999; July 11, and January 11 in 2000 and beyond PURPOSE The purpose of this program announcement is to encourage and support the development of applications from U.S. educational institutions for Institutional Mentored Research Scientist Development Awards (K12). These awards are intended to foster the career development of individuals with interdisciplinary expertise bridging the fields of neuroscience and behavioral science research with that in informatics. This announcement seeks to further technological and methodological advancement and the development of novel scientific strategies in neuroinformatics research critical towards elucidating the major principles of basic and clinical neuroscience that underlie normal health, development, and the etiopathophysiology of mental and neurological disease. Eligibility is limited to individuals with advanced degrees in either: (a) informatics research (including computer sciences, mathematics, physics, engineering, or closely related sciences); or (b) the various subdisciplines of basic or clinical neuroscience and behavioral science research. Under this Institutional Mentored Research Scientist Development Award, up to three scientists may be selected and appointed to this program by the grantee institutions. In general respects, the research experiences of the candidates selected for support under this award should resemble those supported by the individual Mentored Research Scientist Development Award which is located at https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-95-049.html Applications for this award require a development plan that demonstrates both significant inherent research and technological promise in neuroscience, while concomitantly serving as a training vehicle for learning the requisite theoretical knowledge and technical skills in informatics. This training should allow an individual to develop into a well-trained, independent research investigator within the field of Neuroinformatics. Appointees are expected to enter into a well-structured, phased developmental program that includes a designated period of didactic training, which is subsequently followed, by a period of supervised research experience. It is expected that at the end of this career development period, individuals will successfully transition into positions as fully independent investigators. HEALTHY PEOPLE 2000 The Public Health Service 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, Institutional Mentored Research Scientists Development Award in Neuroinformatics Research and Analysis, is related to the priority area of human resource development. Potential applicants may obtain a copy of "Healthy People 2000" at http://odphp.osophs.dhhs.gov/pubs/hp2000/ ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS Applications will be accepted from domestic, non-Federal organizations of higher education that have strong, well-established research and training programs in both areas of interest: (1) in the disciplines of neuroscience research; and (2) in the disciplines of informatics research (including computer sciences, mathematics, physics, engineering, or any closely related sciences). The applicant institution must have adequate numbers of highly trained faculty in scientific areas relevant to neuroinformatics and the capability to provide guidance to individuals who wish to work at the interface of neuroscience, ongoing molecular biology or genomics research with the informatics, computer, communications or engineering sciences in the development of research independence. The environment should be one that fosters interactions between basic and/or clinical neuroscientists with informatics scientists. Institutions with a K12 Award may recruit and select candidates into their programs on a local or national basis. In all aspects, the K12 Awards are intended to provide support for the development of research scientists in the same manner and under the same conditions as the Mentored Research Scientist Development Award K01 (PA-95-049); (see https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-95-049.html). It is the intent of this program to support both basic and physician researchers. The appointment of minorities, women, and individuals with disabilities under this program is encouraged. Candidates appointed under this program award must be U.S. citizens or non-citizen nationals, or have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence and possess an Alien Registration Receipt Card (I-151 or I-551) or some other verification of legal admission as a permanent resident. Non-citizen nationals, although not U.S. citizens, owe permanent allegiance to the U.S. They are usually born in lands that are not states, but are under U.S. sovereignty, jurisdiction, or administration. Individuals on temporary or student visas are not eligible. Candidates who are or have been former principal investigators on NIH research projects (R01), FIRST Awards (R29), sub-projects of program project (P01) or center grants (P50), or the equivalent, are not eligible for appointment under this program. Candidates may not concurrently hold any other PHS award that duplicates the provisions of this award. Appointees to the K12 program are encouraged to apply for independent research grant support, exclusive of salary during the period of support under this award. It is strongly suggested that awardees initiate their own grant application for independent support during the last year of the K12 award in order to ensure the continuation of their research program following the termination of the K12 award. MECHANISM OF SUPPORT Awards in response to this program announcement will use the Institutional Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (K12) program mechanism. This program is organized and supported by multiple Agencies and NIH Institutes and is coordinated by the National Institute of Mental Health (see INQUIRIES). The coordination takes place under the activities of the Federal Interagency Coordinating Committee for the Human Brain Project (FICC-HBP) and is chaired by the NIMH. The program awards will normally be for a five-year period. Up to three positions may be requested. Individuals may be appointed for three to five years; appointments are not renewable. The duration of the appointment depends upon the number of years of prior research experience and the need for additional experiences to achieve independence. Planning, direction, and execution of the program will be the responsibility of the principal investigator, the appointee, and her/his mentor. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES Background A recent report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Megascience Forum (OECD-MSF) raises the clearly vital national/international need to better understand the structure, function, and development of the human brain in health and disease. The report presents this need as one of the great challenges for science in the upcoming 21st century. To date, neuroscientists have collected large quantities of complex research data from multiple levels of analysis (i.e., from those at the molecular, cellular, subcellular and genetics levels to those at the more macroscopic levels of neural networks, systems, and whole brains of different species) and methodological experimental approaches. The goal of this research is to elucidate the highly complex structure-function relationships of the brain and central and peripheral nervous systems in the mature and/or developing organism. This report posits the current burgeoning need to further develop theoretical models and research tools to enhance management and organization of this neuroscience data for their improved analyses, interpretation, shared communications and the creation of knowledge. Towards this latter objective, since its initial inception in 1993 (under Program Announcement PA-93-068), the FICC-HBP sponsored Program has greatly benefitted from the application of the concepts and principles developed in the traditional quantitative disciplines of informatics (including computer sciences, mathematics, physics, engineering, or closely related sciences). The Neuroinformatics field has rapidly emerged by its combined use of research tools employed in the neuroscience and behavioral sciences with those in informatics. Due to the advantages created by this synergistic interdisciplinary approach, neuroinformatics is currently uniquely well- positioned to develop and apply advanced technologies and methodological strategies towards addressing the great challenges of understanding the brain and elucidating research problems in neuroscience related to medicine, biology and behavior (i.e., including those in cellular and molecular neurobiology, genetics, developmental biology, neurodevelopment, neuropharmacology, neurochemistry, physiology, biophysics, biochemistry, and the cognitive, behavioral, developmental and psychobiological sciences). The development and utilization of these improved technologies and unique research strategies require appropriate training about the fundamentals of basic and clinical neuroscience research and the application of informatics technologies to help fathom the experimental questions under investigation. To facilitate the goals of the Human Brain Project, and one of the major recommendations proffered by the OECD-MSF report, we seek to establish and promote national interdisciplinary educational, training and career development initiatives for the preparation of future generations of neuroinformatics scientists. This Program Announcement is to promote the career development of individuals who will subsequently serve as leaders in neuroinformatics research and as mentors for training future generations of technologically advanced neuroscientists. Program Description: The purpose of this Neuroinformatics Institutional Mentored Research Scientist Development Award is to provide eligible educational institutions the opportunity to develop and implement a program to recruit scientists interested in and capable of bridging interdisciplinary research in areas critical to the advancement of the research goals of the Human Brain Project. The K12 award offers opportunities for training either: (1) in various disciplines of neuroscience research, for those individuals who currently already possess doctoral degrees in any of the non-biological scientific disciplines related to the computer sciences, mathematics, physics, engineering, or any closely related sciences; or, conversely, (2) in various disciplines of informatics research, for those individuals who currently posses a doctoral degree in any of the neuroscience related disciplines. The primary objective of the current announcement is to bridge interdisciplinary training across both of these major scientific investigative domains. Thus, this Program Announcement's goal is to help foster further technological and methodological development essential to the success of the Human Brain Project, thereby allowing these appointees to benefit by continuing to pursue a career in Neuroinformatics research. Several key representative examples of career development and research projects activities and technological design advances that are of a special interest to the Human Brain Project would include improved developments within the following areas: computational biology; two- and three-dimensional, cross- reference macroscopic and microscopic brain atlases and hierarchical systems of various species at different stages of development (i.e., for co- registering molecular, cellular, subcellular, and genetics data, and their complex spatiotemporal structural organization and functional interrelationships); and novel acquisition tools, hardware, software, and computational algorithms and informatics databases (i.e., to enhance the collection, analysis, integration, interpretation, simulation modeling, and dissemination of data derived from newly evolving imaging and other data visualization technologies within these different disciplines); and the further creation of interoperable neuroscience information management systems and federations of databases and supercomputer data warehouses, specialized and cross-platform software database search engines, and data query mining systems to stimulate continued advances within and across these various neuroscience and behavioral science disciplines. For a more detailed description on the research objectives of the FICC-HBP sponsored Human Brain Project/Neuroinformatics Initiative, refer to PAR-99-138, The Human Brain Project (Neuroinformatics): Phase I & Phase II. (https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-99-138.html) The Human Brain Project also is openly interested in promoting career development plans and research projects under this announcement that utilize and promote the broadest developments in neuroinformatics technologies and/or experimental strategies to help address the plethora of complex multidisciplinary data relationships derived from the many neuroscience and behavioral science research levels of analysis. Individual programs of appointees are generally separated into two distinctive phases: (1) a basic informatics training component; and (2) an intensive neuroscience research experience under the general guidance of a qualified mentor. The basic informatics component is to be used to develop the special knowledge and research skills in scientific areas relevant to the candidate's career development goals, and must include relevant didactic and laboratory experiences. For those appointees who already possess doctoral or medical degree(s) in any of the neuroscience disciplines, this first training phase requires greater, although not exclusive, focus upon the theories and techniques of informatics applicable to neuroscientific research. Conversely, if the appointee(s) possess degree(s) in any of the informatics disciplines, the greater focus of this component requires training focused upon the theories and methodologies employed in basic or clinical neuroscience; for the latter, the relevance of informatics approaches for examining these specific neuroscience issues is still a mandatory requirement for completing this component. In all cases, the types of developmental experiences provided by this training should be consistent with the candidate's prior experiences and career needs. During the period of the appointment, individuals will participate in career development activities and research projects under the supervision of mentors who have distinguished themselves in the area of neuroinformatics research, i.e., in research that bridges both the neuroscience and the informatics components. At the conclusion of their career development and research experience, appointees are expected to pursue an independent career in neuroinformatics research. The award aims to develop a close and extended working relationship between the awardees and one or more highly qualified neuroscientists and informaticians working in neuroscience research or a closely relevant field using neuroinformatics techniques. The relationship should optimize the opportunity for establishing ample interdisciplinary communications and collaborations. As a result of this experience, the awardees should develop the capacity to continue to apply the knowledge and research methods of their neuroinformatics training to other relevant problems in the neuroscience research field. For the sponsoring institution, the relationship should stimulate awareness among neuroscientists and informaticians about the potential to conduct interdisciplinary or cross-disciplinary research within the various disciplines of neuroscience research. Program Director: The proposed Program Director should possess the scientific expertise, leadership, and administrative capabilities required to coordinate and supervise an interdisciplinary program at the interface between neuroscience and informatics research, and be willing to develop a career development program of the scope described within this program announcement. The Program Director should also be experienced in the design and management of programs for developing investigators, and should be able to demonstrate a superior record of preparation of neuroscientists or Informaticians for independent research careers. In addition, a committee with representatives from appropriate sciences departments of both of these major bridging fields should be established to help advise the Program Director and assure that the appointees meet the expected background and requirements for selection into the program. Mentor(s): For the appointee(s) to receive training under a single mentor, the latter individual must have extensive, well-demonstrated experience in developing and applying neuroinformatics approaches towards addressing specific neuroscience research questions or in conducting their structural and functional analyses. Otherwise, if the mentor has exclusive experience in conducting only neuroscience research, without having had well-demonstrated experience in performing neuroinformatics applications, then a second co-mentor possessing this requisite informatics experience must be selected by mutual agreement among these two co-mentors and the appointee. The mentor(s) will sponsor and oversee the proposed training and research program, and will ensure that the appointee(s) receives the proper experience for developing a future independent career in interdisciplinary neuroinformatics research. The mentor(s) is(are) expected to collaborate on the appointee's research project. However, the appointee may conduct collaborative research with other experienced neuroinformaticians and neuroscientists, subject to the approval of the mentor. Where feasible, women, minorities and individuals with disabilities should be involved as mentors. Appointees: The objective of this program announcement, as described above, is to provide mentored career development and research training on the application of neuroinformatics technologies and experimental strategies to neuroscience research. Therefore, appointees are to be recruited from relevant disciplines representing either of these two components, who will then receive training in the reciprocal component. As such, appointees must hold a Ph.D. or an M.D. degree, or an equivalent professional degree in any of the disciplines: (1) of basic or clinical neuroscience and/or behavioral science research; or (2) of a non-biological, quantitative discipline such as informatics and/or computational research (including computer sciences, mathematics, physics, engineering, or any closely related sciences). In exceptional cases, individuals who do not have doctoral degrees, but have significant research experience may be eligible. The candidates must demonstrate a commitment to pursue a career in neuroinformatics research following completion of the award. Individuals at all career levels may be appointed. Candidates must be willing to spend 100 percent of full-time professional effort conducting research; career development, teaching and/or research related activities. Tenure-track faculty are eligible for appointment if they can demonstrate that they can spend a substantial portion of their professional effort (at a minimum 75 percent) in research and career- development related activities, and if the proposed program has the potential of accomplishing the goals of this Neuroinformatics K12 Program. The NIH will provide salary and fringe benefits for the K award recipient. The salary limits are not uniform throughout the NIH and are determined independently by each component of the NIH. Therefore, prospective candidates should contact the NIH component to which the application is targeted to ascertain the maximum contribution to the candidate's salary. The total salary requested must be based on a full-time, 12-month staff appointment. It must be consistent both with the established salary structure at the institution and with salaries actually provided by the institution from its own funds to other staff members of equivalent qualifications, rank, and responsibilities in the department concerned. If full-time, 12-month salaries are not currently paid to comparable staff members, the salary proposed must be appropriately related to the existing salary structure. Appropriate individuals who have had some postdoctoral experience in neuroscience may be eligible for appointment to the program, if they can demonstrate that they need additional time to transition into developing as independent neuroinformatics investigators. If such individuals are appointed, their research program must include sufficient didactic activities to ensure that they receive the appropriate exposure to concepts in neuroinformatics, and their appointments should generally be limited to three years or less. Environment: The institution must: (1) have well-established research programs in both components (i.e., neuroscience and informatics). Furthermore, the latter component should include several closely related disciplines, including computer sciences, mathematics, physics, and/or engineering or a related sciences; (2) have a commitment to pursuing interdisciplinary research at the interface of these two disciplines; (3) be interested in promoting career development programs at this interface; and (4) have qualified faculty to serve as mentors. Institutions where there are highly integrated clusters of neuroscientists working with informaticians, computer scientists, mathematicians, physicists, and/or engineers; or scientists in closely related disciplines working in the areas of basic and/or clinical neuroscience research, or on approaches for the analyses of their structural and functional data and/or their parametric interrelationships are particularly appropriate training environments for appointees. The appointee(s), mentor(s), and institution must be able to maximize the use of a relevant interface between neuroscience and informatics research, and their combined technological and methodological laboratory and educational resources. Allowable Costs: Appointee's Salary: The salary limits on career awards are not uniform throughout the NIH and are determined independently by each component of the NIH. Therefore, prospective applicants should contact the component to which the application is targeted to ascertain the salary cap for appointees. The total salary requested must be based upon a full-time 12-month staff appointment. It must be consistent both with the established salary structure at the institution and with the salaries actually provided by the institution from its own funds to other staff members of equivalent qualifications, rank, and responsibilities in the department concerned. If full-time 12-month salaries are not currently paid to comparable staff members, the salary proposed must be appropriately related to the existing salary. The institution may supplement the contribution from this grant up to a level that is consistent with the institution's salary scale; however, supplementation may not be from Federal funds unless specifically authorized by the Federal program from which such funds are derived. In no case, may DHHS funds be used for salary supplementation. Institutional supplementation of salary must not require extra duties or responsibilities that would interfere with the purpose of the K12 award. It is expected that the appointee will devote full-time to career development and research activities. However, up to 15 percent of the appointee's time may be used for activities, such as teaching, research-related activities or advising on research, which make use of the awardees own discipline as a special contribution of this Neuroinformatics Career Development Program to relevant interdisciplinary research programs of the sponsoring institution. In the case of tenure-track faculty, the appointee must be willing to spend a substantial amount (a minimum of 75 percent) of their professional effort in research and career development activities related to the interface between neuroscience and neuroinformatics research and analyses, and the goals of the K12 program. Research Development Support: Each appointee will be allowed up to $20,000 per year for the following expenses: (a) tuition, including fees, and books essential for specific identified training courses during the first two years on a course-by course basis related to the career development program; (b) research expenses, such as supplies, equipment and technical personnel; (c) travel to research meetings or training; (d) statistical services including personnel and computer time which are essential to the proposed research program. Requests for research support must be well justified in the application. Ancillary Personnel Support: Salary for mentors, secretarial and administrative support, etc., is not allowed. Funds to support travel to the two-day Annual Spring Human Brain Project Meeting of Agencies and Grantees in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area should be included in the budget for the principal investigator and other relevant individuals supported under this program announcement. Facilities and Administrative Costs: These costs will be reimbursed at eight percent of modified total direct costs, or at the actual indirect cost rate, whichever is less. Evaluation: In carrying out its stewardship of human resources related programs, the sponsoring agency may request information essential to an assessment of the effectiveness of this program. Accordingly, recipients may be contacted both for annual progress reports as well as for periodic updates after the completion of this award on various aspects of their employment history, publications, support from research grants and contracts, honors and awards, professional activities, and other information helpful in evaluating the impact of the program. Such reports should also include such specific information for any new appointees onto the awarded grant. Other Income: Fees resulting from professional consultation or other comparable activities required by the research and research-related activities of this award may not be retained by the career award recipient. Such fees must be assigned to the grantee institution for disposition by any of the following methods: The funds may be expended by the grantee institution in accordance with the various FICC-HBP agencies and organization policies on supplementation of career award salaries and to provide fringe benefits in proportion to such supplementation. Such salary supplementation and fringe benefit payments must be within the established policies of the grantee institution. The funds may be used for health-related research purposes. The funds may be paid to miscellaneous receipts of the U.S. Treasury. Checks must be made payable to the Department of Health and Human Services, NIH and forwarded to the Director, Division of Financial Management, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland 20892. Checks must identify the relevant award account and reason for the payment. Appointees may retain royalties and fees for activities such as scholarly writing, service on advisory groups, or honoraria from other institutions for lectures or seminars, provided these activities remain incidental and provided that the retention of such pay is consistent with the policies and practices of the grantee institution. Usually, funds budgeted in this Neuroinformatics supported research or research training grant for the salaries or fringe benefits of individuals, but freed as a result of a career award, may not be rebudgeted. The awarding component will give consideration to approval for the use of released funds only under unusual circumstances. Any proposed retention of funds released, as a result of a career award must receive prior written approval of the Sponsoring agency. Special Leave: Leave to another institution, including a foreign laboratory, may be permitted if directly related to the purpose of the award. Only local, institutional approval is required if such leave does not exceed three months. For longer periods, prior written approval of the sponsoring organization is required. To obtain prior approval, the appointee must submit a letter to the sponsoring organization describing the plan, countersigned by his or her department head and the appropriate institutional official. A copy of a letter or other evidence from the institution where the leave is to be taken must be submitted to assure that satisfactory arrangements have been made. Support from the career award will continue during such leave. Leave without award support may not exceed 12 months. Such leave requires the prior written approval of the sponsoring organization and will be granted only in unusual situations. Support from other sources is permissible during the period of leave. Such leave does not reduce the total number of months of program support for which an individual is eligible. Parental leave will be granted consistent with the policies of the relevant sponsoring organizations and the grantee institution. Termination or Change of Institution: When a grantee institution plans to terminate an award, the funding organizations must be notified in writing at the earliest possible time, so that appropriate instructions can be given for termination. If the individual is moving to another eligible institution of higher education, no relocation costs will be allowed and career award support may be continued provided: A new career award application is submitted from the new eligible institution of higher education; All conditions of the award are met at the new institution including the presence of a qualified mentor; The period of support requested is no more than the time remaining within the existing award period; and The new application is submitted far enough in advance of the requested effective date to allow the necessary time for review. The sponsoring organization may require a review by an initial review group and/or the National Advisory Councils of each of the specific sponsoring FICC- HBP organizations. Alternatively, review may be carried out by program staff and the Directors Office within the various specific FICC-HBP funding organizations, depending upon the particular circumstances. The Director(s) of the specific FICC-HBP sponsoring organizations and agencies may discontinue an award upon determination that the purpose or terms of the award are not being fulfilled. In the event that an award is terminated, these relevant Directors shall collectively notify the grantee institution and career award recipient in writing of this determination, the reason thereof, the effective date, and the right to appeal the decision. A final progress report, invention statement, and Financial Status Report are required upon either termination of an award or relinquishment of an award in a change of institution situation. 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 in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, Vol. 23, No. 11, March 18, 1994 available on the web at the following URL address: (https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not94-100.html). INCLUSION OF CHILDREN AS PARTICIPANTS IN RESEARCH INVOLVING HUMAN SUBJECTS It is the policy of NIH that children (i.e., individuals under the age of 21) must be included in all human subjects research, conducted or supported by the NIH, unless there are scientific and ethical reasons not to include them. This policy applies to all initial (Type 1) applications submitted for receipt dates after October 1, 1998. All investigators proposing research involving human subjects should read the "NIH Policy and Guidelines on the Inclusion of Children as Participants in Research Involving Human Subjects" that was published in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, March 6, 1998, and is available at the following URL address: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/children/children.htm Investigators also may obtain copies of these policies from the program staff listed under INQUIRIES. Program staff may also provide additional relevant information concerning the policy. LETTER OF INTENT Potential applicants are encouraged to contact the appropriate program official(s) listed under INQUIRIES and submits a letter of intent. The letter should include a descriptive title of the proposed research, the name, address, and telephone number of the Principal Investigator, names of other key personnel, and participating institutions, and the number and title of the program announcement in response to which the application may be submitted. Although a letter of intent is not required, is not binding, and does not enter into the review of subsequent applications, the information that it contains is helpful in planning for the review of applications. The letter is to be submitted to Dr. Stephen H. Koslow at the address listed under INQUIRIES. APPLICATION PROCEDURES Applications are to be submitted on the standard grant application form PHS 398 (rev. 4/98) and will only be accepted at the application receipt dates listed below. Application kits are available at most institutional offices of sponsored research and may be obtained from the Division of Extramural Outreach and Information Resources, National Institutes of Health, 6701 Rockledge Drive, MSC 7910, Bethesda, MD 20892-7910, telephone (301) 710-0267, Email: grantsinfo@nih.gov. The PHS 398 application kit is also available on the Internet at https://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/funding.htm Applicants planning to submit an investigator-initiated new (type 1), competing supplement, or any amended/revised version of the preceding grant application types requesting $500,000 or more in direct costs for any year are advised that he or she must contact the Institute or Center (IC) program staff before submitting the application, i.e., as plans for the study are being developed. Furthermore, the application must obtain agreement from the IC staff that the IC will accept the application for consideration for award. Finally, the applicant must identify, in a cover letter sent with the application, the staff member and Institute or Center who agreed to accept assignment of the application. This policy requires an applicant to obtain agreement for acceptance of both any such application and any such subsequent amendment. Refer to the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, March 20, 1998 at https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not98-030.html Follow the PHS 398 additional instructions for "Preparing Your Application" with modifications and additions as described in the sections below. Refer to https://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/instructions2/p1_preparing _individual_CDA_app.htm. Note that, as in the standard PHS 398 Instructions, sections "a-d" of the Research Plan in the Table of Contents (form CC; page 3) are limited to 25 pages. Specific instructions for all applications submitted under this Program Announcement: To identify the application as a response to this Program Announcement, check "Yes" on item 2, and the title and number of this program announcement must be typed on line 2 of the face page of the application form. Research Plan: part "c" of this section should be retitled "Preliminary Data and Activities" and included if applicable. This section should contain information on steps that have led to the proposed Education Project. Future competitive renewals should include a section entitled "Progress Report." Research Plan: part "d" of this section should be retitled "Education Program Plan" and should contain material organized under the following subheadings, as appropriate to the specific project: Provide information establishing the commitment of the applicant institution, the program director, and the faculty mentors to providing developmental experiences that lead to independence in an interdisciplinary program in neuroinformatics research. Summarize the immediate and long-term objectives of the program, explaining how the program and the K12 award will contribute to their attainment. Describe the career development plans for prospective candidates. Considering the program goals and the likely goals of prospective candidates, describe a plan to provide the necessary basic science background and research experiences considering the expected range of prior research training in the applicant pool. For example, candidates with little previous research experience may require a phased developmental period in which the first year or two of support under this program award are comprised largely of didactic training in the basic sciences. For these candidates, a second phase would be an intensive, supervised research experience to complete the five-year developmental program. More experienced candidates may benefit from moving immediately to a mentored research environment and a shorter period of support under this program award. The application should contain a description of how the career development plan will be tailored to the needs of the prospective candidates. Describe the pool of potential candidates including information about the types of prior research training. Also, describe the criteria used for selection of the appointments to the K12 Award. Describe the composition of the selection committee and the criteria to be used for selection. Describe plans to recruit candidates from racial or ethnic groups that are currently underrepresented in biomedical research. Describe, to the extent possible, the types of interdisciplinary research experiences available to the candidates. Instructions in the responsible conduct of research. Applications must include plans for instruction in the responsible conduct of research, including the rationale, subject matter, appropriateness, format, frequency and duration of instruction; and the amount and nature of faculty participation. No award will be made if an application lacks this component. Non-competitive renewal Type 5 applications must include a detailed evaluative account of the career outcomes of all candidates supported by this grant, including employment history, publications, support from research grants and contracts, honors and awards, professional activities, and other information that this program award is meeting the objectives of the FICC-HBP sponsored Program and the specific awarding organizations of the grant. Budget: Budget requests must be provided according to the instructions in form PHS 398. The request for Research Development Costs, i.e. tuition and fees, books necessary for specific courses, travel to related meetings, and other research development expenses, etc., must be justified and specified by category. Submit a signed, typewritten original of the application, including the Checklist, and three signed photocopies in one package to: CENTER FOR SCIENTIFIC REVIEW 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, two additional copies of the application (including appendices) also must be sent to: Stephen H. Koslow, Ph.D. Office on Neuroinformatics National Institute of Mental Health 6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 6167 MSC 9613 Bethesda, MD 20892-9613 Rockville, MD 20852 (for express/courier service) Telephone: (301) 443-1815 Fax: (301) 443-1867 Email: koz@helix.nih.gov It is important to send these two additional copies at the same time that the original and three copies are directly sent to the CSR; otherwise, it cannot be guaranteed that the applications will be reviewed in competition with other applications received in response to this Program Announcement. Schedule 1999 Calendar Year 2000 & Beyond Letter of Intent Receipt Date: Aug 15, 1999 Apr 1, 2000 Oct 1, 2000 Application Receipt Date: Oct 20, 1999 Jul 11, 2000 Jan 11, 2000 Administrative Review: Oct 1999 Jul 2000 Jan 2001 Scientific Review: Feb/Mar 2000 Sep/Oct 2000 Mar/Apr 2001 Advisory Council Review: May/Jun 2000 Jan/Feb 2001 May/Jun 2001 Earliest Starting Date: Jul 2000 Mar 2001 Jul 2001 REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS Applications that are complete will be evaluated for scientific and technical merit by an appropriate peer review group convened by one of the FICC-HBP organizations sponsoring the Human Brain Project. 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 applications under review, will be discussed, and assigned a priority score. Subsequent processing of the application will follow the procedures of the respective agency, institute and/or center to which it has been assigned. For applications assigned to a Public Health Service (PHS) institute or center, the application will receive further review by the appropriate National Advisory Council. All successful projects will be identified as "A Unit of the NIH/NSF/DOE Human Brain Project/Neuroinformatics" program. Review Criteria The goals of NIH-supported research are to advance our understanding of biological systems, improve the control of disease, and enhance health. In the written comments reviewers will be asked to discuss the following aspects of the application in order to judge the likelihood that the proposed research will have a substantial impact on the pursuit of these goals. Each of these criteria will be addressed and considered in assigning the overall score, weighting them as appropriate for each application. Note that the application does not need to be strong in all categories to be judged likely to have major scientific impact and thus deserve a high priority score. For example, an investigator may propose to carry out important work that by its nature is not innovative but is essential to move a field forward. Significance: Does this study address an important problem? If the aims of the application are achieved, how will scientific knowledge be advanced? What will be the effect of these studies on the concepts or methods that drive this field? Approach: Are the conceptual framework, design, methods, and analyses adequately developed, well integrated, and appropriate to the aims of the project? Does the applicant acknowledge potential problem areas and consider alternative tactics? Innovation: Does the project employ novel concepts, approaches or method? Are the aims original and innovative? Does the project challenge existing paradigms or develop new methodologies or technologies? Investigator: Is the investigator appropriately trained and well suited to carry out this work? Is the work proposed appropriate to the experience level of the principal investigator and other researchers (if any)? Environment: Does the scientific environment in which the work will be done contribute to the probability of success? Do the proposed experiments take advantage of unique features of the scientific environment or employ useful collaborative arrangements? Is there evidence of institutional support? These five review criteria should be applied, as relevant, to the evaluation of the following key components of the application: Program Director: The strength of the program director's research program at the interface of neuroscience and neuroinformatics research and other related scientific disciplines; and The program director's experience in managing research training or career development programs, and success in preparing investigators for independent interdisciplinary research careers representative of the interface between neuroscience and neuroinformatics research (or another closely related informatics discipline as described above). Candidate(s): Availability of high quality potential candidates; Plans for recruiting and selecting candidates (including minorities, women and individuals with disabilities); Plan to identify candidates with a commitment to research and the potential to develop as an independent researcher; and For renewal applications, the career successes of candidates that have received support and completed their appointeeship under this award. Career Development Plan: Likelihood that the career development plan will contribute substantially to the scientific development of the candidates; Likelihood that the career development program of the candidates will result in preparing investigators who will contribute to the goals of the Human Brain Project; Appropriateness of the content, the phasing, and the proposed duration of the career development plan for achieving scientific independence for the prospective candidates; Consistency of the career development plan with prospective candidate's career goals; and Quality of the training in the responsible conduct of research. Research Opportunities and Mentors: Availability of research opportunities appropriate to the purpose of this program; Commitment of proposed mentors to the requisite interdisciplinary training in neuroinformatics; and Previous experience of the mentors in fostering the development of researchers. Environment: Applicant institution's commitment to the scientific development of the candidate(s); and assurances that the institution intends the program and the supported candidate(s) to be an integral part of its research program; In addition to the above criteria, in accordance with NIH policy, all applications will also be reviewed with respect to the following: the reasonableness of the proposed budget and duration in relation to the goals of the program; the adequacy of plans to include both genders, minorities and their subgroups, and children as appropriate for the scientific goals of the research, and plans for the recruitment and retention of subjects; adequacy of the provisions for the protection of human and animal subjects; and the safety of the research environment. AWARD CRITERIA Applications will compete for available funds with all other recommended 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. POST-AWARD MANAGEMENT The FICC-HBP committee maintains a WWW site containing information about this and related programs and activities. Each funded grant application will be listed and briefly described and hotlinks provided to connect interested parties to the grantees web site that should provide greater details about research activities and the state and availability of research tools and products. In addition, grantees are expected to participate in the Annual Spring Human Brain Project Meeting of Agencies and Grantees. These meetings will promote communications among different groups of investigators, who are involved in research, curricula development, and career development and/or other cross-training activities in Neuroinformatics. Therefore, budget requests should include travel funds for the principal investigator and other relevant individuals supported under this program announcement to attend this meeting in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area. INQUIRIES Inquiries are encouraged. The opportunity to clarify any issues or questions regarding an application from potential applicants is welcome. The FICC-HBP representatives from each of the participating agencies, institutes and center can be contacted for further information or clarification. Potential applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the agency or institute representative to discuss their plans prior to preparing an application. General programmatic inquiries regarding the Human Brain Project/ Neuroinformatics program may be directed to the chair of the coordinating committee: Stephen H. Koslow, Ph.D. Office on Neuroinformatics National Institute of Mental Health 6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 6167, MSC 9613 Bethesda, MD 20892-9613 Telephone: (301) 443-1815 Fax: (301) 443-1867 Email: koz@helix.nih.gov Inquiries regarding fiscal matters may be directed to: Diana S. Trunnell Grants Management Branch National Institute of Mental Health 6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 6120, MSC 9605 Bethesda, MD 20892-9605 Telephone: (301) 443-3065 FAX: (301) 443-6885 Email: dtrunnel@mail.nih.gov Questions regarding scientific issues, management issues, issues on cores related to participating Institutes and Centers (ICs), and fiscal matters should be directed to the programmatic and fiscal contacts for each participating IC. A current list of the contacts for the participating ICs may be found at: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/neuroinformatics/agencycontacts.cfm. AUTHORITY AND REGULATIONS This program is described in the Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance Nos. 93.281 (NIMH), 93.279 (NIDA), 47.074 (NSF), 93.866 (NIA), 93.865 (NICHD), 93.173 (NIDCD), 93.879 (NLM), 93.934 (FIC), 93.273 (NIAAA), and 93.838 (NHLBI). 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 as implemented through Department of Health and Human Services regulations at 45 CFR part 100 or Health Systems Agency Review. Awards by PHS agencies will be administered under PHS grants policy as stated in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, October 1, 1998. PHS strongly encourages all grant and contract recipients to provide a smoke- free workplace and promote the nonuse 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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