In this Issue:
1. Funding Opportunities
2. NIDCR News
3. HHS/NIH News
4. Science Advances
5. NIDCR Personnel News
FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENTS
Clinical Research/Clinical Trials
Health Literacy
REQUESTS FOR APPLICATIONS
Biotechnology/Biomaterials
Genetics and Developmental Biology
Neurobiology/Pain
NIH Roadmap
Don't Forget....Only Electronic Submissions Will be Accepted for R01s Beginning February 2007
Electronic R01s
February 2007
New form... New process...
The time is now to find out how...
Big Changes for R01 Applicants
For the February 5, 2007 R01 receipt date and beyond...
Learn More
See full details on the new process |
Online Technical Assistance Meeting for Applications to RFA-RM-07-004
On Tuesday, November 28 from 2:00 - 3:00 (EST), the NIH will hold a pre-application "virtual" meeting to provide technical assistance for applications to RFA-RM-07-004 (Facilitating Interdisciplinary Research via Methodological and Technological Innovation in the Behavioral and Social Sciences). Attendees must pre-register for this web-based meeting.
Change in Standing Receipt Dates for NIH/AHRQ/NIOSH Beginning in January 2007
Effective January 1, 2007, there will be a change in standard receipt dates for grant applications submitted to NIH, AHRQ and NIOSH. NIH/AHRQ Now Using Version 2 of SF424 (R &R) and Agency-Specific Electronic Forms for SBIR/STTR, Conferences/Scientific Meetings, and Other Specific Funding Opportunities. See additional details about the new receipt dates.
Concept Clearances
Concepts represent early planning stages for initiatives in which NIDCR seeks to support research in an understudied and significant area of science. The following concept clearances were approved at the September meeting of the National Advisory Dental and Craniofacial Research Council:
- Oral Health Education Scholars Program
- Systems Approach to Salivary Gland Biology
- Translational Application of Gene Silencing to Oral and Craniofacial Diseases and Disorders
- Oral Mucosal Vaccination Against HIV Infection
- Osteoimmunology – Crosstalk Between Immune System and Bone
NIDCR NEWS
Interview with NIDCR Director
NIDCR Director Lawrence Tabak recently spoke to the Inside Scoop about the Institute, its budgetary prospects, and some of the challenges that lie ahead for the dental and oral health research community. See the complete interview with Dr. Tabak.
Blue Ribbon Panel Completes Report on NIDCR Intramural Research Program
The final report of a Blue Ribbon Panel that reviewed the NIDCR intramural research program was accepted by the National Advisory Dental and Craniofacial Research Council in September 2006.
Applications Accepted for 2007 NIDCR Summer Dental Student Award
To expose future dentists to research careers, NIDCR offers an outstanding summer research training opportunity for dental students. The NIDCR Summer Dental Student Award is designed to give talented dental students exposure to the latest advances in oral health research. Selected candidates will be assigned to mentors who conduct research in the students’ areas of interest. Participation in the program may result in presentation of research findings at a scientific meeting or co-authorship of scientific publications. The online application deadline is January 15, 2007. See additional information on how to apply for the NIDCR Summer Dental Student Award. Contact Dr. Deborah Philp, program director, dphilp@dir.nidcr.nih.gov, (301) 594-6578.
Dr. Barry R. Bloom to Deliver Barmes Global Health Lecture
The NIDCR and the Fogarty International Center jointly announce the 2006 David E. Barmes Global Health Lecture. Barry R. Bloom, Ph.D., Dean of the Harvard School of Public Health and Joan L. and Julius H. Jacobson Professor of Public Health, will present a talk entitled, "Agendas and Architecture of Global Health Research." The lecture will take place on December 4, 2006 from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. in Masur Auditorium, NIH Building 10, Bethesda, MD. The annual lecture series honors the late David E. Barmes, a long-standing World Health Organization employee, special expert for international health in the NIDCR Office of International Health, and ardent spokesman for global health. See additional details about the Barmes lecture.
NIDCR to Sponsor Symposium Honoring Dr. Cohen
A symposium honoring Dr. Lois K. Cohen, former NIDCR associate director for international health who recently retired from government service, will be held December 11. The symposium, entitled "The Integral Role of Behavioral and Social Sciences in a Systems Approach to Oral Health Research: A Tribute to Dr. Lois K. Cohen," will take place 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon in the Lipsett Amphitheater in Building 10 on the NIH campus.
NIDCR-Affiliated Researchers Receive Prestigious MacArthur Fellowships
Two NIDCR-affiliated investigators--Drs. Kenneth Catania and Linda Griffith--were among the 2006 recipients of MacArthur Fellowships, more commonly known as "genius grants." The fellowships are awarded annually by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to a broad range of individuals, "for their creativity, originality and potential to make important contributions in the future." NIDCR grantee Kenneth Catania, a comparative neurobiologist from Vanderbilt University, is studying the cortical representation of dentition in naked mole rats and plasticity after tooth loss. Dr. Linda Griffith, a bioengineer at MIT, is an outgoing member of the NIDCR National Advisory Dental and Craniofacial Research Council. At the intersection of materials science, cell surface chemistry, physiology, and anatomy, Griffith is extending the limits of biomedical engineering and its applications for diagnosing disease and regenerating damaged organs.
HHS/NIH NEWS
NIH Seeks Input on Shortening R01 Research Plan Section
NIH is considering a reduction to the 25-page limit for the Research Plan section of the R01 application. Grant applicants and reviewers are encouraged to offer their opinions about the possible change by responding to a Request for Information. Responses will be accepted until January 5, 2007.
NIH Extends Comment Period for Proposed Policy for Sharing of Data Obtained in NIH Supported or Conducted Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS)
On August 30, NIH issued a notice to seek public comments regarding NIH's proposed policy for the creation of a centralized NIH GWAS data repository. The comment period has now been extended until November 30, 2006. See more details about GWAS.
NIH Launches National Consortium to Transform Clinical Research
On October 3, NIH Director Elias Zerhouni announced the launch of a national consortium that will transform how clinical and translational research is conducted, ultimately enabling researchers to provide new treatments more efficiently and quickly to patients. This new consortium, funded through Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSAs), begins with 12 academic health centers located throughout the nation. An additional 52 academic health centers are receiving planning grants to help them prepare applications to join the consortium. When fully implemented in 2012, about 60 institutions will be linked together to energize the discipline of clinical and translational science. A second round of CTSA applications is due to the NIH on January 17, 2007.
From the Desk of NIH Director Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D.
See the NIH Director’s latest newsletter.
NIH Director Announces 2007 Pioneer Award Competition
Dr. Zerhouni has launched a new round of competition for the NIH Director’s Pioneer Award. This signature program supports exceptionally creative scientists who take highly innovative -- and potentially transformative -- approaches to major challenges in biomedical research. Each Pioneer Award provides $2.5 million in direct costs over five years. Scientists at all career levels and engaged in any field of research may apply for the Pioneer Award as long as they are interested in exploring biomedically relevant topics. See the Pioneer Award application instructions.
NIH Funds Largest Long-term Study of Health and Disease in Hispanic/Latino Populations
Seven NIH components—including the NIDCR—are conducting the largest long-term epidemiological study of health and disease in Latin American populations living in the United States. As many as 16,000 participants of Hispanic/Latino origin — 4,000 at each of four sites — will undergo a series of physical examinations and interviews to help identify the prevalence of and risk factors for a wide variety of diseases, disorders, and conditions. Participants in the Hispanic Community Health Study range in age from 18 to 74 years and will be followed over time for occurrence of disease.
The study contracts total $61 million over 6 ½ years. The primary funding agency is the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. In addition to NIDCR, the National Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities, the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements are participating.
NIH Grantees Win 2006 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for Discovering Powerful Gene Silencer
The 2006 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine is shared by two long-time NIH grantees, Andrew Z. Fire, Ph.D., of Stanford University School of Medicine and Craig C. Mello, Ph.D., of the University of Massachusetts Medical School. The two researchers are honored for their discovery of RNA interference, a mechanism for silencing genes that could lead to new disease treatments. The NIH’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences began supporting the work of Fire in 1987 and Mello in 1999. See additional details about the Nobel Prize.
NIH Grantee Wins 2006 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for Discovering How Genes Produce Proteins
The 2006 Nobel Prize in chemistry was awarded to long-time NIH grantee, Roger D. Kornberg, Ph.D., of the Stanford University School of Medicine for his studies of how genetic information is transcribed into RNA, which is translated to make proteins, molecules essential to life. The NIH components that funded the prize-winning scientist are the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and the National Cancer Institute. See additional information about the Nobel Prize.
Public-Private Partnership Forms the Biomarkers Consortium to Advance the Science of Personalized Medicine
On October 5, The Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH), NIH, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) announced the launch of a major public-private biomedical research partnership called The Biomarkers Consortium. This unique partnership will design and perform clinical studies to validate biological markers to accelerate the delivery of successful new technologies, medicines, and therapies for prevention, early detection, diagnosis, and treatment of disease. The first projects will focus on lymphoma, lung cancer, depression and diabetes.
PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals
Grantee adherence to the PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals is a term and condition of all PHS grant or contract awards that include use of live, vertebrate animals. Questions and answers have been developed to provide guidance for institutions and Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees (IACUCs) as they implement the PHS Policy. See FAQs about the policy.
SCIENCE ADVANCES
Study Finds Periodontal Treatment Does Not Lower Preterm Birth Risk
Researchers Report Initial Success in Promising New Approach to Prevent Tooth Decay
Gene Offers New Lead in Cleft Lip and Palate Research
Science News in Brief
Information about the following topics is available at NIDCR’s Science News in Brief:
- New Route of Pain Transmission Discovered
- Gene Identified as Cause of Recently Discovered Craniofacial Abnormality
- Drug Shows Promise in Laboratory as Treatment for Oral Cancer
- Scientists Clarify Primary Source of Protein Associated With Periodontal Disease
- Study Details Process Involved in Inflammatory Resolution
- Elusive Sour Taste Cells Identified
NIDCR PERSONNEL NEWS
NIDCR Deputy Director Dr. Dushanka Kleinman to Retire
Dr. Dushanka Kleinman, deputy director at the NIDCR, will retire from government service on January 1 to assume the position of associate dean for research and academic affairs, College of Health and Human Performance, University of Maryland-College Park. She will also have an appointment as professor in the Epidemiology and Biostatistics Department of the College, which is transitioning to a School of Public Health. Dr. Kleinman has served in the government for 28 years -- 26 of those years at NIDCR. She joined the (then) NIDR in 1980, and during her early career at the Institute conducted research on oral mucosal tissue diseases and conditions, directed planning and evaluation activities, and managed the Institute’s epidemiology and oral disease prevention program. She was named deputy director in 1991 and since that time has also assumed the role of Institute acting director twice during transitions between directors. A rear admiral in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, Dr. Kleinman was named Chief Dental Officer, USPHS in 2001, the first woman to hold that position since it was established in 1923.
- Dr. Alicia Dombroski has been appointed deputy director of the NIDCR Division of Extramural Activities. Previously, Dr. Dombroski was a health scientist administrator in the Office of Biodefense Research Affairs, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) since 2002, where she played a leading role in planning and building NIAID’s biodefense program. She also was a scientific review administrator at the NIH Center for Scientific Review. Prior to joining NIH, Dr. Dombroski was a tenured associate professor of microbiology and molecular genetics at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston.
Dr. Henning Birkedal-Hansen will continue to serve as acting director of the Division of Extramural Activities while day-to-day operation of the division will be the responsibility of the new deputy director.
- Dr. Donald Denucci has joined the NIDCR and assumed programmatic responsibility for the Institute’s Practice Based Research Networks. Dr. Denucci is a periodontist with many years of dental practice experience with the Army and Veterans Administration (VA). Most recently he was involved with the VA general practice residency program in Washington, D.C. His specific research interest is in clinical studies of chronic pain. In the past he collaborated with NIDCR intramural researchers on pain studies.