Biomedical Engineering  (BME)

PROGRAM GUIDELINES

A revised version of the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG), NSF 09-1, was issued on October 1, 2008 and is effective for proposals submitted on or after January 5, 2009. Please be advised that the guidelines contained in NSF 09-1 apply to proposals submitted in response to this funding opportunity.  Proposers who opt to submit prior to January 5^th, 2009, must also follow the guidelines contained in NSF 09-1.

One of the most significant changes to the PAPPG is implementation of the mentoring provisions of the America COMPETES Act.  Each proposal that requests funding to support postdoctoral researchers must include, as a separate section within the 15-page project description, a description of the mentoring activities that will be provided for such individuals.  Proposals that do not include a separate section on mentoring activities within the Project Description will be returned without review (see the PAPP Guide Part I: Grant Proposal Guide Chapter II.C.2.d for further information).

Apply to PD 09-5345 as follows:

For full proposals submitted via FastLane: standard Grant Proposal Guidelines apply.
For full proposals submitted via Grants.gov: NSF Grants.gov Application Guide; A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of NSF Applications via Grants.gov Guidelines apply (Note: The NSF Grants.gov Application Guide is available on the Grants.gov website and on the NSF website at: http://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/docs/grantsgovguide.pdf)

DUE DATES

SYNOPSIS

TEMPORARY NOTICE:  Program Synopses Changes may occur after the close of the February 1 to March 2, 2009 Window-of-Opportunity.

An additional CBET program may be added to the Biomedical Engineering and Engineering Healthcare cluster.  This potential program may include topics such as:  biosensing, imaging and food processing - - which are all currently handled by existing CBET programs.

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The mission of the Biomedical Engineering (BME) Program is to

• Provide opportunities to develop novel ideas into discovery-level and transformative projects that integrate engineering and life science principles in solving biomedical problems that serve humanity in the long-term
   
• Advance both engineering and life sciences with biomedical engineering projects that are at the interface of engineering and biomedical sciences

The BME program supports fundamental, transformative, and discovery research applied to biological systems.  The BME projects must

• Be fundamental, transformative, and discovery research
   
• Develop novel ideas integrating engineering and life science principles in solving biomedical problems that serve humanity in the long-term
   
• Focus on high impact transforming methods and technologies and include
  
      –  Methods, models and tools of understanding and controlling
          of living systems
  
      –  Fundamental improvements in deriving information from
          cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems
  
      –  New approaches to the design of structures and materials
          for eventual medical use
  
      –  Information technology relevant to biotechnology including
          bioinformatics
  
      –  New novel methods of reducing health care costs through
          new technologies
   
• Emphasize the advancement of fundamental engineering knowledge, possibly leading to the development of new methods and technologies in the long-term
   
• Emphasize novel application of existing technologies to advance fundamental knowledge of both engineering and life sciences
   
• Highlight multi-disciplinary nature, integrating engineering and the life sciences
   
• Balance theory, mathematical modeling, and experiment
   
• Advance both engineering and life sciences at the discovery-level

The BME program supports projects in the following BME themes:

• Neural engineering (brain science, computational neuroscience, neurotech, cognitive engineering)
   
• Computational modeling, multiscale modeling, biocomplexity
   
• Cardio/pulmonary systems engineering
   
• Gene and drug delivery systems
   
• Cellular and tissue engineering (cellular biomechanics, genetically engineered stem cell differentiation with long-term impact in tissue repair and regenerative medicine)
   
• Biomaterials and biomimetics

BME Program requirement: On the last line of the project summary page, the PI must write the BME theme(s) that he/she is submitting the proposal for.  (Please check the list above to determine the BME theme(s) for your proposal.)

Answers to frequently asked questions:

• The Biomedical Engineering (BME) program supports fundamental, transformative, and discovery research applied to biological systems.
   
• Integration of engineering expertise with life science principles is an essential requirement for advances in this field.
   
• Projects submitted to the BME Program must advance both engineering and life sciences and be at the interface of engineering and life sciences.
   
• The projects can have diagnosis or treatment-related goals in the long-term.  The BME program does not support clinical studies.
   
• The long-term impact of the projects can be related to disease diagnosis and/or treatment, improved health care delivery, or product development.

The duration of unsolicited awards is generally one to three years.  The typical award size for the program is $100,000 for individual investigators or $200,000 for multiple investigators per year (including indirect cost).  Small equipment proposals up to $100,000 will also be considered and may be submitted during the submission windows.  Any proposal received outside the announced dates will be returned without review.

The duration of CAREER awards is five years.  The submission deadline for Engineering CAREER proposals is in July every year.  Please see the following URL for more information: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2005/nsf05027/nsf05027.jsp 

Proposals for Conferences, Workshops, and Supplements may be submitted at any time, but must be discussed with the program director before submission.

Grants for Rapid Response Research (RAPID) and EArly-concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) replace the SGER program.  Please note that proposals of these types must be discussed with the program director before submission.  Further details are available in the PAPPG download, available below. 

Please refer to the Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG), January 2009, (NSF 09-1) when you prepare your proposal.  The PAPPG is available for download at: http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf091
 

THIS PROGRAM IS PART OF

Biomedical Engineering and Engineering Healthcare

Abstracts of Recent Awards Made Through This Program

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