Sharing Model Organisms

Purpose

To require investigators to include a plan for sharing unique model organisms in their grant application or contract proposal.

Procedure

Investigators who are applying for a grant or contract and plan to produce new, genetically modified variants of model organisms must include a plan for sharing these organisms. See the May 7, 2004 and the September 10, 2004, NIH Guide notices for more detailed guidance.

Applicants

• Include a plan for sharing and distributing unique model organism research resources generated using NIH funding in your application, or provide reasons why such sharing is restricted or not possible.
  • Describe your plan -- or justification for its absence -- in your Research Plan section. It is in the Resource Sharing Plan attachment to the PHS 398 Research Plan form (for an electronic application) or PHS 398 Section i (for a paper application). The plan does not count toward the page limit.
• Specify if or how you will exercise your intellectual property rights. Work with your institution's office of technology transfer or other appropriate office on addressing requirements.
• You may request funds to defray reasonable costs associated with sharing materials or data. Highlight in your budget your request for funds to distribute animals or other resources, or to prepare, document, and archive associated data.
• If you are responding to an RFA or RFP, you should check the announcement to see if there are additional requirements.
• For noncompeting continuation applications, document resource sharing in your annual progress reports by indicating the number of requests received and fulfilled.
• For more information on writing a plan, see the central NIH Sharing Policies and Related Guidance. See Frequently Asked Questions on the NIH Model Organisms for Biomedical Research site and our HTML version of NIH's sample plans: Complex Model Organism Sharing Plan, Model Organism Sharing Plan for Mice, and Simple Model Organism Sharing Plan.

Program Officers

• Oversee the NIH policy on sharing unique model organisms, and assess the appropriateness and adequacy of the investigators' proposed plans. For guidance, scroll to NIH's question 40. What should be addressed in my sharing plan?
• Direct investigators to existing repositories or national coordinating centers.
• When evaluating noncompeting continuation applications, consider adequate progress in model organism sharing and a willingness to make research resources widely available as part of the criteria for continued funding.
• Use sharing language in the boilerplate for RFAs, RFPs, and PAs (see link below).

Grants Management Specialists

• If any issues regarding an applicant's sharing organisms plan are not resolved, add a term of award to the Notice of Award.

Contracting Officers

• Work with offerors to ensure steps similar to those described above are taken before award.

Scientific Review Officers

• Request that reviewers describe their assessment of sharing plans so you can prepare an administrative note.
• Ensure that peer reviewers do not factor model organism plans into their priority scores unless responding to RFAs or RFPs directed to the development of model organisms. In that case, ask reviewers to integrate their evaluation of sharing plans with other peer review criteria and factor their assessment into the overall evaluation of scientific merit.

Contacts

Applicants with questions should Contact Staff for Help.

Offerors with questions should ask the primary contact listed in the RFP. See the NIAID RFP list or Office of Acquisitions staff listing.

Contact for NIAID Staff

If you have knowledge to share or want more information on this topic, email deaweb@niaid.nih.gov with the title of this page or its URL and your question or comment. Thanks for helping us clarify and expand our knowledge base.

Links

Data Sharing for Grants: Final Research Data SOP

Data Sharing for Grants: Genome-Wide Association Studies SOP

NIAID's Grant Application portal

Grant Application, Electronic SOP

Grant Application, Paper SOP

Grant Application Guide for your Grant Application Package (for electronic application)

Research Plan Instructions (for paper application)

What Resources Do You Need to Share? in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal

Sharing Model Organisms questions and answers

Submission Guidelines and Templates for Publications in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts