The FY18 Defense Appropriations provides $3.2 million (M) to the Department of Defense Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Research Program (DMDRP) to support innovative, high-impact Duchenne muscular dystrophy research.  As directed by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, the Defense Health Agency, J9 Research and Development Directorate manages the Defense Health Program Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation appropriation.  The managing agent for the anticipated Program Announcements/Funding Opportunities is the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) at the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (USAMRMC).

Career Development Award – Letter of Intent due November 14, 2018

Principal Investigator:  Must be an independent, early-career research (Ph.D.) or physician (M.D.) scientist at a minimum 2 years post completion of his/her terminal degree early stage of their research careers with a minimum of 2 years post terminal degree (excluding medical residency or family medical leave).   The PI’s record of accomplishments and the proposed research will be evaluated regarding his/her potential for contributing to the field of Duchenne research.  The PI’s institution must commit a minimum of 30% protected time to the PI for the Duchenne research.
Mentor:  Must be an experience muscular dystrophy researcher as demonstrated by a strong record of funding and publications in muscular dystrophy research.  The mentor must demonstrate a commitment to developing the PI’s career in Duchenne research.

·         Supports early-career investigators to conduct impactful Duchenne research under the mentorship of an experienced muscular dystrophy researcher.

·         Clinical trials are not allowed.

• Preliminary data are required.

·         Maximum funding of $275,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs).

• Period of performance not to exceed 2 years.

A pre-application is required and must be submitted through the electronic Biomedical Research Application Portal (eBRAP) at https://eBRAP.org prior to the pre-application deadline.  All applications must conform to the final Program Announcements and General Application Instructions available for electronic downloading from the Grants.gov website.  The application package containing the required forms for each award mechanism will also be found on Grants.gov.  A listing of all CDMRP funding opportunities can be obtained on the Grants.gov website by performing a basic search using CFDA Number 12.420.

The FY18 Defense Appropriations provides $3.2 million (M) to the Department of Defense Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Research Program (DMDRP) to support innovative, high-impact Duchenne muscular dystrophy research.  As directed by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, the Defense Health Agency, J9 Research and Development Directorate manages the Defense Health Program Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation appropriation.  The managing agent for the anticipated Program Announcements/Funding Opportunities is the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) at the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (USAMRMC).

Investigator-Initiated Research Award – Preproposal due August 29, 2018

• Principal Investigator:  Must be an independent investigator at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent).
  
  Optional Nested Resident or Medical Student Trainee: Resident trainee must be enrolled in an accredited residency program.  Medical student trainee must be enrolled in a nationally accredited (or equivalent) medical school.  Trainees must be able to devote a minimum of 40% level of effort.

·         Optional Interdisciplinary Collaborator (OIC):  Must be an independent investigator at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent), whose primary training, research, and experience is in a different field than the PI.  The collaborator is required to devote a minimum of 10% level of effort to this project.

·         Supports translational research that will have an impact on improving the function and quality of life, and extending the lifespan for all individuals with Duchenne.

·         Supports translational research that will accelerate the movement of promising new ideas in Duchenne research into clinical applications.

·         Optional Interdisciplinary Collaborator: Supports projects that include interdisciplinary collaborations that bring new perspectives from other disciplines and/or bring new investigators into the Duchenne field that through their collaboration the team can undertake conceptually and technically novel approaches that would be less likely to succeed if undertaken by a more narrowly focused group of investigators. Applications that include an OIC who meets criteria identified in the Program Announcement/Funding Opportunity may apply for a higher level of funding.

·         Clinical trials are allowed.

·         Preliminary data are required.

·         Maximum funding of $600,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs).

·         Period of performance not to exceed 3 years.

·         Optional Nested Traineeship: Additional maximum of $50,000 for residents or $30,000 for medical students in direct costs (plus indirect costs) over a one-year period of performance.

·         Optional Interdisciplinary Collaborator:  Additional maximum of $150,000 in direct costs over the 3-year period of performance.

The FY18 Defense Appropriations Act provides $15 million (M) to the Department of Defense Peer Reviewed Alzheimer’s Research Program (PRARP) to supportresearch which addresses the long-term consequences of traumatic brain injury (TBI) as they pertain to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and related dementias (ADRD).  As directed by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, the Defense Health Agency (DHA) J9, Research and Development Directorate manages the Defense Health Program (DHP) Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) appropriation.  The managing agent for the anticipated Program Announcements/Funding Opportunities is the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP).

FY18 PRARP Program Announcements and General Application Instructions for the following award mechanisms are posted on the Grants.gov website

FY18 PRARP Overarching Challenges and Focus Areas:

All applications for FY18 PRARP funding opportunities must address at least one of the following FY18 Overarching Challenges.  The FY18 Overarching Challenges may be mechanism-specific. 

FY18 PRARP Overarching Challenges are listed below.

In addition to addressing one or more of the specified FY18 Overarching Challenges, applications should also address at least one of the following FY18 Focus Areas in support of the FY18 Overarching Challenges.  An application that proposes research outside of the FY18 Focus Areas is acceptable, as long as the applicant provides a strong rationale.  The Focus Areas will be mechanism-specific.

The PRARP FY18 Focus Areas are listed below.

The following is a summary of the FY18 PRARP Program Announcements.  Four award mechanisms will be offered for FY18. 

http://cdmrp.army.mil/funding/prarp

Convergence Science Research Award – Letter of Intent due September 20, 2018

Principal Investigators (PIs) at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent).

Intent:  Support efforts to generate research resources, tools, or novel research efforts for researchers and/or practitioners in health sciences.

Applications must address one or more of the following FY18 PRARP Overarching Challenges:

·         Paucity of Research Resources

·         Paucity of Clinical Studies

·         Diagnostic Technologies, Tests, Biomarkers, or Devices

·         Epidemiology

Applications should address at least one of the following FY18 PRARP Focus Areas:

·         Mechanisms of Pathogenesis

·         Biomarkers

·         Epidemiological Research

·         Novel Target Identification

Research considering pharmacologic interventions is specifically discouraged under this mechanism.

Preliminary data, while not required, are encouraged.

·         Maximum funding is $500,000 for direct costs (plus indirect costs).

·         Maximum period of performance is 3 years.

·         Indirect costs may be proposed in accordance with the institution’s rate agreement.

Quality of Life Research Award (QUAL) – Letter of Intent due September 20, 2018

PIs at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent).

Intent:  The intent of the QUAL mechanism is to support preclinical, basic, epidemiological, or quality-of-life research to alleviate or characterize the common symptoms of TBI and AD/ADRD.

Applications must address one or more of the following FY18 PRARP Overarching Challenges:

·         Paucity of Clinical Studies

·         Epidemiology

·         Quality of Life

·         Caregiver Support

Applications should address at least one of the following FY18 PRARP Focus Areas:

·         Biomarkers

·         Quality of Life

·         Caregiver Support

·         Nonpharmacological Interventions

·         Epidemiological Research

Research considering pharmacologic interventions is specifically discouraged under this mechanism.

Preliminary data, while not required, are encouraged.

• Funding limit is $500,000 in direct costs.
• Maximum period of performance is 3 years.

·         Indirect costs may be proposed in accordance with the institution’s rate agreement.

New Investigator Award – Letter of Intent due September 20, 2018

The PI must be an independent, early-career investigator within 3 years of his/her first independent faculty position (or equivalent).

Intent:  Support early-career investigators interested in novel research efforts or new technologies within TBI and AD/ADRD.

Applications must address one or more of the following FY18 PRARP Overarching Challenges:

·         Paucity of Research Resources

·         Paucity of Clinical Studies

·         Diagnostic Technologies, Tests, Biomarkers, or Devices

·         Epidemiology

·         Quality of Life

·         Caregiver Support

Applications should address at least one of the following FY18 PRARP Focus Areas:

·         Mechanisms of Pathogenesis

·         Biomarkers

·         Quality of Life

·         Caregiver Support

·         Epidemiological Research

·         Novel Target Identification

·         Nonpharmacological Interventions

Research considering pharmacologic interventions is specifically discouraged under this mechanism.

Preliminary data, while not required, are encouraged.

·         Funding limit is $225,000 in direct costs.

·         Maximum period of performance is 3 years.

·         Indirect costs may be proposed in accordance with the institution’s rate agreement.

Research Partnership Award – Letter of Intent due September 20, 2018

The PI must be an independent investigator at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent).

Intent:  To create an avenue for partnerships between investigators to address a research problem or question in a manner that would be unachievable through separate efforts.

Applications must include clearly stated plans for interactions between the partners. The plans must include communication, coordination of research progress and results, and data sharing between all investigators and organizations participating in the project.

Applications must address one or more of the following FY18 PRARP Overarching Challenges:

·         Paucity of Research Resources

·         Paucity of Clinical Studies

·         Diagnostic Technologies, Tests, Biomarkers, or Devices

·         Epidemiology

·         Quality of Life

·         Caregiver Support

Applications should address at least one of the following FY18 PRARP Focus Areas:

·         Mechanisms of Pathogenesis

·         Biomarkers

·         Quality of Life

·         Caregiver Support

·         Epidemiological Research

·         Novel Target Identification

·         Nonpharmacological Interventions

Research considering pharmacologic interventions is specifically discouraged under this mechanism.

Preliminary data are required.

·         Funding limit is $1.3M in total costs.

·         Maximum period of performance is 3 years.

·         Indirect costs may be proposed in accordance with the institution’s rate agreement.

A pre-application is required and must be submitted through the electronic Biomedical Research Application Portal (eBRAP) at https://eBRAP.org prior to the pre-application deadline.  All applications must conform to the final Program Announcements and General Application Instructions that are available for electronic downloading from the Grants.gov website.  The application package containing the required forms for each award mechanism is also found on Grants.gov.  A listing of all CDMRP funding opportunities can be obtained on the Grants.gov website by performing a basic search using CFDA Number 12.420.

Applications must be submitted through the federal government’s single-entry portal, Grants.gov.  For email notification when Program Announcements are released, subscribe to program-specific news and updates under “Email Subscriptions” on the eBRAP homepage at https://eBRAP.org.  For more information about the PRARP or other CDMRP-administered programs, please visit the CDMRP website (http://cdmrp.army.mil).

Point of Contact:

CDMRP Help Desk
301-682-5507
heklp@eBrap.org

‘Increasing and enhancing research-led anti-doping education’ is one of WADA’s strategic priorities. Accordingly, WADA’s Education Committee is tasked with identifying relevant areas of social science research in the field of anti-doping to inform more effective doping prevention strategies. WADA-supported research requires that anti-doping education programs and initiatives are grounded in scientific knowledge and evidence. Proposals are invited for research that specifically ‘measures the effectiveness of existing anti-doping strategies and interventions’.

It should be noted that, proposals that demonstrate partnerships and collaboration between research institutions and anti-doping organizations will be looked upon favorably during the decision-making process. Similarly, interdisciplinary proposals drawing from multiple social science fields (e.g., sociology, psychology, law, economics, and management science) are encouraged. 

All proposals responding to the terms and conditions of this Call will be evaluated by external peer-reviewers, whose recommendations will be reviewed by WADA’s Social Science Research Project Review Panel and the Education Committee for recommendation to the Agency’s Executive Committee. Applicants will be notified of the results at the end of 2018.

For further information regarding the 2018 Program, including the application process, please refer to the Social Science Research section of WADA’s website and the welcome page and FAQ section of the WADAGrants platform.