DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE - CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED MEDICAL RESEARCH PROGRAMS
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NEWS RELEASE

Released: April 19, 2011

Department of Defense Autism Research Program
Funding Opportunities for Fiscal Year 2011

The Department of Defense Autism Research Program's (ARP) vision is to improve the lives of individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) now. This program is administered by the US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command through the Office of the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP).

The information in this pre-announcement is being provided to allow investigators time to plan and develop applications if funds become available. This pre-announcement should not be construed as an obligation by the government.

Award Mechanism Principal Investigator Eligibility Key Requirements FY11 Areas of Interest (Encouraged) Funding
Clinical Trial Award Independent investigators at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent)
  • Funds clinical trials relevant to ASD
  • Preclinical data required for all clinical trial applications
  • Preproposal is required; full application submission is by invitation only
  • Pharmacological interventions across the lifespan
  • Complementary and alternative medicine
  • Behavioral interventions for school-age children, adolescents, and adults
  • Treatment of comorbid conditions in school-age children, adolescents, and adults
  • Maximum funding: $1,000,000 in direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 4 years
Idea Development Award Investigators at all academic levels (or equivalent)
  • Funds the development of innovative, high-impact ideas that advance the understanding of ASD and lead to improved outcomes
  • Preliminary data are required, but do not have to be from the ASD research field
  • Clinical trials are not allowed
  • May have up to three investigators collaborating on a single proposal, each of whom will be recognized as a Principal Investigator and receive a separate award
  • Preproposal is required; full application submission is by invitation only
  • Studies that lead to improved subgrouping of individuals with ASD to inform on the mechanisms, natural history, and response to treatment. For example:
    • Biomarkers
    • Risk factors including, but not limited to perinatal, infectious, and environmental exposures, and gene-environment interactions
    • Comorbid medical and behavioral conditions
    • Sex ratio
  • Identification of therapeutic targets, excluding new gene discovery
  • Studies that leverage existing biological samples, clinical populations, and databases to provide power to test ideas
  • Studies that address comorbid conditions in school-age children, adolescents, and adults
  • Multidisciplinary collaborations between groups are encouraged. For example:
    • Special education
    • Biomedical science Clinicians
  • Maximum funding: $375,000 in direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • If collaborating, total maximum combined funding for all collaborating Principal Investigators is $375,000 in direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years
Pilot Award Investigators at all academic levels (or equivalent)
  • Funds the initial exploration of innovative, untested questions or ideas that advance the understanding of ASD and lead to improved outcomes
  • Preliminary data are not allowed
  • Clinical trials are not allowed
  • Projects involving human subjects or human biological substances must be either exempt under Title 32, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 219, Section 101(b) (32 CFR 219.101(b)) or eligible for expedited review (32 CFR 219.110 or 21 CFR 56.110)
  • Studies that lead to improved subgrouping of individuals with ASD to inform on the mechanisms, natural history, and response to treatment. For example:
    • Biomarkers
    • Risk factors including, but not limited to perinatal, infectious, environmental exposures, and gene-environment interactions
    • Comorbid medical and behavioral conditions
    • Sex ratio
  • Identification of therapeutic targets, excluding new gene discovery
  • Studies that leverage existing biological samples, clinical populations, and databases to provide power to test ideas
  • Maximum funding of $100,000 in direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 2 years

All applications must conform to the final program announcements and application instructions that will be available for electronic downloading from the Grants.gov website. The application package will be made available on the Grants.gov website if funds become available.

A pre-application is required and must be submitted through the CDMRP eReceipt website (http://cdmrp.org) prior to full application submission. A listing of all USAMRMC funding opportunities can be obtained on the Grants.gov website by performing a basic search using CFDA Number 12.420.

Requests for email notification of the release of program announcements may be sent to Help@cdmrp.org. For more information about the ARP or other CDMRP-sponsored programs, please visit the CDMRP website (https://cdmrp.health.mil).

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