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Spinal Cord Injury

NEWS RELEASE

Released: February 19, 2025

Department of Defense
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP)
Spinal Cord Injury Research Program
Anticipated Funding Opportunities for Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25)

The FY25 Defense Appropriations Bill has not been signed into law. The CDMRP is unable to release new funding opportunities under the current Continuing Resolution. The CDMRP is providing pre-announcement information to allow investigators time to plan and develop ideas for submission to anticipated funding opportunities should the CDMRP receive FY25 appropriations. Pre-announcements should not be construed as an obligation or promise by the government. Once funding is available, CDMRP funding opportunities will be posted on the Grants.gov website. Pre-application and application deadlines will be available when opportunities are released, contingent upon future funding.

The FY25 Defense Appropriations Act is anticipated to provide funding for the Spinal Cord Injury Research Program (SCIRP) to support innovative, high-impact spinal cord injury (SCI) research. The CDMRP at the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command (USAMRDC) is the program office managing these anticipated FY25 funding opportunities.

For FY25, the SCIRP identified near-term and long-term goals for program-supported research outcomes and products, which align to four key priority areas within the SCI field. Research supported by the FY25 SCIRP must address at least one of the program priority areas and an associated near-team goal listed below. Additionally, applicants will be asked to describe the steps the research team will take to further advance the research outcome/product in accordance with the long-term goal of the same priority area.

Priority Area: Acute Injury Intervention

  • Near-Term Goal: Develop and test interventions (e.g., surgical, device, pharmacologic) to preserve and/or protect spinal cord tissue within a clinically feasible timeframe for improved neurologic outcomes relevant to the civilian and/or battlefield/deployed environment.
  • Long-Term Goal: Adoption of acute spinal cord injury management/stabilization practices within the battlefield, pre-hospital or hospital environments that meaningfully improve outcomes.

Priority Area: Secondary Health Effects

  • Near-Term Goal: Develop and test interventions to address secondary health effects of spinal cord injury that impact injury survivors throughout their full lifespan.
  • Long-Term Goal: Adoption of interventions that address secondary health effects of spinal cord injury.

Priority Area: Phsychosocial Issues

  • Near-Term Goal: Develop and test interventions that address psychosocial issues and that are specifically tailored for people with SCI, their families, and/or their care-partners.
  • Long-Term Goal: Adoption of interventions that promote psychosocial well-being for people with SCI, their families, and/or their care-partners.

Priority Area: Rehabilitation and Regeneration

  • Near-Term Goal A: Develop and test rehabilitation strategies that meaningfully improve functional recovery after SCI.
  • Near-Term Goal B: Develop and test regenerative/neuroplastic interventions that meaningfully improve outcomes after SCI.
  • Long-Term Goal: Adoption of interventions/techniques that meaningfully improve outcomes after SCI.

Early-Career Partnership Option: For all FY25 SCIRP funding opportunities, the program anticipates continuing to offer an Early-Career Partnership option in an effort to promote enhanced research capacity within the SCI field. This option is structured to accommodate two PIs who will work together on a single research project, but each will be named to separate individual awards within the recipient organization(s). To be eligible for this option, at least one of the PIs must be an early-career investigator with at least three years research experience (independent or non-independent) beyond a terminal degree but no more than seven years within their first faculty appointment, or equivalent independent research position. Applications that select the Early-Career Partnership option are subject to a larger direct cost maximum and may divide budgetary costs across the two awards as appropriate for their separate efforts toward the research project proposed.


Award Mechanism Eligibility Key Mechanism Elements Funding
Clinical Trial Award Principal Investigator (PI): Independent investigators at all career levels

Optional Early-Career PI: An investigator with at least three years research experience (independent or non-independent) beyond a terminal degree but no more than seven years within their first faculty appointment, or equivalent independent research position. 		Pre-application submission is required; full application submission is by invitation only.
  • Supports the rapid implementation of clinical trials with the potential to have a significant impact on the treatment or management of SCI.
  • Proposed projects may range from small proof-of-concept trials to demonstrate feasibility or inform the design of more advanced trials, through large-scale trials to determine efficacy in relevant populations.
  • Alternative trial designs to traditional randomized clinical trials are allowed but should be appropriate to the objective of the trial.
  • Applications are expected to name at least two community partners (e.g., SCI Lived Experience Consultants, representatives of community-based organizations) who will provide advice and consultation throughout the planning and implementation of the research project.
 Single PI Option:
  • Maximum funding of $3.00 million (M) for direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 4 years

Early-Career Partnership Option:
  • Maximum funding of $3.10M for direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 4 years
  • Structured to accommodate two PIs on seperate individual awards.
Clinical Translational Research Award PI: Independent investigators at all career levels

Optional Early-Career PI: An investigator with at least three years research experience (independent or non-independent) beyond a terminal degree but no more than seven years within their first faculty appointment, or equivalent independent research position. 		Pre-application submission is required; full application submission is by invitation only.
  • Supports high-impact and/or new/emerging clinical research that may not be ready for a larger-scale clinical trial and for which feasibility/pilot/optimization studies are necessary.
  • One goal of the FY25 SCIRP Clinical Translational Research Award is to translate current and emerging techniques and interventions into the clinical space by de-risking and informing the design of more advanced trials.
  • Another goal is to identify the most effective diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation options available to support critical decision-making for patients, clinicians, care-partners, and policymakers.
  • Applications must propose clinical research or clinical trials and may not propose animal research.
  • Applications are expected to name at least two community partners (e.g., SCI Lived Experience Consultants, representatives of community-based organizations) who will provide advice and consultation throughout the planning and implementation of the research project.
 Single PI Option:
  • Maximum funding of $1.25M for direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years

Early-Career Partnership Option:
  • Maximum funding of $1.35M for direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years
  • Structured to accommodate two PIs on seperate individual awards.
Translational Research Award PI: Independent investigators at all career levels

Optional Early-Career PI: An investigator with at least three years research experience (independent or non-independent) beyond a terminal degree but no more than seven years within their first faculty appointment, or equivalent independent research position. 		Pre-application submission is required; full application submission is by invitation only.
  • Funds studies that accelerate the movement of promising ideas in SCI research toward clinical application.
  • Applications may include preclinical animal studies and/or clinical research involving human subjects and human anatomical substances.
  • May include a pilot clinical trial ONLY as a part of the proposed research where limited clinical testing of a novel intervention or device is necessary to inform the next step in the continuum of translational research.
  • Applications are expected to name at least one community partner (e.g., SCI Lived Experience Consultant, representative of community-based organization) who will provide advice and consultation throughout the planning and implementation of the research project.
 Single PI Option:
  • Maximum funding of $1.25M for direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years

Early-Career Partnership Option:
  • Maximum funding of $1.35M for direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years
  • Structured to accommodate two PIs on seperate individual awards.
Investigator-Initiated Research Award PI: Independent investigators at all career levels

Optional Early-Career PI: An investigator with at least three years research experience (independent or non-independent) beyond a terminal degree but no more than seven years within their first faculty appointment, or equivalent independent research position. 		Pre-application submission is required; full application submission is by invitation only.
  • Funds research that has the potential to make an important contribution to SCI research, patient care, and/or quality of life.
  • Permitted research includes preclinical studies in animal models, research with human subjects, or human anatomical substances, as well as ancillary studies associated with an existing clinical trial.
  • Clinical trials are not allowed.
 Single PI Option:
  • Maximum funding of $0.50M for direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years

Early-Career Partnership Option:
  • Maximum funding of $0.60M for direct costs (plus indirect costs)
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years
  • Structured to accommodate two PIs on seperate individual awards.

A pre-application is required and must be submitted through the Biomedical Research Application Portal (eBRAP) at https://eBRAP.org prior to the pre-application deadline. All applications must conform to the final funding opportunity announcements that will be available for 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 and other USAMRDC extramural funding opportunities can be obtained on the Grants.gov website by performing a basic search using Assistance Listing Number (ALN, formerly CFDA) 12.420.

Submission deadlines are not available until the funding opportunity announcements are released. For email notification when announcements are released, subscribe to program-specific news and updates under "Email Subscriptions" on the eBRAP homepage. For more information about the SCIRP or other CDMRP-administered programs, please visit the CDMRP website (https://cdmrp.health.mil).


Point of Contact:

CDMRP Public Affairs
301-619-9783
usarmy.detrick.medcom-cdmrp.mbx.cdmrp-public-affairs@health.mil


Last updated Wednesday, February 19, 2025