Sharing Data and Tools: Federation using the BIRN and caBIG Infrastructures (R01)

Description

Purpose. The NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research is a framework to enhance cooperative activities among the NIH Office of the Director and 15 NIH Institutes and Centers that support research on the nervous system. This FOA is released in affiliation with the Neuroscience Blueprint, with Institutes and Centers participating independently, and with participation by Institutes that are not part of the Neuroscience Blueprint. Institutes that are not part of the Blueprint are also participating. Sharing data and tools across a research community adds tremendous value to the efforts of that community. Search engines like Google show the power of sharing text based data. While strides have been made, the infrastructure necessary to share and query data sets that have more than just textual biomedical data is still under development. Examples of such heterogeneous data sets include those that contain images, clinical data, or genomic/gene expression data. Two large NIH supported infrastructure projects to allow data and tool sharing are the caBIG program and the Biomedical Informatics Research Network (BIRN). Many of the communities involved in neuroscience research embrace the data/tool sharing idea. Some communities, such as neuroimaging researchers, have seized it, and in so doing, have accrued scientific benefits that would have been otherwise out of reach. As a specific example, three neuroimaging research communities are serving as the biological test beds for the BIRN infrastructure (http://www.nbirn.net). The BIRN infrastructure has now matured to the point where it can serve as a platform for data sharing and informatics tool sharing that extends beyond the neuroimaging researchers involved in the test beds, to include other areas of neuroscience beyond imaging, and to include biomedical research beyond neuroscience. The caBIG program has goals that are related to those of the BIRN program, but has chosen a different development path. caBIG aims to develop applications and underlying architecture that connects data and tools in an open, federated environment. Interoperability in caBIG is based on standardizing interfaces and data, rather than on specific software systems used in BIRN. General information concerning caBIG can be found at https://cabig.nci.nih.gov/ . This FOA invites applications to make either data or tools more broadly available to the research community by making use of the BIRN and/or the caBIG infrastructure. Mechanism of Support. This FOA will utilize the NIH Research Project Grant (R01) award mechanism. Funds Available and Anticipated Number of Awards. Awards issued under this FOA are contingent upon the availability of funds and the submission of a sufficient number of meritorious applications. Because the nature and scope of the proposed research will vary from application to application, it is anticipated that the size and duration of each award will also vary. The total amount awarded and the number of awards will depend upon the mechanism numbers, quality, duration, and costs of the applications received. However, it is anticipated that many of the awards will be for limited amounts ($100,000 to $200,000 direct costs per year) and for short periods of time (2-3 years). It is not likely that these R01s will be renewed. Eligible Institutions/Organizations. Public/State Controlled Institution of Higher Education; Private Institution of Higher Education; Nonprofit with 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institution of Higher Education); Nonprofit without 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institution of Higher Education); Small Business; For-Profit Organization (Other than Small Business); Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entity (Foreign Organization). Eligible Project Directors/Principal Investigators (PDs/PIs). Individuals with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research are invited to work with their institution/organization to develop an application for support. Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply for NIH support. Number of Applications. Applicants may submit more than one application, provided each application is scientifically distinct. Renewals and Resubmissions. Applicants may submit a resubmission application, but such application must include an Introduction addressing the previous peer review critique (Summary Statement). Number of PDs/PIs. More than one PD/PI, or multiple PDs/PIs, may be designated on the application. Application Materials. See Section IV.1 for application materials. General Information. For general information on SF424 (R and R) Application and Electronic Submission, see these Web sites: SF424 (R and R) Application and Electronic Submission Information: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/424/index.htm General information on Electronic Submission of Grant Applications: http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/ Hearing Impaired. Telecommunications for the hearing impaired is available at: TTY 301-451-0088. Technical Assistance Workshop. A technical assistance workshop is planned on October 18 to answer questions about this FOA. Participants can attend the meeting in person at the Natcher Auditorium on the NIH Campus or can participate via a videocast. Registration for the workshop and additional information can be found at http://www.nbirn.net . Special Submission/Receipt Date(s): January 18, 2008, September 18, 2008, January 21, 2009, and September 21, 2009 Special Review convened by CSR.

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