• Learn about funding opportunities through a new federal agency called ARPA-H.

• Browse upcoming departmental seminars.

• Read about funding opportunities in the biological sciences from the Brain Research Foundation, Department of Defense, National Institutes of Health, and National Science Foundation.

New Funding Opportunity from New Funding Agency, ARPA-H

Founded in March 2022, ARPA-H (Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health) is a new government agency that focuses on accelerating innovation and breakthroughs in health research and technology. It supports high-risk, high-reward research with the potential for breakthrough advances in health and medicine. As such, it focuses on research projects that wouldn’t be appropriate for traditional biomedical award mechanisms. ARPA-H operates similarly to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

ARPA-H recently announced its first Broad Agency Announcement (BAA). A BAA is a solicitation issued by a government agency that announces its interest in receiving proposals for research and development projects related to a specific area of interest. Unlike a traditional Request for Proposal (RFP), a BAA is generally open-ended and does not specify a particular solution or approach but rather encourages a wide range of ideas and approaches.

We encourage BioSci researchers to become acquainted with ARPA-H and its new BAA through the links above.

New T32 Opportunity for UCI Postdocs

The PRISE Center at UCSF has been awarded a T32 grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). The PI of the award, Dr. Adithya Cattamanchi, recently joined UCI from UCSF, which is why two of the five slots are available for UCI postdocs.

The one-year slots support postdoctoral scholars with interdisciplinary training in implementation science and health equity approaches to help transform the uptake and delivery of evidence-based interventions for heart and lung diseases in clinical and community settings. Trainees will receive mentoring from a career development committee consisting of faculty members with expertise in clinical or translational research in heart and lung diseases, implementation science-based methods, and health equity research.

Applications from interested postdocs are due on May 1, 2023. Additional information and application instructions are available here.

April

Molecular Biology and Biochemistry Seminar Series

Fabian Rivera-Chavez, PhD; Assistant Professor; Department of Molecular Biology; University of California, San Diego

1114 Natural Sciences 1

April

Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Seminar Series

Ari Martinez, PhD; Assistant Professor; CSU Long Beach

1114 Natural Sciences 1

April

James L. McGaugh Distinguished Seminar

Elizabeth Gould; Department of Psychology; Princeton Neuroscience Institute

Herklotz Conference Room, 300 Qureshey Research Lab or register for Zoom Link

NSF MCB Virtual Office Hours: How to Write a Great NSF Proposal

Join the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences (MCB) at the National Science Foundation on April 12, 2023 from 11am–12pm PT for their next virtual office hour.

Spring 2023 NSF BIO Advisory Committee Meeting

The Advisory Committee for the Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) provides advice, recommendations, and oversight concerning major program emphases, directions, and goals for the research-related activities of the divisions that make up BIO. The committee will meet May 2–3, 2023. More information can be found here.

Limited Submission: Brain Research Foundation Scientific Innovations Award

The Brain Research Foundation has invited UCI to nominate a senior faculty member (Associate Professor/Full Professor) for the Scientific Innovations Award (SIA), which provides funding for innovative science in both basic and clinical neuroscience. This program is designed to support creative, exploratory, cutting-edge research in well-established research laboratories, under the direction of established investigators.

The objective of the SIA is to support projects that may be too innovative and speculative for traditional funding sources but still have a high likelihood of producing important findings. It is expected that investigations supported by these grants will yield high-impact findings and result in major grant applications and significant publications in high-impact journals.

For more details and limited application instructions, please click the link above.

DOD Peer Reviewed Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program (PRARP)

The FY23 Defense Appropriations Act provides funding for the PRARP to support research that addresses the long-term implications of military service as they pertain to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and AD-related dementias (ADRD) for Service Members, Veterans, and the general public.  The managing agent for the anticipated funding opportunities is the CDMRP at the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command (USAMRDC).

Applications submitted to the FY23 PRARP must have a translational/transition component, community engagement, and address one of the following Focus Areas specific to each mechanism:

• Prevention and Risk Reduction

• Diagnostic, Environmental, and Prognostic Factors

• Individual, Caregiver, and Family Support

A synopsis of the three grant mechanisms can be found here or at the link above.

LOI Deadline (all mechanisms): May 31, 2023

Full Application Deadline (all mechanisms): July 10, 2023

NIH Research with Activities Related to Diversity (ReWARD) (R01)

The NIH Research with Activities Related to Diversity (ReWARD) Program's overarching goal is to enhance the breadth and geographical location of research and research-related activities supported by NIH. The ReWARD program provides support for the health-related research of scientists who are making a significant contribution to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) and who have no current NIH research project grant funding. The ReWARD program provides funding for both the scientific research and the DEIA activities of investigators. The grant will support scientific research in areas related to the programmatic interests of one or more of the participating NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs) and ongoing DEIA activities focused on enhancing diversity in the biomedical research enterprise within the United States and territories.

Upcoming Deadlines: June 5, 2023; October 5, 2023; February 5, 2024

NIH Director’s Pioneer Award Program (DP1)

The NIH Director’s Pioneer Award Program supports individual scientists of exceptional creativity who propose highly innovative research projects with the potential to produce a major impact on broad, important areas relevant to the mission of NIH. For the program to support the best possible researchers and research, applications are sought which reflect the full diversity of the nation’s research workforce. Thus, individuals from all backgrounds and from the full spectrum of eligible institutions in all geographic locations are strongly encouraged to apply to this Funding Opportunity Announcement. In addition, applications in all topics relevant to the broad mission of NIH are welcome, including, but not limited to, topics in the behavioral, social, biomedical, applied, and formal sciences and topics that may involve basic, translational, or clinical research. To be considered pioneering, the proposed research must reflect substantially different scientific directions from those already being pursued in the investigator’s research program or elsewhere. The NIH Director’s Pioneer Award is a component of the High-Risk, High-Reward Research (HRHR) Program of the NIH Common Fund.

Deadline: September 8, 2023

NSF A Science of Science Approach to Analyzing and Innovating the Biomedical Research Enterprise (SoS:BIO)

Supports the development of theories, models, analytical tools, data and metrics that can inform the science of science, science policy, public outcomes and the advancement of the scientific enterprise, with a focus on the biomedical sciences.

Deadlines: September 11, 2023; February 9 and September 9, annually thereafter

Help us to generate information for the Research Bulletin.

Submit details about seminars and other research-related events on campus here. 

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If you’re a faculty member, postdoc, graduate student, or other researcher in the School of Biological Sciences and would like help with a grant submission, please email bio-research@uci.edu.

To let the Pre-Award team know of your planned proposal submission, please fill out this form at least four weeks before the deadline.