NIH Challenge Grant, First Released Program Based on the Stimulus Fund

At least 200 million dollars will be channeled through a new, one off mechanism called the Challenge Grants that were designed as jumpstart funds for 2-year projects. The review process will be quicker than normal; the start date will be by the end of September 09. Among the topics are 15 areas designated as Specific Challenge Topics by the NIH, and high priority topics that individual institute such as the NCI added by their choices. For instance, the Clinical Proteomic Technologies for Cancer program, of which Allele is a participant through a cancer marker antibody development project, is running several proteomic related topics that the Challenge Grants will fund.

Many new areas such as iPS, cancer stem cells, and resource development for stem cells are among the selected topics. All domestic institutions, academic or for-profit, are encouraged to apply. This announcement came a couple of weeks after the passage of the stimulus bill, from the NIH that does not yet have a permanent director or a HHS boss, one has to commend it as efficient work with focus. We are expecting that more programs are to come every week here on out until it becomes clear how all ARRA (The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 or the stimulus fund) will be spent in the biomedical research field.

Tags: 200 million, Allele, antibody selection, ARRA, Challenge Grants, iPS, NCI, NIH, stem cells, stimulus package

SBIR Program in Danger of Dissolution

By a process of stealth evasion of detection, a sentence was inserted by yet unknown congress persons, SBIR & STTR were expressly stricken from the NIH portion of the stimulus bill just signed into law by President Obama, effectively removing almost $250 million in SBIR/STTR award funding that is badly needed by hundreds or even thousands of companies.

There has been a sentiment among academic colleagues that removing the SBIR/STTR programs will give 2.5% more money to university labs. That is probably a shared view by most professors; exceptions may include those who also function as PIs on STTR projects (STTR was created to allow for such cases) or consultants on SBIR projects through companies they often co-founded. For graduate students and postdocs, who may agree with such view because they too want more grant money to the labs, it is also important to know that a majority of the students and postdocs will work for SBIR supported or eligible companies. Biotech industry has never been a labor-intensive industry and therefore, even more than the 80% of general US population who are employed by small businesses, workers in this industry are likely to have a small business as their job provider. And there is nothing wrong with that—small companies are still the engine for innovation and model for efficiency and flexibility.

On March 20, just a few weeks from now, the SBIR program may stop to exist if a law that created it is not renewed. There are strong head winds for its renewal from special interest groups that want the money to be spent on large companies or venture-backed companies, because they are in need of cash infusion these days. SBIR is at risk. Considering the thousands upon thousands of layoff by the big pharma players in just the last few weeks, it is not difficult to understand their difficulties. The question is how effective the money can be used to provide jobs and create new areas for development.

If you want to have your voice heard, you can look up your congress representative or senators to tell them what you think. If you are going to do it, do it now.

1. Call your Senators, both their local and DC offices.
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
2. Call your Representative, both their local and DC offices.
http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW.shtml
3. Go to their web sites and use the email or webmail links to send them your message.

Tags: biotech, economy engine, economy recovery, government contracts, government grants, grants, jobs, NIH, research funding, SBIR, SBIR at risk, small business, small business innovative research, stimulus, STTR

What’s In It for Us?

$10 billion will be used to support research projects under the National Institutes of Health over two years, with approximately $1 billion earmarked for cancer research. $7.4 billion will be spent on R01 by the NIH before September 30th, 2010. In the mean time, NSF gets $3 billion for the same period of time.

What do these numbers mean? They would translate into approximately 14,000 RO1 grants at the NIH and nearly double the funding percentage at the NSF. If your lab has grant application(s) that is being hung up on uncertainty, now you have some certainty that they should be funded. If you have been having trouble gathering inner strength to go through the grant writing process, maybe it is time to feel good and potentially rewarding about coming back to the writing table.

Good luck!

P.S. Come back to check Allele Biotech’s new iPS product line, and blogs on induced stem cell research.

Tags: biology department jobs, grants, NIH NSF budget, research dollars, research market

$6.5 billion more to the NIH

On Feb 3^rd the U.S. Senate agreed to an amendment that would provide an additional $6.5 billion to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for biomedical research as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Last week, the House of Representatives and the Senate Appropriations Committee voted for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which included $3.5 billion in supplemental funding for the NIH. The total stimulus package, still being amended in the Senate, is now over $900 billion.

The Senate is still debating the bill and being encouraged to finish it as early as this Friday.

Tags: $6.5 billion, Allele Biotech, billion, biomedical research, budget, funding, grant, NIH, R&D, science budget