CDMRP PRMRP Investigator-Initiated Research Award for Emerging Viral Diseases and Respiratory Health | W81XWH 20 PRMRP IIRA COV

Opportunity Information: Apply for W81XWH 20 PRMRP IIRA COV

The CDMRP PRMRP Investigator-Initiated Research Award for Emerging Viral Diseases and Respiratory Health (Funding Opportunity Number W81XWH 20 PRMRP IIRA COV) is a Department of Defense funding opportunity administered through the U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA). It is meant to support investigator-driven projects that can make a meaningful contribution to research and/or patient care in the FY20 PRMRP Focus Areas tied to Emerging Viral Diseases and/or Respiratory Health. The program is built for researchers with a strong, well-supported idea that addresses a critical problem in these topic areas, whether that idea comes from basic laboratory findings, population-based observations, clinical experience with patients, or even carefully considered anecdotal evidence.

A central expectation of this award is that proposals are not purely speculative. Applications must include relevant supporting data that justify the rationale for the study, and those data can come from either unpublished results or the published scientific literature. In other words, the program is looking for projects that are ready to move forward based on a credible foundation, not early concepts without evidence. The intent is to fund studies that can generate results that matter, either by changing how researchers understand a disease process, improving diagnostic or therapeutic strategies, informing prevention approaches, or otherwise advancing patient care in a concrete way.

Impact is the defining theme of the Investigator-Initiated Research Award. Applicants are expected to clearly explain why their work could lead to major advancements or critical discoveries and to lay out the project’s likely short-term and long-term outcomes or products. These outcomes can be new knowledge (such as mechanistic insights, validated targets, or better risk stratification approaches) and/or tangible materials (such as research tools, candidate countermeasures, datasets, models, or other enabling resources). The proposal needs to connect these outputs to a clearly stated, high-importance question or bottleneck in emerging viral disease research and/or respiratory health, showing how the work could shift the field or improve patient-relevant decision making.

In terms of research scope, the award is flexible and can support a wide range of scientific stages, from basic research through translational efforts. This includes preclinical studies using animal models, studies involving human subjects, and research using human anatomical substances. It can also support correlative studies that leverage an existing clinical trial, for example by analyzing biospecimens or clinical data tied to a trial that is already underway. A key restriction is that award funds cannot be used to conduct a clinical trial itself. The opportunity explicitly allows human subjects research but draws a firm line at initiating or running a clinical trial under this mechanism, directing applicants to DoD guidance for distinguishing clinical research from clinical trials via the eBRAP Human Subject Resource Document.

Administratively, the opportunity is listed as discretionary funding and can be awarded as either a grant or a cooperative agreement under CFDA 12.420 (Science and Technology and other Research and Development). Eligibility is described as unrestricted, meaning it is broadly open to many entity types, subject to any additional eligibility clarifications in the full announcement. The solicitation was created on April 8, 2020, with an original closing date of June 12, 2020, and it anticipated making about four awards. The award ceiling is listed as 0 in the summary data, which typically indicates that the cap is specified elsewhere in the full funding announcement rather than in the high-level listing.

Overall, this mechanism is designed for investigators who have a supported, evidence-based research plan aimed at a Focus Area in emerging viral diseases and/or respiratory health, with a strong argument for how the work could generate high-impact outcomes. It favors projects that can credibly produce results that move the field forward, while allowing a broad range of preclinical and translational approaches, including human subjects research, but excluding the conduct of new clinical trials.

• The Department of Defense, Dept. of the Army -- USAMRAA in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "CDMRP PRMRP Investigator-Initiated Research Award for Emerging Viral Diseases and Respiratory Health" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.420.
• This funding opportunity was created on Apr 08, 2020.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 12, 2020. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 4 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

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