Funding For Collaborative Clinical Research In Type 1 Diabetes: Living Biobank (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | RFA DK 17 032

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA DK 17 032

The grant opportunity titled "Funding For Collaborative Clinical Research In Type 1 Diabetes: Living Biobank (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" (Funding Opportunity Number RFA-DK-17-032) is a discretionary NIH research grant from the Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. It is focused on advancing clinical research in type 1 diabetes by supporting studies that dig into the causes and biological mechanisms behind the development of type 1 diabetes and/or the progression of its complications. The central theme is leveraging real human cohorts that are already being followed over time, rather than starting from scratch with brand-new participant recruitment. In practice, the program is set up to get more scientific value out of existing major clinical studies by adding new collaborators, methods, or analyses that the original study teams may not have had in place.

A defining requirement is that proposed work must involve human subjects who are enrolled and followed in clinical trials, long-term follow-up studies, or observational cohorts. That emphasis matters because it points applicants toward projects that can connect biological samples and clinical outcomes across time, which is often essential for understanding disease initiation, immune changes, metabolic shifts, and early predictors of complications. The phrase "Living Biobank" signals an intent to support research that makes use of ongoing, actively followed participant groups where biospecimens and data can be linked to evolving clinical phenotypes, not just one-time sample collection. The "Clinical Trial Optional" note means applicants may propose work that includes a clinical trial component, but they are not required to run a new trial to be eligible; strong mechanistic or etiologic work embedded within existing longitudinal clinical research structures is clearly within scope.

The FOA is specifically designed to fund collaborative projects, with collaboration framed as bringing in new expertise and innovative approaches that strengthen ongoing, major clinical research efforts in type 1 diabetes. In other words, it is not simply another call for independent projects; it is meant to extend the reach of established cohorts and trials by integrating additional scientific capabilities. This could include specialized laboratory methods, advanced immunology or genomics, novel biomarker discovery, improved bioinformatics pipelines, new statistical or computational modeling approaches, or other cutting-edge technologies that help reveal disease mechanisms or predict outcomes. The underlying goal is to enhance the scientific return on investment from large clinical efforts that already have valuable participant follow-up and infrastructure.

From an administrative and funding standpoint, the mechanism is an R01 grant. The published award ceiling is $600,000, and the expected number of awards is 5, indicating a relatively selective competition with moderate-sized awards intended to support substantial research aims. The program is categorized under health and related activity areas (including food and nutrition and health in the listing) and is associated with CFDA number 93.847. The FOA was created on February 14, 2018, with an original closing date of July 10, 2018, which places it as a time-limited announcement for that cycle rather than an open-ended standing program.

Eligibility is broad and includes many kinds of organizations that can carry out clinical and translational research. Eligible applicants include state, county, and local governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; nonprofit organizations both with and without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not higher-education institutions in that category); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; Native American tribal governments (federally recognized) and tribal organizations; and public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, along with other entities as clarified in the FOA. This breadth reflects NIH's general approach of allowing a wide range of research-performing institutions to compete, as long as they can meet human subjects protections, data management, collaboration, and scientific rigor expectations.

Overall, this opportunity is best understood as a targeted NIH effort to accelerate progress in understanding how type 1 diabetes begins and how its complications develop, using the strength of existing clinical research cohorts and trials. The NIH is effectively encouraging teams to join forces across disciplines so that valuable longitudinal participants, samples, and datasets can be interrogated with modern tools and fresh perspectives, ultimately aiming to improve mechanistic understanding and set the stage for better prediction, prevention, and management of type 1 diabetes and its complications.

• The Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health in the food and nutrition, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Funding For Collaborative Clinical Research In Type 1 Diabetes: Living Biobank (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.847.
• This funding opportunity was created on Feb 14, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 10, 2018. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $600,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 5 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for RFA DK 17 032

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: