DoD Lupus, Impact Award | W81XWH 21 LRP IPA

Opportunity Information: Apply for W81XWH 21 LRP IPA

The Department of Defense Lupus Research Program (LRP) Impact Award (Funding Opportunity Number W81XWH 21 LRP IPA) is a discretionary research funding opportunity designed to back lupus-focused projects that could meaningfully change the landscape of lupus science and clinical understanding. It is aimed at research across the full spectrum of lupus topics, as long as the central question is tightly connected to important scientific or clinical issues in lupus and the proposed work, if successful, would create a major advance rather than a small, incremental step beyond existing publications. Proposals are expected to be built around a clear, testable hypothesis supported by strong scientific rationale, developed through careful reasoning and a critical analysis of the literature. Preliminary data are encouraged but not presented as a strict requirement.

A defining feature of this award is its emphasis on impact and significance for people living with lupus. Applicants are expected to explicitly explain why the problem being addressed matters, what gap in knowledge or practice it fills, and how the results could substantially advance lupus research and/or lupus disease outcomes. The program specifically encourages high-risk, high-reward ideas, meaning projects can be ambitious or unconventional if the rationale is strong and the potential payoff is large. In contrast, work that mainly extends prior studies in a straightforward way is framed as not meeting the intent of the award.

Applications are also evaluated on the quality of the research strategy and the readiness of the research team. The research plan should show deep understanding of lupus biology and/or clinical complexity, with rigorous experimental design and methods that logically connect to the hypothesis. Approaches can be novel, or they can be based on well-supported concepts drawn from the literature, but they must be presented with clear justification and thoughtful analysis. Separately, the team must have appropriate expertise and capability to execute the project, meaning reviewers will look for alignment between the proposed work and the investigators backgrounds, skills, and resources.

The topic scope is not entirely open-ended: proposed projects must address at least one of the FY21 LRP Focus Areas (the specific focus areas are referenced in the announcement and would need to be matched explicitly in an application). Another key restriction is that clinical trials are not permitted under this program announcement, so applicants need to design their studies accordingly (for example, focusing on mechanistic studies, discovery and validation research, translational preclinical work, or other non-trial clinical research activities that do not constitute a clinical trial as defined by the funder).

Funding is provided through an assistance agreement, meaning the federal government is supporting a public-purpose research activity rather than purchasing a product or service for direct government use. Awards may be issued as either a grant or a cooperative agreement. The deciding factor is the expected level of DoD involvement during the project: if substantial involvement is anticipated (such as collaboration, participation, or intervention in the research), the award is more likely to be a cooperative agreement; if not, it is more likely to be a grant. The final award type and start date are determined during negotiations and will be specified in the final award.

Budget-wise, the anticipated maximum total cost for an FY21 LRP Impact Award is up to $750,000 for the entire period of performance (with additional funding restrictions referenced in the full announcement). Program-wide, the CDMRP planned to allocate about $5.25 million to fund roughly seven awards, though the actual number depends on federal funding availability and the strength and merit of submitted applications as determined through scientific and programmatic review. The opportunity was posted April 26, 2021, with an original closing date of September 22, 2021, and awards were expected to be made no later than September 30, 2022. Funds were anticipated to come from FY21 appropriations and were expected to remain available for use until they expire on September 30, 2027. Eligible applicants were listed as unrestricted (open to any entity type), subject to any additional eligibility clarifications in the announcement. The administering agency is the Department of Defense, Department of the Army, U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA), under CFDA 12.420.

• 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 "DoD Lupus, Impact Award" 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 26, 2021.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 22, 2021. (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 7 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.

Apply for W81XWH 21 LRP IPA

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