NIGMS is issuing this Notice of Special Interest (NOSI) to highlight the urgent need for research on SARS-CoV-2 and Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Background
Coronaviruses are a diverse family of viruses that cause a range of disease in humans and animals, and there are currently no approved coronavirus vaccines or therapeutics. In January 2020, a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, was identified as the causative agent of an outbreak of viral pneumonia centered around Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. Current information regarding confirmed cases is changing daily and can be found on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/index.html) and through other sources. Transmission characteristics and the associated morbidity and mortality are not completely understood, but there is clear evidence of human-to-human transmission. Many other aspects of viral pathogenesis, natural history, and host range are poorly understood. Given this, there is an urgent public health need to better understand SARS-CoV-2, particularly to improve the predictive quality of existing models of spread, diagnostics for measurement of transmission, susceptibility and recovery, and development of therapeutic interventions.
Research Objectives
NIGMS will accept the submission of applications for Competitive Revisions to active grants to address only the following research areas of interest:
- Incorporation of data related to SARS-CoV-2 into ongoing research efforts to develop predictive models for the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and other related infectious agents (all relevant grants).
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Repurposing or modification of diagnostic tools currently under development to enable rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection (SBIR/STTR grants only).
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Rapid development of potential therapeutic agents for COVID-19 (SBIR/STTR only).
Applications that are not responsive to the above research areas of interest will be withdrawn without review.