Specialized Centers of Research (SCOR) in Transfusion Biology and Medicine

Specialized Centers of Research (SCOR) in Transfusion Biology and Medicine is sponsored by National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH). Specialized Centers of Research (SCOR) in Transfusion Biology and Medicine is a grant from National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), National Institutes of Health (NIH) that expired RFA-HL-04-018: SPECIALIZED CENTERS OF CLINICALLY ORIENTED RESEARCH (SCCOR) IN TRANSFUSIO…

Expired RFA-HL-04-018: SPECIALIZED CENTERS OF CLINICALLY ORIENTED RESEARCH (SCCOR) IN TRANSFUSION BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE This notice has expired. Check the NIH Guide for active opportunities and notices.

SPECIALIZED CENTERS OF CLINICALLY ORIENTED RESEARCH (SCCOR) IN TRANSFUSION BIOLOGY AND RELEASE DATE: March 02, 2004 RFA Number: RFA-HL-04-018 EXPIRATION DATE: September 22, 2004 Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATION: National Institutes of Health (NIH) COMPONENT OF PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATION: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) ( http://www. nhlbi. nih.

gov/ ) CATALOG OF FEDERAL DOMESTIC ASSISTANCE NUMBER(S): 93.

839 LETTER OF INTENT RECEIPT DATE: August 17, 2004 APPLICATION RECEIPT DATE: September 21, 2004 o Individuals Eligible to Become Principal Investigators o Where to Send Inquiries o Submitting an Application o Receipt and Review Schedule o Required Federal Citations The primary objective of the Specialized Centers of Clinically Oriented Research (SCCOR) programs is to foster multidisciplinary research on clinically relevant questions enabling basic science findings to be more rapidly applied to clinical problems.

The clinical and basic research supported through this RFA program in transfusion biology and medicine is to support the development and application of new knowledge essential for improved safety, efficacy, and availability of blood, blood components, and plasma derivatives, and to transfer these research findings into clinical evaluation and application.

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) revised the Specialized Centers of Research (SCOR) program, based primarily on recommendations from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Advisory Council. The new program is called the Specialized Centers of Clinically Oriented Research (SCCOR) program.

The original SCOR program required both basic and clinical research, but the preponderance of funded projects were in the basic science arena. The new title and the revisions to the program reflect the Institute's desire to capitalize on basic research advances by encouraging their translation to the clinical arena.

The guiding principle of the new SCCOR program is the central focus on clinically relevant research, and the key change to achieve this goal is the requirement that at least one-half of funded projects be clinical. The specific components of the new SCCOR program are detailed in this RFA. Special instructions for preparing a SCCOR application are available from the program contact listed under WHERE TO SEND INQUIRIES or at http://www.

nhlbi. nih. gov/funding/policies/sccor_desc.

htm . Opportunities for research in transfusion medicine are increasing and have expanded to include any blood component or bone marrow derived cell. There continues to be a substantial need for performing evidence-based studies to evaluate the best approaches to provide blood and bone marrow derived components to patients.

Listed below are four general areas of emphasis and specific examples are outlined for which studies would be considered to be responsive to this RFA announcement. The different research topics and approaches described below in the four areas of emphasis provide potential applicants with examples of topics that interest the NHLBI. These examples, however, are not meant to be all inclusive.

Investigators are encouraged to consider pursuing other important and innovative research topics as well. It should be emphasized, however, that the topics chosen must relate directly to the four areas of emphasis identified in this initiative. Furthermore, topics may address more than one area of emphasis.

For example, it would be appropriate for an application to propose projects that address research issues pertaining to one area of interest such as immunologic responses to blood components or platelet storage or a combination such as immunologic responses to blood components and platelet substitutes.

It should be noted, however, that SCCOR investigations which focus exclusively on cellular therapy will not be considered responsive to this RFA. I.

MANAGEMENT OF THE BLOOD SUPPLY Maintaining an adequate supply of blood components to meet patient needs for transfusion involves many factors including a broad donor base, methods of storing blood components, and determining appropriate indications for their use to avoid unnecessary and/or ineffective transfusions.

Areas for research questions include: o Determine the benefits of iron supplementation to donors; o Evaluate donor safety issues such as: frequency of donations, quantity of blood components removed, and effects of cytokines given to donors to enhance the collection of blood components; o Recruitment and retention of donors.

o Storage and Utilization of Blood Components o Determine optimal transfusion triggers for cellular and plasma blood components to reduce ineffective use; o Assess the appropriate transfusion dose for each blood component; o Evaluate methods of extending the storage time for cellular components, o Determine how to judge the safety and efficacy of blood component therapy. II.

INCOMPATIBILITY AND BLOOD SAFETY IN TRANSFUSION MEDICINE Substantial progress has been made over the last several years in the identification of and testing for viruses that are capable of being transmitted by transfusion.

The following areas of blood transfusion safety have received little emphasis and now represent the biggest transfusion risks for patients: o Develop methods of blood product and recipient identification to ensure the correct product is given to the designated recipient; o Identify processes to either detect bacterial contamination or inhibit the growth of bacteria in transfused blood products B particularly platelets; o Identify ligands and/or receptors on erythrocytes for microbe binding.

Blood Group Incompatibility o Develop improved methods of antigen typing to insure a compatible transfusion; o Identify systems to reduce alloimmunization in transfusion dependent patients; o Determine the pathophysiological events in Hemolytic Disease of the Newborn and identify preventative clinical intervention. III.

IMMUNOLOGIC RESPONSES TO BLOOD COMPONENTS OR MARROW DERIVED CELLS There are both desirable and undesirable immunologic consequences of the transfusion of blood components or marrow derived cells. For all of these transfusion related effects, additional studies are needed to understand the factors associated with their development.

These factors include the influence of the type, amount, and timing of transfusions on their occurrence, ways that desirable effects can be enhanced while undesirable effects are eliminated, and the pathophysiologic events associated with these conditions. Topics include: o Induction of tolerance to organ grafts.

o Alloimmunization and refractoriness to platelet transfusions; o Alloimmunization to red cells with reduction in the available compatible donor o Transfusion associated acute lung injury (TRALI); o Immunomodulatory effects of transfusion such as infection and tumor Transfusion medicine has traditionally been involved in the production and storage of red cells, platelets, granulocytes, and plasma components.

Another topic of interest has been the evaluation of their use in transfusions. However, it has become clear that there are many other types of blood and bone marrow derived cells that have important biologic functions.

Therefore, of substantial interest are studies on the characterization of these cell types by exploring their role in the pathophysiology of human diseases, and methods for the manipulation and transfusion of these cells to provide a therapeutic benefit to patients.

Examples of these therapies are listed Mononuclear Cell Fractions o Identify and characterize the stem cells that are associated with rapid and long o Develop methods for proliferation of stem cells in vitro; o Characterize the cells associated with GVHD and determine how this adverse effect can be eliminated/modified; o Identify factors associated with the development of peripheral blood stem cells as well as other blood cells.

o How can the use of marrow derived cells in organogenesis be potentiated; o What factors are associated with the development of "plasticity" and how can this o What governs the trafficking of cells to desired locations.

Cellular Engineering of New Blood Components o Develop blood "substitutes" which can take the place of "classic" blood component Modification of Leukocytes to Act as Vaccines for the Treatment of Malignancies or o What are the best cells to use for targeted vaccine therapy; o What are the best ways to develop "vaccinated cells"; o How should they be used, and how is their effectiveness determined.

o Use cells to "cure" genetic diseases by inserting into cells the genetic material o Identify the most appropriate cells to use as the hosts for genetic material; o Determine how should the genetic material be inserted; o Determine how should genetically modified cells be infused (locally or systemically), the frequency of administration; o Establish ways to monitor the effectiveness of this therapy.

Treatment of Autoimmune Diseases by Cellular Therapy o Peripheral blood mononuclear cells can be manipulated ex vivo and transfused to decrease or enhance immune function. Clinical Research Skills Development Core The newly developed Specialized Centers of Clinically Oriented Research (SCCOR) program mechanism requires clinical and basic scientists with a broad range of skills to work together on a unified theme.

It, therefore, presents a rich environment for young clinical investigators to be exposed to and develop additional research skills. The individual centers can be expected to include among their research staffs clinical personnel who are newly trained and relatively inexperienced in research.

To assist the SCCOR grants in enhancing the developmental environment for their new clinical investigators, the NHLBI will permit applicants for a new SCCOR to request up to $100,000 in direct costs per year for a Clinical Research Skills Development Core. The objective of the Core is to support activities to assist new clinical investigators in progressing to more senior status by enhancing their research skills.

This support is in addition to the usual cap on the SCCOR mechanism that is updated annually. A Clinical Research Skills Development Core is not required, however, and its absence will not disadvantage an applicant. The quality of the Clinical Research Skills Development Core, if proposed, will be evaluated based on the specific components listed below.

The priority score on the Core will have no effect on the overall score Developmental opportunities that provide experience with new technologies and skills are encouraged for inclusion in the Core. Innovative strategies should be proposed for cross-disciplinary career development to achieve the goal of exposing new clinical investigators to additional research techniques and opportunities.

Examples include a program of seminars focusing on scientific topics that include an integration of basic and clinical studies or an "exchange" program wherein clinical investigators spend time in basic science laboratories. In addition to developing the research skills of new clinical investigators, the Cores must ensure that the participating new clinical investigators receive the mentoring they need to foster their research careers.

The Clinical Research Skills Development Core is intended for staff investigators with limited clinical research experience, including fellows and junior faculty members. Investigators who have had a previous K series award are not eligible to participate as new investigators under this program.

Individuals with an active K grant can participate until the end of the award period for the K grant, but may not receive salary on the Skills Development Core. The Core should also address other skills necessary for a successful research career, such as grant writing, ethical conduct of research, and clinical trial design.

If a Clinical Research Skills Development Core is proposed, it must be directed by an investigator with strong educational and mentoring credentials who will devote a minimum of 5 percent effort as its Leader. To facilitate mentoring and multidisciplinary developmental activities, active involvement by the principal investigator and other senior investigators within the SCCOR is strongly encouraged.

An application for a Clinical Research Skills Development Core will be evaluated in terms of its potential effectiveness in developing the skills and research capabilities of new clinical investigators as reflected in the following required elements of the application: o A summary of the types of skills that would be developed and a description of proposed project-specific activities; o A detailed discussion of how mentoring and the professional development of the new clinical investigators will be achieved, including their progression to more o The credentials and track records of the Clinical Research Skills Development Core Leader, the Principal Investigator, and other participating senior staff in developing new investigators; o A plan for coordinating the activities of participating senior investigators; o A plan for monitoring the progress of the new clinical investigators; o A description of existing opportunities within the applicant's institution for supporting investigator development and steps taken to avoid overlap with or duplication of these efforts; o A detailed development plan for each proposed new investigator (or a representative plan and proposals for tailoring it to needs of multiple new investigators) including required course work and scientific enrichment activities such as special lectures, visiting scientist symposia, seminars, and Costs allowable for inclusion within the $100,000 direct costs per year limit for the Clinical Research Skills Development Core include salary support for the Core Leader and other participating senior investigators and staff, travel costs for new investigators, supplies and equipment to be used in support of developmental activities, and costs for courses, seminars, workshops, and other activities directly related to the development plan.

All costs requested in this Core must be justified with respect to developmental activities and may not be used to supplement the costs of research proposed in the rest of the SCCOR. Since the Core is intended to serve new clinical investigators who occupy positions and receive salary support from the SCCOR grant, salary support for the new investigators is neither needed nor allowable as a Core cost.

All new clinical investigators supported by the SCCOR grant should be eligible to participate in Core- sponsored activities so long as they have not attained independent status.

However, attaining independent status should be an objective of the Core activities so participating new investigators should be encouraged to apply for either a Career Development Award, a patient-oriented regular research grant, or any other source of independent research or career development support.

Although the participating new investigators will be expected to devote essentially full-time effort to research during this period, they may devote an appropriate percentage of their time to maintaining clinical skills.

An application for a Clinical Research Skills Development Core will be evaluated in terms of its potential effectiveness in developing the skills and research capabilities of new clinical investigators as reflected in the required application components identified above. This RFA will use the NIH P50 award mechanism.

All applications received in response to the Transufsion Biology and Medicine Diseases SCCOR program will be considered as new applications and must meet the requirements for the new SCCOR program. As an applicant you will be solely responsible for planning, directing, and executing the proposed project. The anticipated award date is February 1, 2006.

Each NHLBI SCCOR program is limited to 10 years of support. Exceptions to this policy will be made only if a thorough evaluation of needs and opportunities, conducted by a committee composed of non-federal experts, determines that there are extraordinarily important reasons to continue a specific SCCOR program. Under this policy, a given SCCOR grant is awarded for a 5-year project period following an open competition.

Only one 5-year competing renewal is permitted, for a total of 10 years of support, unless the SCCOR program is recommended for extension.

The NHLBI comprehensive evaluation of the Transfusion Biology and Medicine SCCOR program will be conducted during the second project period according to the following Program Announced: FY 2004 Project Period (First Competition): FY 2006 through FY 2011 Program Reannounced: FY 2009 Project Period (Second Competition): FY 2011 through FY 2016 Letter to Principal Investigators Regarding SCCOR Evaluation Plans: FY 2012 (mid-way through year 02 SCCOR Evaluation Meeting: FY 2013 (late in year 02 of 2nd The NHLBI does not limit the number of applications for a given SCCOR program from one institution.

However, each SCCOR application from the institution must have a different principal investigator and must be self-contained and independent of other SCCOR applications from the same institution. Institutions envisioning more than one application are encouraged to discuss their plans with the program contact listed under Where to Send Inquiries. The NHLBI intends to commit approximately $4.

0 million in FY 2006 to fund 2 to 3 new grants in response to this RFA. An applicant may request a project period of up to 5 years and a budget for direct costs up to $2. 0 million not including Facilities and Administrative (F&A) costs for collaborating institutions, in the first year.

In addition, applicants for a new SCCOR may request up to $100,000 in direct costs per year above the usual cap ($2. 0 million direct costs) for a Clinical Research Skills Development Core. All applications will be considered as new applications.

An increase of no more than 3 percent may be requested in each additional year. Because the nature and scope of the proposed research will vary from application to application, it is anticipated that the size and duration of each award will also vary.

Although the financial plans of the NHLBI provide support for this program, awards pursuant to this RFA are contingent upon the availability of funds and the receipt of a sufficient number of meritorious applications. If a grant application includes research activities that involve institutions other than the grantee institution, the application will be considered a consortium effort.

Such applications are permitted, but it is imperative that the application be prepared so that programmatic, fiscal, and administrative considerations are explained fully. At least 50 percent of projects (including at least one clinical project) and 50 percent of the cores must be located at the applicant institution.

The NIH published policy governing consortia is available in the business offices of institutions that are eligible to receive Federal grants-in-aid and should be consulted before developing the application. For clarification of the policy, contact Mr. Anthony Agresti, Grants Operation Branch, NHLBI, (301) 435-0171.

Applicants for SCCOR grants should exercise great care in preserving the interactions of the participants and the integration of the consortium project (s) with those of parent institution, because synergism and cohesiveness can be diminished when projects are located outside the group at the parent institution.

Indirect costs paid as part of a consortium agreement are excluded from the limit on the amount of direct costs that can be requested.

You may submit (an) application(s) if your institution has any of the following o For-profit or non-profit organizations o Public or private institutions, such as universities, colleges, hospitals, and o Units of State and local governments o Eligible agencies of the Federal government o Foreign institutions are not eligible to apply.

Individuals with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research are invited to work with their institution to develop an application for support. Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply for NIH programs. 1.

The overall concept of a SCCOR program focuses on clinical and basic scientific issues related to diseases and disorders relevant to the mission of the NHLBI. To be considered responsive to this announcement, all applications must include both clinical and basic research.

In addition, interactions between clinical and basic scientists are expected to strengthen the research, enhance the translation of fundamental research findings to the clinical setting, and identify new research directions. Translation of findings from basic to clinical studies is an important focus of the SCCOR program. 2.

The number of clinical research projects in each NHLBI SCCOR must be equal to or greater than the number of basic science projects, at the time of submission, award, and throughout the 5-year project period. For example, if an application has a total of three projects, two of the projects must be clinical research projects.

Neither a clinical component in a basic science project nor a clinical core fulfills the requirement for a clinical project. However, a single project can integrate basic and clinical research. If the majority of the research within a project is clinical, it will be considered a clinical project; if the majority of the research within a project is basic, it will be considered a basic project.

Because a SCCOR grant is a 5- year program, an applicant should submit a 5-year plan for all the projects. 3. In order for a project to be considered clinical research for the purposes of responsiveness to this RFA, the research must be patient-oriented research.

Patient- oriented research is research in which an investigator (or colleague) directly interacts with patients having a disease or condition of interest. Normal healthy subjects may be included, but only in combination with studies involving patients.

In studies involving the use of human specimens, the investigators must have direct interaction with the patient from whom the specimen is obtained and relate the research results to the patient status or outcome for this to be considered a clinical project. It is intended that the requirement for investigator interaction with the study participants will eliminate research involving archived tissue.

Applicants are encouraged to pursue patient-oriented research on topics related to health disparities and the translation of this research to clinical practice for affected minority populations. At a minimum, clinical research projects must include women and minorities in the study population in representative numbers, unless such inclusion can be demonstrated to be inappropriate.

Clinical studies involving interventions or treatments must give consideration to including sufficient numbers of women and minorities to conduct valid analyses of subgroup effects. Epidemiologic studies or Phase III clinical trials will be considered unresponsive to this RFA. 4.

Each awarded SCCOR must consist of three or more projects, all of which are directly related to the overall clinical focus of the SCCOR. At least 50 percent of the projects and 50 percent of the cores must be located at the applicant institution and at least one of the clinical projects must be at the applicant institution.

Component projects not located at the applicant institution may be at a foreign institution, but must conform to NIH policy regarding the protection of human subjects. Each component project, whether clinical or basic, requires a well-described clinically relevant hypothesis, preliminary data, and a time-table for conducting the 5. The relationship of each core to each component project should be described.

A core must provide services to two or more projects. 6. Each SCCOR must have a well-delineated organizational structure and administrative mechanism that foster interactions between investigators, accelerate the pace of research, enable translation of basic research findings to clinical applications, and ensure a productive research effort.

7. Applicants should provide a detailed data and safety monitoring plan for the clinical research proposed; the monitoring plan will be considered as part of peer review of the application. This plan should address informed consent, recruitment, reporting of adverse events, patient safety, oversight of clinical issues in the protocols, storage and analysis of confidential data, and dissemination of any research results.

After a decision has been made regarding SCCOR awards, the Institute will determine whether to convene a Data and Safety Monitoring Board to oversee one or more clinical projects in a SCCOR program. 8. The principal investigator should be an established research scientist with the ability to ensure quality control and the experience to administer both clinical and basic research effectively and integrate all components of the program.

A minimum time commitment of 25 percent is required for this individual. The principal investigator must be the project leader of one of the component research projects. If this project is not recommended by peer review, the overall SCCOR application will not be considered further.

If this project is judged by peer review to be of low scientific merit, this will markedly reduce the overall scientific merit ranking assigned to the 9. Project leaders should have significant research experience and must agree to commit at least 20 percent effort to each project for which they are responsible. Leaders of clinical projects should have experience in clinical research as defined in Item 2, above.

Investigators with minimal research experience, but promising credentials, may participate; however, it is expected that most of the project leaders will be investigators with significant research experience. 10.

Applicants are encouraged to establish links and utilize existing resources, including the NHLBI Program in Genomic Applications, NHLBI clinical research networks, and General Clinical Research Centers, as feasible and appropriate. If applicants propose to utilize such resources, a letter of agreement from the program director or principal investigator of the resource should be included with the application.

We encourage inquiries concerning this RFA and welcome the opportunity to answer questions from potential applicants.

Inquiries may fall into three areas: scientific/research, peer review, and financial or grants management issues: o Direct your questions about scientific/research issues to: Division of Blood Diseases and Resources National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Building Two Rockledge Center, Room 10140 Telephone: (301) 435-0075 o Direct your questions about peer review issues to: Division of Extramural Affairs National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute 6701 Rockledge Drive, Room 7214, MSC 7924 Telephone: (301) 435-0270 o Direct your questions about financial or grants management matters to: Division of Extramural Affairs National Heart, Lung & Blood Institute 6701 Rockledge Drive, Suite 7044 (301)435-0166 FAX (301)480-3310 Prospective applicants are asked to submit a letter of intent that includes the o Descriptive title of the proposed research o Name, address, and telephone number of the Principal Investigator o Names of other key personnel o Participating institutions o Number and title of this RFA Although a letter of intent is not required, is not binding, and does not enter into the review of a subsequent application, the information that it contains allows IC staff to estimate the potential review workload and plan the review.

The letter of intent is to be sent by the date listed at the beginning of this document. The letter of intent should be sent by mail or email to Dr. Anne Clark at the address listed under Where to Send Inquiries . Applications must be prepared using the PHS 398 research grant application instructions and forms (rev.

5/2001). Applications must have a DUN and Bradstreet (D&B) Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number as the Universal Identifier when applying for Federal grants or cooperative agreements. The DUNS number can be obtained by calling (866) 705-5711 or through the web site at http://www.

dunandbradstreet. com/ . The DUNS number should be entered on line 11 of the face page of the PHS 398 form.

The PHS 398 document is available at http://grants. nih. gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.

html in an interactive format. For further assistance contact GrantsInfo, Telephone (301) 710-0267, Email: SUPPLEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONS: Because of the size and complexity of a SCCOR, prospective applicants are urged to consult with the staff of the Division of Blood Diseases and Resources early in the preparation of the application (see INQUIRIES Section).

Special instructions are needed for preparing a SCCOR application and are available from the program contact listed under WHERE TO SEND INQUIRIES, or at http://www. nhlbi. nih.

gov/funding/policies/sccor_desc. htm . Each NHLBI SCCOR program is limited to 10 years of support.

Exceptions to this policy will be made only if a thorough evaluation of needs and opportunities, conducted by a committee composed of non-federal experts, determines that there are extraordinarily important reasons to continue a specific SCCOR program. Under this policy, a given SCCOR grant is awarded for a 5-year project period following an open competition.

Only one 5-year competing renewal is permitted, for a total of 10 years of support, unless the SCCOR program is recommended for The NHLBI does not limit the number of applications for a given SCCOR program from one institution. However, each SCCOR application from the institution must have a different principal investigator and must be self-contained and independent of other SCCOR applications from the same institution.

Institutions envisioning more than one application are encouraged to discuss their plans with the program contact listed under Where to Send Inquiries. USING THE RFA LABEL: The RFA label available in the PHS 398 (rev. 5/2001) application form must be affixed to the bottom of the face page of the application.

Type the RFA number on the label. Failure to use this label could result in delayed processing of the application such that it may not reach the review committee in time for review. In addition, the RFA title and number must be typed on line 2 of the face page of the application form and the YES box must be marked.

The RFA label is also available at: http://grants. nih. gov/grants/funding/phs398/label-bk.

pdf .

SENDING AN APPLICATION TO THE NIH: Submit a signed, typewritten original of the application, including the Checklist, and three signed, photocopies, in one package Center For Scientific Review National Institutes Of Health 6701 Rockledge Drive, Room 1040, MSC 7710 Bethesda, MD 20817 (for express/courier service) At the time of submission, two additional copies of the application and all copies of the appendix material must be sent to: Division of Extramural Affairs National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute 6701 Rockledge Drive, Room 7214, MSC 7924 Bethesda, MD 20817 (for express/courier service) Telephone: (301) 435-0270 Applications must be received on or before the application receipt date listed in the heading of this RFA.

If an application is received after that date, it will be returned to the applicant without review. The Center for Scientific Review (CSR) will not accept any application in response to this RFA that is essentially the same as one currently pending initial review, unless the applicant withdraws the pending application.

However, when a previously unfunded application, originally submitted as an investigator-initiated application, is to be submitted in response to an RFA, it is to be prepared as a NEW application. That is, the application for the RFA must not include an Introduction describing the changes and improvements made, and the text must not be marked to indicate the changes from the previous unfunded version of the application.

Principal investigators should not send supplementary material without first contacting the Scientific Review Administrator (SRA). The SRA will be identified in the letter sent to you indicating that your application has been received. If you have not received such a letter within three weeks after submitting the application, contact Dr. Anne Clark at the address listed under Where to Send Inquiries .

Upon receipt, applications will be reviewed for completeness by the CSR and responsiveness by the NHLBI. Incomplete and/or non-responsive applications will be returned to the applicant without further consideration. Applications that are complete and responsive to the RFA will be evaluated for scientific