Public Comments Sought on Modernization of Common Rule

A public comment process is currently underway for one of the most significant science policy proposals in decades—the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to modernize the Common Rule. The NPRM proposals are wide ranging, aiming to both enhance protections for research participants and reduce unnecessary regulatory burdens. Comments can be submitted to HHS-OPHS-2015-0009 at https://www.regulations.gov until December 7.

FNIH Biomarkers Consortium Study Advances Strategic Imaging and Fluid Biomarkers That Predict Structural Change and Pain Progression in Knee Osteoarthritis

On October 21, the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH) announced the results from a three-year research study that prioritizes and advances the best biological markers (biomarkers) to measure and predict structural changes and treatment responses in osteoarthritis (OA)—one of the most prevalent and disabling diseases in the world.

NCATS and Harvard Collaborate To Advance Global Rare Diseases Data Repository

The NIH/National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) Global Rare Diseases Patient Registry Data Repository/GRDR^® program is designed to advance research on rare diseases and, through application of scientific insights gained, to further research on common diseases as well. The goal is to develop a Web-based resource that integrates, secures and stores many different types of de-identified patient information from a wide range of sources—registries, electronic health records, research datasets, biospecimen repositories and more—all in one place.

Fibromyalgia Studied Within the Context of a Large National Health Survey

A recent analysis of data from the 2012 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) yields a new picture of fibromyalgia and the people it affects. Fibromyalgia is a disorder that causes widespread pain, fatigue and other symptoms; its causes are unknown. The study, published in a recent issue of PLoS One was led by two researchers at the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH).

 

NIH Researchers Recognized for Service to America

It was a pleasure for me to attend the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medals, also known as “the Sammies.” This Washington, DC, event, now in its 12th year as the “Oscars of American government service,” was a big night for the NIH. Steven Rosenberg, a highly regarded physician-scientist at the NIH’s National Cancer Institute (NCI), took home the evening’s highest honor as the 2015 Federal Employee of the Year.

Image: Steve Rosenberg receiving his Sammie as 2015 Federal Employee of the Year. Photo credit: Aaron Clamage/clamagephoto.com.

FDA Awards 18 Grants To Stimulate Product Development for Rare Diseases

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it has awarded 18 new research grants totaling more than $19 million to boost the development of products for patients with rare diseases, which affect the lives of nearly 30 million Americans. These new grants were awarded to principal investigators in 10 states, with research spanning clinical sites domestically and internationally.

HHS Enhances Preparedness With New Products To Treat Severe Burns: Disaster Readiness Could Make New Treatment Options Available for Routine Burn Care, Mass Casualties

Four novel products to treat severe thermal burns will be developed and acquired under contracts with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response. The products are intended to enhance the available treatment options for disaster response and are being designed to find uses in routine clinical burn care.

NEW PUBLICATIONS AND PRODUCTS

Spotlight on Scientific Imagery: Bubblegram Virus

“Bubblegram” imaging is a technique that allows researchers to view the inner structures of viruses clearly. In the background, this image shows cryo-electron micrographs of purified viruses with their inner structure “bubbling” from radiation damage. Overlaid (left) is a 3-D computer reconstruction of a virus's outer shell, its tail in gray and the inner structure in magenta. The structure on the right is a blow-up of the inner viral structure in magenta. This image is courtesy of Alasdair Steven, Ph.D., NIAMS Laboratory of Structural Biology Research, and is in the public domain.

2016 A Year of Health Planners

Pre-order A Year of Health: A Guide to a Healthy 2016 For You and Your Family health planners from the NIAMS. This FREE 12-month resource is created for four different cultural groups, and it offers tips and information on health issues related to bones, joints, muscles and skin. Fill out the pre-order form [PDF - 186 KB] and email it to the NIAMS Clearinghouse to get up to 150 free health planners for your community.

Lupus and Arthritis Featured on Healthy Moments Radio Episodes

NIAMS Director Dr. Stephen Katz joined National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) Director, Dr. Griffin Rodgers, as a guest host on Healthy Moments, a weekly radio broadcast sponsored by the NIDDK. The segments aired in October.

• What Is Lupus and Who Gets It?  [Audio file] [Transcript and related information]
• Recognizing Flares and Coping With Lupus [Audio file] [Transcript and related information]
• Types of Arthritis [Audio file] [Transcript and related information]
• Living With Arthritis [Audio file] [Transcript and related information]

Image: NIAMS Director Dr. Stephen Katz (l) and NIDDK Director Dr. Griffin Rodgers record segments about lupus and arthritis for NIDDK’s Healthy Moments radio program.

LabTV: Improving Health Outcomes of Native Americans

Deana Around Him, a post-doctoral researcher at the NIH Clinical Center in Bethesda, MD, studies maternal and child health in tribal communities, with the goal of improving outcomes for children who have experienced trauma. She is currently working with a tribal community in Montana.

AHRQ Resource: The Chartbook for Hispanic Health Care

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s (AHRQ) Chartbook for Hispanic Health Care [PDF - 4.2 MB] is part of a set of documents that comprise the National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report. This chartbook includes a summary of trends across measures of Hispanic health care.

 

 

25th Anniversary of the NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH)

On October 20, the 40th NIH Advisory Committee Meeting on Research on Women’s Health included guest speakers in recognition of ORWH’s 25th anniversary. The videotaped Council Meeting is available. In addition, a new slideshow, Celebrating a Quarter Century in Women’s Research, highlights areas of progress in women’s health and a number of research discoveries about sex differences in health and disease.

NIH Pain Consortium Highlights Pain Research News [PDF - 520 KB]

The NIH Pain Consortium’s annual newsletter highlights trans-NIH and interagency pain research news; information about the 2015–2016 NIH Pain Seminar Series lectures; information about the Interagency Pain Research Coordinating Committee Meeting to be held on December 3, 2015; and information about the 2016 Annual NIH Pain Consortium Symposium, May 31–June 1, 2016.

New Video: The Impact of the Human Genome Project, 25 Years From Its Launch

National Human Genome Research Institute Director Eric Green, M.D., Ph.D., reflects on the lasting legacy of the Human Genome Project (HGP) 25 years after its start. The HGP’s far-reaching impacts include team science, data sharing and analysis, and technology development.

NIH Research Matters

NIH Research Matters is a review of NIH research from the Office of Communications and Public Liaison, Office of the Director, NIH.

Antibiotic Combinations May Combat MRSA Infections

Antibiotic resistance is a major public health problem. Many bacterial infections have become difficult to treat because the microbes responsible have adapted to become resistant to the most effective antibiotics. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, has evolved from a controllable nuisance into a serious public health concern. MRSA is now one of the most common hospital-acquired infections. Recently, new strains have emerged in the community that are capable of causing severe infections in otherwise healthy people.

Image: Digitally colorized scanning electron micrograph of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (mustard-colored spheres) and a dead human white blood cell (red). Photo credit: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).

NIH News in Health

Read practical health information in NIH News in Health, which is reviewed by the NIH’s medical experts and is based on research conducted either by the NIH’s own scientists or by its grantees at universities and medical schools around the country.

MEETINGS

2015 High-Risk, High-Reward Research Symposium

December 7–9, 2015
NIH Campus, Natcher Conference Center (Building 45)
Cost: Free
View the draft agenda.
Registration is available here.
Read more about the NIH High-Risk, High-Reward Research Program.

Pathways to Prevention Workshop: Total Worker Health^®—What’s Work Got To Do With It?

December 9–10, 2015
NIH Campus, Masur Auditorium (Building 10)
Cost: Free
View the draft agenda.
Registration is available here.
View videocast information [Day 1] [Day 2].

NIH Wednesday Afternoon Lecture Series

The NIH’s Wednesday Afternoon Lecture Series offers weekly lectures every Wednesday at 3 p.m. in Masur Auditorium, Building 10, NIH Campus. Renowned scientists from around the globe present research on a variety of topics. The lectures are Continuing Medical Education-certified, open to the public and available live via webcast.

Upcoming Lecture:

December 9, 2015
The G. Burroughs Mider Lecture
Ronald N. Germain, M.D., Ph.D., NIAID, NIH
“Imaging Immunity”

NIH Science Lectures and Events Available via Internet

The NIH hosts a number of science seminars and events that are available online through real-time streaming video. You can watch an event at your convenience as an on-demand video or a downloadable podcast. Most events are available to all; a few are broadcast for the NIH or the HHS, and are marked as such. See additional details on events.

FUNDING ANNOUNCEMENTS

NIH COMMON FUND INITIATIVE ANNOUNCEMENTS

Molecular Transducers of Physical Activity Genomics, Epigenomics and Transcriptomics Chemical Analysis Sites (U24)

(RFA-RM-15-010)
Letter of Intent Receipt Date: February 18, 2016
Application Receipt Date: March 18, 2016

Molecular Transducers of Physical Activity Metabolomics and Proteomics Chemical Analysis Sites (U24)

(RFA-RM-15-011)
Letter of Intent Receipt Date: February 18, 2016
Application Receipt Date: March 18, 2016

Molecular Transducers of Physical Activity Bioinformatics Center (U24)

(RFA-RM-15-012)
Letter of Intent Receipt Date: February 18, 2016
Application Receipt Date: March 18, 2016

Molecular Transducers of Physical Activity Preclinical Animal Study Sites (U01)

(RFA-RM-15-013)
Letter of Intent Receipt Date: February 18, 2016
Application Receipt Date: March 18, 2016

Molecular Transducers of Physical Activity Consortium Coordinating Center (CCC) (U24)

(RFA-RM-15-014)
Letter of Intent Receipt Date: February 18, 2016
Application Receipt Date: March 18, 2016

Molecular Transducers of Physical Activity Clinical Centers (U01)

(RFA-RM-15-015)
Letter of Intent Receipt Date: February 18, 2016
Application Receipt Date: March 18, 2016

Limited Competition: Knockout Mouse Phenotyping Project Database (UM1)

(RFA-RM-15-016)
Letter of Intent Receipt Date: Not applicable
Application Receipt Date: December 9, 2015

Limited Competition: Knockout Mouse Production and Phenotyping Project (UM1)

(RFA-RM-15-017)
Letter of Intent Receipt Date: Not applicable
Application Receipt Date: December 9, 2015

Collaborative Activities To Promote Metabolomics Research (Admin Supp)

(PA-16-005)
Letter of Intent Receipt Date: Not applicable
Application Receipt Date: February 15, 2016

Request for Information (RFI): Undiagnosed Diseases Research

(NOT-RM-16-001)

OTHER FUNDING ANNOUNCEMENTS

Notice of Participation of the Office of Research Infrastructure Programs in PA-14-157 “Early Stage Development of Technologies in Biomedical Computing, Informatics and Big Data Science (R41/R42)”

(NOT-OD-15-157)

NIH Research Involving Introduction of Human Pluripotent Cells Into Non-Human Vertebrate Animal Pre-Gastrulation Embryos

(NOT-OD-15-158)

Notice of Participation of the Office of Research Infrastructure Programs in PA-14-154 “Early Stage Development of Technologies in Biomedical Computing, Informatics and Big Data Science (R43/R44)”

(NOT-OD-15-161)

Notice Announcing FAQs Page for PAR-14-315 "Testing Interventions for Health-Enhancing Physical Activity (R01)” and PAR-14-321 “Developing Interventions for Health-Enhancing Physical Activity (R21/R33)”

(NOT-OD-15-162)

Notice of National Biosafety Stewardship Month and Health and Safety Requirements for NIH Grantees

(NOT-OD-15-163)

NIH/HHS Contingency Plans for the Grants Administration Process Given a Potential Lapse in Funding

(NOT-OD-15-164)

Notice of Information Related to Office of Research on Women’s Health Specialized Centers of Research (SCOR) on Sex Differences

(NOT-OD-16-001)

NIH Operates Under a Continuing Resolution

(NOT-OD-16-002)

Notice Announcing Pre-Application Webinar for RFA-OD-15-004 “Tobacco Regulatory Science Small Grant Program for New Investigators (R03)”

(NOT-OD-16-003)

NIH and AHRQ Announce Upcoming Changes to Policies, Instructions and Forms for 2016 Grant Applications

(NOT-OD-16-004)

NIH and AHRQ Announce Upcoming Changes to Post-Award Forms and Instructions

(NOT-OD-16-005)

Simplification of the Vertebrate Animals Section of NIH Grant Applications and Contract Proposals

(NOT-OD-16-006)

NIH and AHRQ Announce Transition to New Research Training Table Formats for 2016 and Upcoming Release of the xTRACT System

(NOT-OD-16-007)

NIH and AHRQ Announce New Form for PHS Awarding Component and Peer Review Requests

(NOT-OD-16-008)

NIH and AHRQ Change Font Guidelines for Applications to Due Dates on or After May 25, 2016

(NOT-OD-16-009)

Inclusion of Children in Clinical Research: Change in NIH Definition

(NOT-OD-16-010)

Implementing Rigor and Transparency in NIH and AHRQ Research Grant Applications

(NOT-OD-16-011)

Implementing Rigor and Transparency in NIH and AHRQ Career Development Award Applications

(NOT-OD-16-012)

NIH Offers Niche Assessment Program to HHS SBIR and STTR Phase I Awardees

(NOT-OD-16-013)

Research Terms and Conditions Available for Public Comment

(NOT-OD-16-014)

Announcement of NIH Plans for the Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program

(NOT-OD-16-015)