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Administrative Supplements for Research on Dietary Supplements (PA 16-319): FAQs

What is the Administrative Supplements for Research on Dietary Supplements (PA 16-319) opportunity?

It is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding opportunity that provides administrative supplement awards to add a clearly defined dietary supplement component to an active, already-funded NIH project. The overall aim is to accelerate research on how dietary supplements and specific supplement ingredients contribute to health maintenance and disease prevention.

Who administers this funding opportunity?

The opportunity is an NIH funding opportunity administered under HHS-NIH. The NIH Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) is described as the main programmatic driver behind the research priorities in the announcement.

Is this a new stand-alone research grant?

No. This is an administrative supplement mechanism (discretionary grant) rather than a stand-alone new research grant. It is intended to provide limited, targeted additional funds to extend an existing NIH-funded project into a related dietary supplement research area.

Do applicants need to already have an active NIH award to apply?

Yes. The purpose of the award is to add a dietary supplement component to an active, already-funded NIH project (the parent award).

Does the parent (existing) grant need to be focused on dietary supplements?

No. A key feature of the announcement is flexibility: the parent grant does not need to be focused on dietary supplements, as long as the proposed supplement work fits within the overall scientific scope of the parent project and can be justified as a logical extension of it.

What is the central purpose of these supplements?

The central purpose is to speed up research on how dietary supplements and specific supplement ingredients relate to health maintenance and disease prevention, including clarifying evidence gaps and improving understanding of benefits versus risks when literature is mixed or conflicting.

What kinds of research are supported under this FOA?

The FOA indicates projects may be pre-clinical (including mechanistic or laboratory-based work), clinical (including human studies), behavioral, or epidemiological, as long as the dietary supplement component fits within the parent award scope.

Is the opportunity limited to a specific disease area, organ system, or population?

No. ODS is described as not limiting interest to any one disease area, organ system, or population group, making the opportunity potentially relevant across many biomedical and public health fields.

What are some of the priority themes emphasized in the announcement?

The announcement emphasizes stimulating dietary supplement research where it is missing, underdeveloped, or falling behind; resolving uncertainty and clarifying evidence gaps; identifying concrete opportunities for progress; and better balancing benefit versus risk when existing findings are mixed or conflicting.

Does the FOA emphasize safety and risk issues related to dietary supplements?

Yes. The described goals include improving understanding of supplement benefits and patterns of use while also addressing safety and risk considerations when appropriate, particularly in areas where evidence is uncertain or conflicting.

Are special population groups a focus of this opportunity?

Yes. The FOA places weight on research addressing special population groups where additional science is needed, including groups with different nutritional needs or risk profiles and populations where evidence is limited (for example, life-stage groups).

Can the supplement support activities beyond a single study (such as building capacity or training)?

The FOA signals interest in research and training activities that build long-term capacity in dietary supplement science. Proposals that strengthen the workforce, methods, or infrastructure needed to study supplements rigorously may be competitive if they align with an active parent award.

What makes a proposed dietary supplement component a good fit for an administrative supplement?

Based on the description, a good fit is a clearly defined add-on set of aims that uses dietary supplements or supplement ingredients as the exposure, intervention, or focus of analysis, is timely, leverages the parent award platform (such as data, cohort, methods, lab models, clinical infrastructure, or analytic framework), and closes an important knowledge gap about supplement benefits, risks, or patterns of use in ways that inform health maintenance and disease prevention.

What is the maximum award amount (award ceiling) mentioned?

The listed award ceiling is $100,000.

How many awards were anticipated under this announcement?

The FOA anticipated about 30 awards.

What were the posted date and closing date listed for this FOA?

The opportunity was posted on June 9, 2016, and the original and current closing date shown is April 15, 2017.

Do the listed dates suggest whether this specific announcement is tied to a particular cycle?

Yes. The dates indicate the specific announcement was tied to that cycle. The description also notes that the structure and intent are typical of NIH administrative supplement opportunities, which provide targeted additional funds without requiring a full competing renewal or brand-new stand-alone application.

Who is eligible to apply (organizational eligibility)?

Eligibility is described as broad and includes public and private institutions of higher education; nonprofit organizations (including 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)); for-profit organizations (including small businesses); governmental entities (state, county, city/township, special districts); eligible tribal governments and tribal organizations; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; and other applicants as specified in the FOA’s additional eligibility language.

Why are multiple CFDA numbers listed for this opportunity?

The listing includes multiple CFDA numbers, reflecting that supplement awards can be associated with a wide array of NIH parent programs and institutes, as long as the proposed supplement aims are relevant to dietary supplement science and remain within the scope of the parent award.

What is meant by staying "within the scope" of the parent award?

Based on the description provided, the dietary supplement component must fit within the overall scientific scope of the parent project and be justified as a logical extension of that existing work.

Is the opportunity aimed at investigators with particular resources or platforms?

It is designed for investigators who already have an NIH-funded project and can add a dietary supplement component that leverages existing assets from the parent award, such as data, cohorts, methods, laboratory models, clinical infrastructure, or an established analytic framework.

What kinds of questions is the NIH/ODS hoping these supplements will help answer?

The described intent is to improve understanding of how supplements and specific ingredients contribute to maintaining health and function and potentially reducing chronic disease risk, while also helping resolve uncertainty in the evidence base and addressing benefit-versus-risk considerations.

What does the FOA suggest about the strength of the evidence base in dietary supplement research?

The FOA highlights that there are areas where research is missing or underdeveloped and that existing literature can be mixed or conflicting, creating evidence gaps and uncertainty that these supplements are meant to help address.