Brain Somatic Mosaicism and its Role in Psychiatric Disorders (Collaborative U01) | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the NIH opportunity PAR 14-174?

PAR 14-174 is an NIH Funding Opportunity Announcement titled "Brain Somatic Mosaicism and its Role in Psychiatric Disorders (Collaborative U01)." It supports collaborative, multi-site research projects focused on understanding how somatic genomic changes in the human brain may contribute to one or more psychiatric disorders.

What is the main scientific focus of this FOA?

The central focus is brain somatic mosaicism: DNA alterations that arise after conception and therefore appear in some brain cells but not others within the same individual. The FOA aims to move beyond inherited (germline) genetics by systematically identifying and characterizing somatic variation in human brain tissue and linking those variants to disease biology and pathophysiology in psychiatric conditions.

What does "somatic mosaicism" mean in the context of brain research?

In this context, somatic mosaicism refers to post-conception genomic changes that create genetically distinct populations of cells within the brain. Because these changes are not present in every cell, they may be rare, restricted to specific brain regions, or limited to particular cell types.

What kinds of studies is the FOA trying to encourage?

The announcement calls for multidisciplinary, synergistic teams that can combine advanced experimental and analytical approaches. Projects are expected to use state-of-the-art genomics, computational methods, and single-cell or similarly high-resolution techniques to detect and interpret somatic variants, including rare, region-specific, or cell-type-specific changes.

Why is mapping across multiple brain regions emphasized?

A key emphasis is mapping and comparing somatic variation across different brain regions because psychiatric disorders may involve circuit-level and regionally patterned dysfunction. Applicants are encouraged to design studies that can robustly measure somatic changes across multiple brain areas and interpret results in the context of disorder mechanisms.

What award mechanism does this FOA use?

This opportunity uses a Cooperative Agreement (U01) mechanism. This signals that NIH expects substantial programmatic involvement beyond typical grant oversight and that funded projects will operate as part of a coordinated network.

What does NIH involvement look like under a U01 cooperative agreement?

The FOA indicates NIH anticipates substantial programmatic involvement and that projects will be organized as a coordinated network. A Brain Somatic Mosaicism (BSM) Network Steering Committee oversees the network with the intent to harmonize strategies, analytical pipelines, and data practices across projects to improve reproducibility and comparability.

What is the Brain Somatic Mosaicism (BSM) Network Steering Committee?

Funded projects are organized as a coordinated network overseen by the BSM Network Steering Committee. The purpose is to accelerate progress by promoting shared standards for generating and interpreting somatic variant data, harmonizing analytical approaches, and making results more comparable across disorders, cohorts, and brain regions.

Is this FOA intended for single-site projects?

No. This is described as a collaborative FOA intended for situations where two or more sites are needed to complete the study. The collaboration is structured to increase sample size, speed progress, and/or broaden sample diversity and representation.

How are multi-site collaborations expected to be organized?

Collaborating sites are expected to share a specific protocol. Each participating site has its own Program Director/Principal Investigator, while the overall program provides mechanisms for cross-site coordination, quality control, database and data management, statistical analysis, and reporting.

What infrastructure elements are highlighted for the network?

The FOA anticipates distributed data generation with coordinated methods to ensure consistent handling, analysis, and interpretation. It also highlights cross-site coordination, quality control, database and data management, statistical analysis, and reporting as part of the overall program structure.

What types of genomic variation is this FOA interested in?

The scientific intent is to identify and characterize the full range of somatic variation in human brain tissue and link it to disease biology and pathophysiology. The FOA emphasizes detecting somatic variants that may be rare, region-specific, or cell-type-specific using high-resolution approaches such as single-cell methods.

What disease areas does this opportunity target?

The FOA targets neuropsychiatric disorders and is focused on how somatic genomic changes in the brain may contribute to psychiatric illness and related pathophysiology.

Who is the sponsoring agency and what is the CFDA listing?

The sponsoring agency is the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The opportunity is listed under CFDA 93.242 (Mental Health Research Grants).

What is the estimated total funding level for this FOA?

The FOA lists an estimated total funding level of $5,000,000.

Is cost sharing or matching required?

No. The opportunity states that cost sharing or matching is not required.

Is this funding opportunity currently open?

No. The dates provided indicate that the announcement is historical rather than open. The FOA includes an archive date of November 22, 2014, and the closing dates listed are in 2014 and 2017, reflecting that it is no longer an active solicitation.

What are the key dates mentioned in the FOA summary?

The original posting date is April 9, 2014. Key dates listed include an original closing date of February 24, 2017, a current closing date of October 23, 2014, and an archive date of November 22, 2014.

What types of organizations are eligible to apply?

Eligibility is broad and includes many domestic and non-domestic organizations. Examples listed include state, county, and city/township governments; special districts; tribal governments and tribal organizations (federally recognized and other than federally recognized); U.S. territories or possessions; public and private institutions of higher education; independent school districts; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits (including 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) entities); for-profit organizations (including small businesses and other for-profits); and foreign organizations or other non-U.S. entities.

Are foreign (non-U.S.) organizations eligible?

Yes. The eligibility language explicitly includes foreign organizations or other non-U.S. entities.

Does the FOA highlight any specific institution types (such as minority-serving institutions)?

Yes. The eligibility language highlights a wide range of institution types and designations, including HBCUs, Hispanic-serving institutions, AANAPISIs, tribally controlled colleges and universities, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian serving institutions, and faith-based or community-based organizations, among others.

What is the overall goal of the program described by this FOA?

The program aims to close major knowledge gaps about somatic mutations and other somatic genomic perturbations in the brain and to determine whether, where, and how those changes contribute to psychiatric illness. It is structured to support large-scale, coordinated studies with shared protocols and strong cross-site infrastructure to produce results more quickly and make findings more comparable and reproducible across projects.

Where can applicants find the official FOA?

The official FOA link is provided through the NIH grants guide, as noted in the opportunity description.