Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA DA 15 012
Apply for RFA DA 15 012
- The National Institutes of Health in the education health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Extracellular Vesicles in HIV/AIDS and Substance Abuse (R21)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.279 Drug Abuse and Addiction Research Programs.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jul 17, 2014 and posted on Jul 17, 2014.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Dec 15, 2014. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $2,000,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $2,000,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification) Public and State controlled institutions of higher education Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments) Private institutions of higher education County governments City or township governments Independent school districts Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Small businesses State governments Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized) For profit organizations other than small businesses Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Special district governments.
- Other Eligible Applicants include the following Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISISs) Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government Faith based or Community based Organizations Hispanic serving Institutions Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized) Non domestic (non U.S.) Entities (Foreign Organizations) Regional Organizations Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs) U.S. Territory or Possession Non domestic (non U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are eligible to apply. Non domestic (non U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are eligible to apply. Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.
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Opportunity Summary:
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced this discretionary grant opportunity, RFA-DA-15-012, titled "Extracellular Vesicles in HIV/AIDS and Substance Abuse (R21)," to support exploratory research on the role of extracellular vesicles in HIV/AIDS in the context of substance use. The central aim is to stimulate projects that clarify how extracellular vesicles (such as exosomes and related vesicle populations) influence HIV infection and disease progression, and how they might be harnessed or measured as HIV/AIDS biomarkers or developed into therapeutic approaches. A defining requirement of the opportunity is that proposed studies must also examine how exposure to substances of abuse could change extracellular vesicle biology or alter their relationship to HIV-related outcomes, reflecting NIH's interest in understanding HIV in real-world settings where substance use can meaningfully affect transmission risk, immune function, comorbidities, and treatment response.
This funding opportunity uses the NIH R21 mechanism, which is commonly intended for early-stage, high-impact, and potentially higher-risk ideas that can generate key preliminary data or open up new directions rather than support large, multi-year clinical programs. Within that scope, the FOA emphasizes research that connects extracellular vesicles to HIV infection or progression and to practical applications like diagnostic, prognostic, or predictive biomarkers, as well as therapeutic concepts. In other words, applicants were expected to go beyond describing vesicles in a general sense and instead propose clear, testable questions about how vesicles participate in HIV pathogenesis, how their contents or signaling effects might reflect disease state, or how they could be manipulated or engineered to influence HIV-related biology. At the same time, projects had to explicitly incorporate the additional variable of substances of abuse, meaning the work should assess whether drugs of abuse modify vesicle release, composition, uptake, immune effects, viral replication dynamics, inflammatory signaling, or other relevant pathways that could reshape HIV outcomes.
The opportunity was listed under CFDA number 93.279, which corresponds to Drug Abuse and Addiction Research Programs, aligning it closely with research priorities at the intersection of HIV and substance use. The program was posted on July 17, 2014, with an original and final application due date of December 15, 2014, and it was later archived on January 15, 2015. NIH estimated total funding at $2,000,000, and the stated award ceiling was also $2,000,000. There was no cost sharing or matching requirement, so applicants were not expected to provide non-federal matching funds as a condition of eligibility.
Eligibility for this FOA was broad and included a wide range of domestic and international organizations. Eligible applicants covered public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (including those with and without 501(c)(3) status, other than institutions of higher education), small businesses, for-profit organizations other than small businesses, and multiple levels of government (state, county, city or township, special district governments, and independent school districts), as well as public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities. The announcement also explicitly welcomed applications from organizations that serve specific communities and populations, including Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), along with faith-based and community-based organizations and eligible federal agencies. Importantly, the FOA allowed non-U.S. entities and foreign institutions to apply, permitted non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations, and allowed foreign components as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, signaling NIH's openness to global expertise and international collaboration in this research area.
From a practical standpoint, the FOA is best understood as a targeted call for innovative pilot studies that link extracellular vesicle science with HIV/AIDS questions while directly addressing substance abuse as a modifier of biology and clinical relevance. A competitive application under this framework would typically be expected to propose a well-justified model system or sample source (for example, patient-derived biofluids, cell culture systems, or relevant in vivo models), a plan to characterize vesicle-associated signals (such as RNA, proteins, lipids, or functional effects on recipient cells), and a clear strategy to integrate substance exposure variables in a way that could reveal mechanisms or improve biomarker/therapeutic potential. The full announcement and official details were provided through the NIH Grants Guide link associated with the FOA (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-DA-15-012.html), with NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) webmaster contacts listed for access or technical issues.
FAQs: NIH RFA-DA-15-012 - Extracellular Vesicles in HIV/AIDS and Substance Abuse (R21)
What is the funding opportunity called?
The opportunity is NIH discretionary grant RFA-DA-15-012, titled "Extracellular Vesicles in HIV/AIDS and Substance Abuse (R21)."
Which agency is offering this grant?
The opportunity was announced by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
What is the main purpose of this FOA?
The FOA is intended to support exploratory research on how extracellular vesicles (including exosomes and related vesicle populations) influence HIV infection and disease progression, and how extracellular vesicles might be used as HIV/AIDS biomarkers or developed into therapeutic approaches, specifically in the context of substance use.
What scientific topic does this FOA focus on?
It focuses on extracellular vesicles and their roles in HIV/AIDS, including how vesicles may affect HIV pathogenesis and how vesicle-based measurements or interventions could have diagnostic, prognostic, predictive, or therapeutic value.
What types of extracellular vesicles are included?
The announcement refers to extracellular vesicles such as exosomes and related vesicle populations.
Is substance abuse a required component of proposed studies?
Yes. A defining requirement is that proposed studies must examine how exposure to substances of abuse could change extracellular vesicle biology or alter the relationship between extracellular vesicles and HIV-related outcomes.
How does the FOA describe the role of substance use in HIV research?
The FOA reflects NIH interest in real-world settings where substance use can affect transmission risk, immune function, comorbidities, and treatment response, and therefore must be integrated into the proposed scientific questions.
What kinds of research questions were applicants expected to propose?
Applicants were expected to propose clear, testable questions about how extracellular vesicles participate in HIV pathogenesis, how vesicle contents or signaling effects might reflect disease state, or how vesicles could be manipulated or engineered to influence HIV-related biology, while explicitly incorporating substance exposure as a modifying factor.
What kinds of vesicle-related effects were considered relevant to study?
The FOA highlights studying whether substances of abuse modify vesicle release, composition, uptake, immune effects, viral replication dynamics, inflammatory signaling, or other relevant pathways that could reshape HIV outcomes.
What grant mechanism does this opportunity use?
This opportunity uses the NIH R21 mechanism.
What does the R21 mechanism imply about project scope?
The R21 mechanism is commonly intended for early-stage, high-impact, and potentially higher-risk ideas that can generate key preliminary data or open new research directions, rather than support large, multi-year clinical programs.
Does the FOA emphasize biomarkers?
Yes. The FOA emphasizes connections between extracellular vesicles and practical applications such as diagnostic, prognostic, or predictive biomarkers for HIV/AIDS, in the context of substance use.
Does the FOA encourage therapeutic concepts?
Yes. The FOA includes interest in therapeutic concepts, including the possibility of manipulating or engineering extracellular vesicles to influence HIV-related biology.
What is the CFDA number associated with this opportunity?
The opportunity is listed under CFDA 93.279 (Drug Abuse and Addiction Research Programs).
When was the opportunity posted?
The FOA was posted on July 17, 2014.
What were the application due dates?
The original and final application due date was December 15, 2014.
Is this funding opportunity still open?
No. The FOA was later archived on January 15, 2015.
How much funding did NIH estimate for this FOA?
NIH estimated total funding at $2,000,000.
What was the stated award ceiling?
The stated award ceiling was $2,000,000.
Is cost sharing or matching required?
No. There was no cost sharing or matching requirement, and applicants were not expected to provide non-federal matching funds as a condition of eligibility.
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility was broad and included domestic and international organizations across many types, including higher education institutions, nonprofits, small businesses, for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), and multiple levels of government entities.
Are institutions of higher education eligible?
Yes. Public and private institutions of higher education were eligible.
Are nonprofit organizations eligible?
Yes. Nonprofits were eligible, including those with and without 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education).
Are small businesses eligible?
Yes. Small businesses were listed as eligible applicants.
Are for-profit organizations eligible?
Yes. For-profit organizations other than small businesses were included as eligible applicants.
Are government entities eligible?
Yes. Eligible applicants included state, county, city or township governments, special district governments, and independent school districts.
Are public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities eligible?
Yes. Public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities were included in the eligibility list.
Are minority-serving institutions specifically encouraged or included?
Yes. The FOA explicitly welcomed applications from organizations serving specific communities, including HBCUs, Hispanic-serving Institutions, TCCUs, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and AANAPISIs.
Are faith-based and community-based organizations eligible?
Yes. The announcement explicitly welcomed faith-based and community-based organizations.
Are federal agencies eligible to apply?
Yes. The FOA noted eligible federal agencies among welcomed applicants.
Are non-U.S. organizations eligible?
Yes. The FOA allowed non-U.S. entities and foreign institutions to apply.
Can U.S. organizations include foreign components?
Yes. The FOA permitted non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations and allowed foreign components as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
What does this FOA generally expect from a competitive application?
Based on the description provided, a competitive application would typically propose a well-justified model system or sample source (such as patient-derived biofluids, cell culture systems, or relevant in vivo models), a plan to characterize vesicle-associated signals (for example RNA, proteins, lipids, or functional effects on recipient cells), and a clear strategy to integrate substance exposure variables to reveal mechanisms or improve biomarker or therapeutic potential.
Where can the official FOA details be found?
The full announcement and official details were provided through the NIH Grants Guide page for RFA-DA-15-012 at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-DA-15-012.html
Who was listed for access or technical issues related to the FOA?
NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) webmaster contacts were listed for access or technical issues.
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