George M. OBrien Urology Cooperative Research Centers Program (U54) | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The George M. O'Brien Urology Cooperative Research Centers Program (U54) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding opportunity issued by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to support a network of cooperative research centers focused on benign urologic diseases and disorders. The central idea is to build and sustain a coordinated, multidisciplinary platform where basic scientists and clinical investigators work side by side to better understand how these non-cancer urologic conditions start, develop, and progress, and then use that knowledge to create improved diagnostics, treatments, and prevention strategies that align with NIDDK mission priorities. Rather than supporting isolated projects, the program is designed to strengthen collaboration, communication, and shared scientific direction across participating groups so that discoveries can move more efficiently from mechanisms to clinical impact.

This opportunity uses the NIH Cooperative Agreement mechanism (U54), which signals a more hands-on partnership between awardees and the NIH compared with standard grant mechanisms. Applicants are expected to be willing to work cooperatively with NIDDK and with other funded centers, helping facilitate collaborations and scientific interactions not only within their own center but also among centers and with the broader research community. In practical terms, that emphasis means the program values coordinated planning, shared resources or approaches where appropriate, and active participation in network-level activities intended to raise the overall quality, reach, and efficiency of benign urology research.

A major program goal, alongside the scientific mission, is workforce development in benign urology. The centers are expected to function as a national resource for the career development of junior scientists who want to build research careers in this area. The intent is to create an environment where early-career investigators can access mentorship, collaborative projects, and research infrastructure that make it easier to establish themselves and remain in the field. This career development focus is positioned as an integral part of the center concept, not a minor add-on, reflecting the program's aim to strengthen the pipeline of investigators capable of advancing benign urologic research over the long term.

Administratively, the funding opportunity is identified as RFA-DK-13-020 and was posted on November 18, 2013, with an application closing date of March 18, 2014 (and an archive date of April 18, 2014). The total estimated funding amount listed is $3,000,000, with an award ceiling of $1,000,000, and there is no cost-sharing or matching requirement. The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) listing associated with the announcement is 93.847 (Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases Extramural Research). While the activity category in the source data is labeled under a broader health-related category, the program itself is clearly targeted to benign urologic diseases and disorders within NIDDK's scope.

Eligibility is broad across many U.S.-based organization types, including public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (including 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3) organizations), for-profit organizations (including small businesses), and various government entities (state, county, city/township, special district governments), as well as public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities. The announcement also explicitly includes multiple types of mission- or population-focused institutions and organizations as eligible, such as 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 or community-based organizations and certain regional organizations. Foreign institutions (non-U.S. entities) are not eligible to apply, but non-domestic components of U.S. organizations may participate, and foreign components (as defined by NIH policy) are allowed, which can enable specific international collaborations when justified and compliant with NIH requirements.

Overall, this FOA is structured to create a connected set of research hubs that push benign urology forward through team science, shared problem-solving, and active coordination with NIDDK. The program is not just about producing individual research results; it is meant to elevate the field by building durable collaborative infrastructure, encouraging cross-center interaction, and developing new investigators, with the broader outcome of improving how benign urologic disorders are understood, diagnosed, treated, and prevented.

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