Martin Delaney Collaboratories for HIV Cure Research (UM1) | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The Martin Delaney Collaboratories for HIV Cure Research (UM1) funding opportunity (RFA-AI-15-029) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) cooperative agreement designed to tackle one of the central barriers to curing HIV: viral persistence in people who are taking antiretroviral therapy (ART) and have otherwise achieved long-term viral suppression. Even when ART keeps HIV levels undetectable in blood, the virus can remain hidden in latent or persistent reservoirs and can rebound if treatment is stopped. This FOA is built around the idea that solving that problem requires tightly coordinated teams that can connect basic discovery work to real-world testing in humans, rather than isolated projects that move slowly from lab findings to clinical evaluation.

The program specifically supports “collaboratories,” meaning multi-component, collaborative research groups that integrate basic science, translational development, and clinical research under a single, coordinated structure. The overall scientific objective is to develop and test strategies aimed at an HIV cure, where “cure” is defined broadly in two acceptable directions: sustained HIV remission (sometimes called a functional cure, where virus remains durably controlled without ongoing ART) and/or eradication (eliminating the virus so it cannot return). The FOA emphasizes that research should be milestone-driven, with clear go/no-go points and measurable progress indicators, reflecting NIH’s expectation that these large, complex collaborations will be managed with the discipline of a development pipeline rather than an open-ended exploratory model.

A core requirement of the application is the inclusion of at least one private sector entity. This is meant to speed translation of discoveries into clinical studies by bringing in partners such as biotechnology or pharmaceutical companies, diagnostics developers, or other commercial organizations with capabilities in product development, manufacturing, regulatory strategy, and trial execution. In practical terms, NIH is signaling that these collaboratories are expected not only to generate new knowledge, but also to move candidate interventions, assays, and combined approaches toward clinical readiness.

Scientifically, the FOA centers on innovative approaches that span a full continuum of cure-focused work. Key examples include: improved characterization and quantification of latent or persistent HIV-1 reservoirs (for instance, better assays, tissue-based measurements, or methods that distinguish intact from defective proviruses); identification and prioritization of therapeutic strategies that either directly target reservoirs or help control viral rebound (such as latency-reversing approaches, immune-based therapies, gene or cell-based strategies, or other interventions that reduce the size of the reservoir or strengthen immune control); and preclinical and clinical studies that test new single interventions and, importantly, combination strategies. The emphasis on combinations reflects the field’s recognition that HIV persistence is multifactorial, and that durable remission or eradication may require coordinated attacks on latency, infected cell survival, immune dysfunction, and sanctuary sites.

From an administrative standpoint, this opportunity uses the cooperative agreement mechanism (UM1), which typically indicates substantial programmatic involvement by NIH staff in addition to awardee leadership. Cooperative agreements often involve active NIH participation in steering, coordination, and oversight of milestones, which fits the collaboratory model and the expectation of structured progress toward clinical translation. The award ceiling listed for this FOA is $3,500,000, and there is no cost sharing or matching requirement.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of domestic and non-domestic institutions and organizations. Eligible applicants include public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations (with or without 501(c)(3) status), for-profit organizations (including small businesses), and a wide range of government entities (state, county, city/township, special district). The FOA also explicitly includes tribal governments and tribal organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, regional organizations, faith-based and community-based organizations, and federal agencies. It highlights eligibility for institutions serving specific populations, including HBCUs, Hispanic-serving institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions, and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander-serving institutions, among others. Foreign organizations are also included as eligible non-U.S. entities, reinforcing the global relevance of HIV cure research.

The opportunity was posted on May 21, 2015, with an original (and final) closing date of December 7, 2015, and it was later archived on January 7, 2016. While this specific FOA is no longer open, it represents a major NIH initiative framework for accelerating HIV cure research through coordinated, milestone-based collaboratories that unite reservoir science, therapeutic strategy development, and early clinical testing with meaningful private-sector participation. For full historical details and official language, the FOA points to the NIH Guide notice at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-AI-15-029.html.

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