Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA MH 13 010
Apply for RFA MH 13 010
- The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "New Tools to Study Astrocyte Heterogeneity, Development and Function in Brain Regions Relevant to Mental Illness (R01)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.242 Mental Health Research Grants.
- This funding opportunity was created on Nov 21, 2011 and posted on Nov 21, 2011.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Mar 9, 2012. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $4,000,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Eligible applicants include: Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education 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 Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized) Small businesses Special district governments Independent school districts City or township governments For profit organizations other than small businesses Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification) State governments Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.
- Other Eligible Applicants include the following Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions 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) 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.
[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal:
Opportunity Summary:
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) released this R01 Funding Opportunity Announcement, RFA-MH-13-010, titled "New Tools to Study Astrocyte Heterogeneity, Development and Function in Brain Regions Relevant to Mental Illness." The main idea is to push the field beyond its traditional neuron-centered toolkit by funding projects that either create brand-new methods or adapt state-of-the-art technologies so researchers can identify, measure, and manipulate astrocytes with much higher precision. NIMH is signaling that progress in understanding mental illness is being held back partly because astrocytes are difficult to target rigorously, and because there are not enough widely shared datasets and validated tools to capture how diverse these cells are across brain regions, developmental stages, and functional states.
A central emphasis of the announcement is astrocyte heterogeneity. Rather than treating astrocytes as one uniform supporting cell type, the FOA encourages discovery-driven work that can reveal distinct astrocyte subtypes, state changes, and developmental trajectories, especially in brain circuits that matter for cognition, emotion, and social behavior. In practice, this means applications are expected to grapple with questions like: how do astrocytes differ from one region to another, how do they mature over time, how do they respond to activity or stress, and which of those differences are relevant to mechanisms that can contribute to psychopathology. The FOA is not limited to basic description; it is also geared toward understanding how astrocytes shape neural circuit function in ways that could plausibly intersect with mental illness biology.
The opportunity lays out three broad categories of outcomes that NIMH wants to see funded. First, projects should deliver new or improved tools for manipulating and identifying astrocytes in ways that reflect real biological variation, meaning tools that can distinguish astrocytes based on subtype, developmental stage, or functional state rather than relying on overly broad markers. Second, NIMH is looking for work that identifies phenomic signatures and regulatory logic underlying astrocyte diversity, such as combinatorial gene regulatory mechanisms and molecular profiles that explain why astrocytes in different contexts behave differently. Third, the FOA encourages mechanistic studies that connect astrocytes to neural circuit operations underlying cognition, emotion, and social function, including how astrocyte alterations might contribute to abnormal circuit function relevant to mental illness. Across all three areas, the recurring theme is resource generation that changes what the broader community can do, not just what a single lab can publish.
Another strong message is that proposed outputs should be broadly enabling for neuroscience. NIMH explicitly frames the goal as transforming astrocyte research by generating resources that will be widely used throughout the community. That implies reviewers would likely favor deliverables such as validated genetic targeting strategies, rigorously benchmarked markers, scalable profiling approaches, datasets that define astrocyte states across conditions, and other platforms that can be adopted by many groups. The FOA is essentially asking applicants to reduce field-wide bottlenecks: the lack of reliable ways to label astrocytes specifically, to separate meaningful subtypes, and to link molecular identity to function in relevant brain circuits.
Administratively, this is a discretionary NIH grant using the R01 mechanism under the mental health research grants CFDA number 93.242. The opportunity listed an estimated total funding level of about $4,000,000 for the initiative. It required no cost sharing or matching. Key dates show it was posted and created on November 21, 2011, with an original and current closing date of March 9, 2012, and an archive date of April 9, 2012, meaning it was a time-limited call rather than an open-ended standing program announcement.
Eligibility was broad and included many common U.S. applicant types such as public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (including both 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) nonprofits), small businesses, for-profit organizations (with some distinctions for small businesses), and multiple levels of government entities. The eligibility section also explicitly included a range of mission-driven and capacity-building institutions and organizations, 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 faith-based or community-based organizations, among others. Importantly, foreign institutions were eligible to apply, non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations could participate, and foreign components were allowed as defined by NIH policy, which signals openness to international expertise and collaborations where they strengthen the proposed tool development or biological discovery.
In summary, this FOA was designed to accelerate mental health-relevant neuroscience by making astrocytes easier to study in a precise, cell-state-aware way. It sought projects that deliver concrete, shareable tools and datasets, while also encouraging mechanistic work linking astrocyte diversity and function to brain circuits involved in behavior domains commonly disrupted in mental illness. The overall expectation was that funded work would not just answer a narrow question, but would leave behind capabilities and resources that help the entire field move faster and with better experimental rigor.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the name and number of this funding opportunity?
The opportunity is an NIH R01 Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH): RFA-MH-13-010, titled "New Tools to Study Astrocyte Heterogeneity, Development and Function in Brain Regions Relevant to Mental Illness."
Which NIH institute is sponsoring this FOA?
The FOA was released by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).
What grant mechanism does this FOA use?
This is an NIH discretionary grant using the R01 research project grant mechanism.
What is the CFDA number associated with this opportunity?
The CFDA number listed for this mental health research grants opportunity is 93.242.
How much total funding was estimated for this initiative?
The FOA listed an estimated total funding level of about $4,000,000 for the initiative.
Is cost sharing or matching required?
No. The opportunity required no cost sharing or matching.
What problem is NIMH trying to solve with this FOA?
NIMH is aiming to remove field-wide bottlenecks that slow progress in understanding mental illness biology because astrocytes are hard to target rigorously. The FOA highlights gaps such as limited precision tools for identifying and manipulating astrocytes, insufficient validated markers to capture meaningful astrocyte diversity, and a lack of widely shared datasets and resources describing astrocyte heterogeneity across brain regions, development, and functional states.
Why does the FOA emphasize moving beyond neuron-centered toolkits?
The FOA signals that focusing primarily on neurons and neuron-centered methods can miss important biology. It encourages development or adaptation of technologies that allow researchers to identify, measure, and manipulate astrocytes with far higher precision, because astrocytes may shape neural circuit function in ways relevant to mental illness.
What does "astrocyte heterogeneity" mean in the context of this FOA?
In this FOA, astrocyte heterogeneity means treating astrocytes as diverse rather than uniform. The FOA encourages discovery-driven work to reveal distinct astrocyte subtypes, state changes, and developmental trajectories, including how those differences vary across brain regions, across developmental stages, and across functional states.
Which brain functions and behavioral domains are highlighted as especially relevant?
The FOA points to brain circuits relevant to cognition, emotion, and social behavior, and encourages work that connects astrocyte diversity and function to neural circuit operations in these domains.
Is the FOA limited to descriptive studies of astrocytes?
No. While it encourages discovery-driven work to characterize diversity, it also explicitly pushes toward understanding how astrocytes shape neural circuit function in ways that could plausibly intersect with mental illness biology.
What are the three broad categories of outcomes NIMH wants to fund?
The FOA outlines three outcome categories: (1) new or improved tools for identifying and manipulating astrocytes in ways that reflect real biological variation (subtype, developmental stage, or functional state), (2) identification of phenomic signatures and regulatory logic underlying astrocyte diversity (including combinatorial gene regulatory mechanisms and molecular profiles), and (3) mechanistic studies connecting astrocytes to neural circuit operations underlying cognition, emotion, and social function, including how astrocyte alterations might contribute to abnormal circuit function relevant to mental illness.
What kinds of tool improvements does the FOA seem to prioritize?
The FOA prioritizes tools that go beyond overly broad astrocyte markers and instead can distinguish astrocytes based on subtype, developmental stage, or functional state. It also emphasizes higher-precision ways to identify, measure, and manipulate astrocytes.
What does the FOA mean by "phenomic signatures" and "regulatory logic"?
Based on the FOA description, "phenomic signatures" refers to profiles or signatures that capture astrocyte diversity, and "regulatory logic" refers to underlying mechanisms such as combinatorial gene regulation and molecular programs that explain why astrocytes behave differently across contexts.
How strongly does the FOA emphasize sharing and community enablement?
Very strongly. A recurring theme is resource generation that changes what the broader community can do. The FOA frames the goal as transforming astrocyte research by generating widely used resources, not just producing findings that only benefit a single lab.
What kinds of deliverables are implied to be attractive to reviewers?
The FOA suggests deliverables such as validated genetic targeting strategies, rigorously benchmarked markers, scalable profiling approaches, datasets defining astrocyte states across conditions, and other platforms that can be adopted by many groups.
Does the FOA encourage linking molecular identity to function?
Yes. The FOA highlights the need to connect astrocyte molecular identity (including subtypes and states) to function in relevant brain circuits, and to understand how changes in astrocytes could contribute to circuit abnormalities relevant to mental illness.
Is this opportunity focused on brain regions relevant to mental illness?
Yes. The title and description emphasize brain regions and circuits relevant to mental illness and to behavioral domains such as cognition, emotion, and social behavior.
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility was broad, including public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (including 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) nonprofits), small businesses, for-profit organizations (including distinctions for small businesses), and multiple levels of government entities.
Are mission-driven and capacity-building institutions explicitly included?
Yes. The eligibility section explicitly included institutions and organizations 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 faith-based or community-based organizations, among others.
Are foreign (non-U.S.) institutions eligible to apply?
Yes. Foreign institutions were eligible to apply.
Can non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations participate?
Yes. The FOA states that non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations could participate.
Are foreign components allowed under NIH policy?
Yes. Foreign components were allowed as defined by NIH policy, indicating openness to international expertise and collaborations where they strengthen the proposed work.
What are the key dates for this FOA?
It was posted and created on November 21, 2011. The original and current closing date was March 9, 2012. The archive date was April 9, 2012.
Is this FOA still open?
No. The FOA shows a closing date of March 9, 2012, and an archive date of April 9, 2012, indicating it was a time-limited call rather than an open-ended standing program announcement.
What is the overall goal of the FOA in plain terms?
The overall goal is to accelerate mental health-relevant neuroscience by making astrocytes easier to study with precision tools that can capture real biological diversity, while generating concrete, shareable tools and datasets and encouraging mechanistic links between astrocytes and circuit function relevant to mental illness.
What makes an application a good fit, based on the FOA description?
Based on the provided description, strong fit centers on creating or adapting cutting-edge methods to precisely identify, measure, and manipulate astrocytes; explicitly addressing astrocyte heterogeneity across regions, development, and states; and producing broadly enabling, widely shareable resources (tools, markers, datasets, platforms) that help the broader neuroscience community move faster and with better rigor.
Browse more opportunities from the same category: Health
Next opportunity: FY12 DoD High Energy Laser Multidisciplinary Research Initiative (HEL MRI)
Previous opportunity: Youth Leadership Program with Algeria
USGrants.org Applicant Portal:
Are you interested in learning about about how to apply for this government funding opportunity? You can create a free applicant account and receive instant access to our applicant portal that many business owners like you have benefited from.
Apply for RFA MH 13 010
[Watch] how do funding administrators access proposals?
Applicants also applied for:
Applicants who have applied for this opportunity (RFA MH 13 010) also looked into and applied for these:
| Funding Opportunity |
|---|
| Mechanisms Mediating Osteoarthritis in Aging (R21) Apply for PA 12 018 Funding Number: PA 12 018 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: $275,000 |
| Mechanisms Mediating Osteoarthritis in Aging (R01) Apply for PA 12 019 Funding Number: PA 12 019 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Translational Research in Alcoholic Hepatitis (U01) Apply for RFA AA 12 007 Funding Number: RFA AA 12 007 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: $2,000,000 |
| Studies to evaluate cellular heterogeneity using transcriptional profiling of single cells (U01) Apply for RFA RM 11 013 Funding Number: RFA RM 11 013 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Exceptionally Innovative Tools and Technologies for Single Cell Analysis (R21) Apply for RFA RM 11 014 Funding Number: RFA RM 11 014 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: $200,000 |
| Accelerating the Integration and Translation of Technologies to Characterize Biological Processes at the Single Cell Level (R01) Apply for RFA RM 11 015 Funding Number: RFA RM 11 015 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: $750,000 |
| Stem/Progenitor Cell Derived Human Micro organs and tissues (U18) Apply for RFA RM 12 001 Funding Number: RFA RM 12 001 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: $250,000 |
| Asthma and Allergic Diseases Cooperative Research Centers (U19) Apply for RFA AI 12 006 Funding Number: RFA AI 12 006 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: $1,000,000 |
| Limited Competition Alzheimers Disease Cooperative Study (U19) Apply for RFA AG 13 001 Funding Number: RFA AG 13 001 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Research Centers in Primary Care Practice Based Research and Learning (P30) Apply for RFA HS 12 002 Funding Number: RFA HS 12 002 Agency: Agency for Health Care Research and Quality Category: Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Investigations on Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases (R01) Apply for PAR 12 036 Funding Number: PAR 12 036 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| NIAMS Small Grant Program For New Investigators (R03) Apply for PAR 12 045 Funding Number: PAR 12 045 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: $25,000 |
| Identifying Heart, Lung, and Blood Disease Causing Variants (R01) Apply for PAR 12 043 Funding Number: PAR 12 043 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Development of Courses or Workshops in Metabolomics (R25) Apply for RFA RM 11 018 Funding Number: RFA RM 11 018 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: $50,000 |
| Critical Congenital Heart Disease Newborn Screening Demonstration Program Apply for HRSA 12 127 Funding Number: HRSA 12 127 Agency: Health Resources and Services Administration Category: Health Funding Amount: $300,000 |
| Mentored Research Scientist Development Award in Metabolomics (K01) Apply for RFA RM 11 017 Funding Number: RFA RM 11 017 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| AHRQ Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institutional Award (K12) Apply for RFA HS 12 001 Funding Number: RFA HS 12 001 Agency: Agency for Health Care Research and Quality Category: Health Funding Amount: $600,000 |
| New Methods for Understanding the Functional Role of Human DNA Sequence Variants in Complex Phenotypes (R01) Apply for RFA GM 13 002 Funding Number: RFA GM 13 002 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Regional Comprehensive Metabolomics Resource Cores (RCMRC) (U24) Apply for RFA RM 11 016 Funding Number: RFA RM 11 016 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Metabolomics Data Repository and Coordinating Center (DRCC) (U01) Apply for RFA RM 11 020 Funding Number: RFA RM 11 020 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Health Funding Amount: $1,000,000 |
Grant application guides and resources
It is always free to apply for government grants. However the process may be very complex depending on the funding opportunity you are applying for. Let us help you!
Apply for Grants
Premium leads for funding administrators, grant writers, and loan issuers
Thousands of people visit our website for their funding needs every day. When a user creates a grant proposal and files for submission, we pass the information on to funding administrators, grant writers, and government loan issuers.
If you manage government grant programs, provide grant writing services, or issue personal or government loans, we can help you reach your audience.
Subscribe to Leads
Request more information:
Would you like to learn more about this funding opportunity, similar opportunities to "RFA MH 13 010", eligibility, application service, and/or application tips? Submit an inquiry below:
Don't forget to subscribe to our grant alerts mailing list to receive weekly alerts on new and updated grant funding opportunities like this one in your email.