NIDDK Inflammatory Bowel Disease Genetics Consortium (IBDGC) Genetic Research Centers (GRCs) (U01) | Apply Online

FAQs: NIDDK Inflammatory Bowel Disease Genetics Consortium (IBDGC) Genetic Research Centers (GRCs) (U01) - RFA-DK-16-029

1) What is this funding opportunity?

This is an NIH/NIDDK funding opportunity to support Genetic Research Centers (GRCs) within the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Genetics Consortium (IBDGC) using a U01 cooperative agreement mechanism (RFA-DK-16-029). The program is designed to renew and expand a long-running consortium focused on the genetics of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

2) Who is sponsoring and administering the program?

The program is sponsored through the National Institutes of Health (NIH), specifically the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), which is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

3) What is the main goal of the IBDGC GRCs program?

The main goal is to move beyond genetic association signals and push toward identifying causal IBD variants and explaining how they influence IBD pathophysiology. The opportunity emphasizes pinpointing the specific causal gene(s) and exact risk or protective variant(s), and clarifying the biological mechanisms connecting those genetic findings to IBD disease processes.

4) Why is this program needed if many IBD loci have already been identified?

Although the IBDGC (in collaboration with the International IBD Genetics Consortium) has helped identify roughly 200 genetic susceptibility loci, many loci span multiple genes. For most regions, the specific causal gene(s) and the exact risk/protective variant(s) have not been definitively identified, and the mechanisms linking these findings to IBD biology remain unclear for many implicated genes.

5) What types of activities are the Genetic Research Centers expected to perform?

Under this FOA, the GRCs serve as front-line clinical and translational hubs for the consortium. They are expected to:

• Enroll IBD patients, their relatives, and healthy control participants.
• Create well-characterized cohorts (including recruitment and phenotyping).
• Conduct laboratory-based work using biological samples collected from enrolled participants.
• Link detailed human genetic data with sample-driven analyses to clarify functional consequences and distinguish causal variants from correlated markers.

6) Who are the expected study participants?

The centers are expected to enroll three main participant groups: (1) IBD patients, (2) relatives of IBD patients, and (3) healthy control participants.

7) What is meant by connecting genetic data to functional consequences?

As described in the opportunity, the intent is to pair detailed human genetic information with analyses performed on biological samples from participants. This is meant to help clarify which variants are truly causal (rather than merely nearby correlated markers) and to uncover mechanisms and pathways that drive intestinal inflammation, immune dysregulation, and other core features of IBD.

8) What kind of award mechanism is being used?

The award mechanism is a U01 cooperative agreement.

9) What does a U01 cooperative agreement imply for NIH involvement?

A U01 cooperative agreement means NIH anticipates substantial programmatic involvement, rather than a fully hands-off relationship. The FOA indicates coordinated governance and collaborative planning across sites.

10) Will awardees be required to participate in consortium governance?

Yes. Each GRC's Program Director/Principal Investigator is expected to serve on the IBDGC Steering Committee.

11) What is the IBDGC Steering Committee and what authority does it have?

The Steering Committee is responsible for operational decisions for the consortium, and those decisions are binding on all consortium members. Applicants should expect shared standards and coordinated approaches across sites.

12) What kinds of coordination across sites should applicants expect?

Based on the FOA description, coordination is expected around recruitment approaches, data and sample handling expectations, and consortium-wide scientific priorities aimed at moving from genetic loci to actionable biology.

13) How long has the IBDGC been active?

The IBDGC was originally launched in July 2002.

14) What is the relationship to the International IBD Genetics Consortium?

The opportunity notes that, through collaboration with the International IBD Genetics Consortium, the IBDGC has helped identify roughly 200 genetic susceptibility loci.

15) What is the CFDA number listed for this opportunity?

The CFDA number provided is 93.847.

16) What is the activity category for this opportunity?

The activity category is listed under health (and food and nutrition, health).

17) Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is broad and includes many organization types, including:

• State governments
• County governments
• City or township governments
• Special district governments
• Independent school districts
• Public and state-controlled institutions of higher education
• Private institutions of higher education
• Nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education)
• For-profit organizations (other than small businesses)
• Small businesses
• Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities
• Native American tribal governments (federally recognized)
• Native American tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments)
• Other applicants as allowed per the FOA text

18) How many awards were anticipated?

The FOA projected up to six awards.

19) What is the listed award ceiling?

The award ceiling is listed as $293,000.

20) When was the opportunity posted and what were the key dates listed?

The opportunity was posted by NIH with a creation date of August 17, 2016. The original closing date listed is December 14, 2016.

21) What is the practical end result the program is aiming for?

The program supports a multi-site, coordinated effort where each funded center contributes participants and scientific work toward identifying the specific risk-conferring and protective variants that truly cause IBD susceptibility and clarifying the mechanisms through which those variants shape disease biology.

22) What role do biological samples play in this program?

Biological samples collected from enrolled participants are used for laboratory-based work at the centers. These sample-driven analyses are intended to help interpret genetic findings and understand functional impacts relevant to IBD.

23) Is this opportunity focused on clinical work, laboratory work, or both?

Both. The centers are expected to operate as clinical and translational hubs that recruit and phenotype participants and also perform laboratory-based work using participant samples, all within a coordinated consortium framework.

24) What makes these centers "front-line" for the consortium?

In this FOA, the GRCs are described as the front-line clinical and translational hubs because they directly enroll participants (IBD patients, relatives, and controls), build well-characterized cohorts, and generate and analyze biological samples that can be tied back to human genetic data.