Novel Tools for Investigating Brain derived GPCRs in Mental Health Research (STTR R41/R42) | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The funding opportunity titled "Novel Tools for Investigating Brain derived GPCRs in Mental Health Research (STTR R41/R42)" (Funding Opportunity Number PA-06-374) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program announcement focused on enabling new technology development for mental health research. The core goal is to support small businesses working with a nonprofit research institution to create novel tools, platforms, or inventive applications of existing technologies that make it easier to study the structure and/or function of brain-localized G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). Because GPCRs are a large and therapeutically important receptor family, the FOA also highlights interest in approaches that could help identify new selective and specific agonists or antagonists for GPCR subtypes that are relevant to mental health function or dysfunction. Proposals can target well-characterized GPCR subtypes as well as orphan receptors (receptors with unknown endogenous ligands), both of which are considered potentially valuable to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) within NIH.

This announcement uses the STTR grant mechanisms R41 (Phase I) and R42 (Phase II), and it also allows Fast-Track submissions that propose a seamless Phase I to Phase II progression. It is explicitly parallel to a separate, scientifically identical announcement that uses the SBIR mechanisms (PA-06-375; R43/R44), meaning the scientific scope is the same but the small business program structure differs. In practical terms, this FOA is geared toward early-stage, commercialization-relevant R and D where a small business leads product-oriented development while formally partnering with a single nonprofit research institution that contributes substantial research effort.

The budget and project period limits are clearly stated. For Phase I, applicants may request up to $250,000 per year in total costs, with a maximum project duration of up to 2 years. For Phase II, applicants may request up to $450,000 per year in total costs, with a maximum duration of up to 3 years. The announcement notes that no specific funds have been set aside for this program and that the number of awards and total dollars are not predetermined, so the actual award volume depends on application quality, program priorities, and available appropriations rather than a fixed set-aside.

Eligibility is limited to United States small business concerns (SBCs); foreign institutions are not eligible to apply. The STTR structure also imposes a defined workshare requirement across the two partners. In both Phase I and Phase II, at least 40 percent of the work (measured by the total of direct and indirect/F and A costs attributable to each party) must be performed by the small business, and at least 30 percent must be performed by the single partnering research institution. This requirement reflects the STTR program purpose: advancing small business innovation while ensuring meaningful technology transfer and collaboration with a research institution. Any remaining effort can be allocated as appropriate, provided the minimum percentages are met and the arrangement is properly justified in the application’s consortium/contractual documentation.

The FOA is also flexible about who can serve as Project Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI). The PD/PI may be employed either by the small business or by the partnering nonprofit research institution, as long as the individual has a formal appointment with or commitment to the applicant small business. The emphasis is on an official relationship that demonstrates the PD/PI is genuinely tied to the small business leading the project. NIH also reiterates its standing encouragement for individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups and individuals with disabilities to participate in NIH-supported research.

Applicants may submit more than one application as long as each is scientifically distinct. At the same time, NIH makes clear it will not accept multiple submissions from the same organization that are essentially the same project with only minor, non-substantive variations, including derivative proposals framed as different uses of what is effectively a single product or service. Another important submission rule is that applicants may not submit identical or essentially identical applications to this FOA and any other Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) funding opportunity announcement at the same time, including parent SBIR or STTR announcements. This is meant to prevent duplicate review and overlapping federal support requests for the same work.

Administratively, this is a discretionary grant program in the health category, associated with CFDA 93.242 (Mental Health Research Grants), and it does not require cost sharing or matching. The FOA was originally posted April 28, 2006, with multiple receipt dates rather than a single deadline, and it ultimately lists a current closing date of January 7, 2010 with an archive date of February 7, 2010, indicating it is no longer active but remains available as a historical reference. The full announcement link is provided through NIH’s grants policy and guidance site (grants.nih.gov), and NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) contact information is included for access or linking issues.

In essence, PA-06-374 is designed to move the field forward by funding small business-led, partner-supported technology development that gives mental health researchers better ways to interrogate brain GPCR biology and pharmacology. The emphasis is less on testing a single hypothesis in isolation and more on creating enabling methods and tools that can unlock new insights into receptor structure, receptor function, and ligand specificity, including for hard-to-study or previously uncharacterized (orphan) receptors that may be important in psychiatric and related brain disorders.

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Next opportunity: Novel Tools for Investigating Brain derived GPCRs in Mental Health Research (SBIR R43/R44)

Previous opportunity: Tools to Mitigate and Understand the Mental Health Effects of National Disasters STTR R41/R42

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