Research Centers for Pharmacogenomics in Precision Medicine (P50) | Apply Online

FAQs: Research Centers for Pharmacogenomics in Precision Medicine (P50) - PAR-14-075

What is the Research Centers for Pharmacogenomics in Precision Medicine (P50) opportunity?

It is an NIH research center grant (P50) described as building a small number of large, high-impact research centers focused on improving how therapeutic drug responses are understood and predicted. The goal is to accelerate precision medicine approaches to prescribing by supporting multidisciplinary teams that can tackle drug response variability in a deeper, more data-driven way than traditional pharmacogenomics alone.

What is the main purpose of these centers?

The centers are intended to generate actionable knowledge about drug actions and variability, develop more reliable predictors of therapeutic benefit and adverse effects, and translate that understanding into data-driven prescribing strategies. NIH also expects funded centers to function as national and international focal points and hubs for collaboration and leadership.

What makes this FOA different from a standard set of independent research projects?

A defining feature is the expectation of a tightly focused, theme-driven center. NIH is not looking for a loose collection of unrelated projects; instead, each center should be organized around a coherent scientific theme at the cutting edge of drug action research.

What scientific direction is NIH emphasizing for these centers?

The FOA emphasizes moving beyond identifying genetic variants associated with drug response. It encourages integrating multiple layers of biology and analytics to better predict therapeutic benefit and adverse effects, including systems-level and pathway-based analyses that connect molecular signals to pharmacologic outcomes in a mechanistically informative and clinically relevant way.

What kinds of approaches and data types are explicitly encouraged?

The opportunity explicitly encourages approaches such as gene expression and gene regulation profiling, analysis of post-genomic changes (for example, epigenetic effects or protein-level modifications), measurement of other small-molecule signatures that may influence drug response, and systems-level/pathway-based analyses.

What disciplines and technologies are expected to be part of a center-scale program?

The description points to programs that combine multiple technologies and disciplines, including genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, computational biology, pharmacology, clinical pharmacogenetics, and systems pharmacology.

Is the goal mainly to discover associations between genes and drug response?

No. The stated purpose goes beyond association discovery to building predictive frameworks that can explain why people respond differently to the same drug. The centers are expected to clarify biological mechanisms underlying efficacy and toxicity and to support translation into data-driven prescribing strategies.

What kinds of outputs or outcomes are these centers expected to produce?

Based on the description, centers should be positioned to generate robust datasets, develop and test predictive biomarkers or signatures, and clarify biological mechanisms underlying drug efficacy and toxicity, particularly in ways that can influence how therapies are selected or managed.

What type of award mechanism is this?

This is an NIH P50 research center mechanism and is described as a discretionary grant.

What is the CFDA number and activity category listed for this opportunity?

The listing identifies CFDA 93.859 and the activity category as Biomedical Research and Research Training.

What is the maximum anticipated award amount?

The announcement lists an award ceiling of $1,750,000, indicating the maximum annual budget level anticipated under this FOA.

Is cost sharing or matching required?

No. The information provided states that cost sharing or matching is not required.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is broad for U.S.-based applicants and includes: public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; nonprofits (both 501(c)(3) and certain non-501(c)(3) entities); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. It also includes many governmental applicants such as state governments, county governments, city or township governments, special district governments, independent school districts, and eligible federal agencies.

Are institutions serving underrepresented or specific communities included in the eligibility language?

Yes. The eligibility language highlights inclusion of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), and also mentions faith-based or community-based organizations and regional organizations.

Can foreign institutions apply directly?

No. Foreign institutions are not eligible to apply directly based on the information provided.

Are non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations eligible?

No. Non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations are described as not eligible.

Are foreign components allowed at all?

Yes. While foreign institutions cannot apply directly and non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations are not eligible, the description states that foreign components (as NIH defines them in its Grants Policy Statement) are allowed. This typically means a U.S. applicant may include certain international collaborative elements when well-justified.

When was this funding opportunity posted, and is it still active?

The source information states it was posted on January 23, 2014. It also lists an original closing date of September 25, 2016, but shows a current closing date of May 28, 2015 and an archive date of June 28, 2015. Based on those dates, the opportunity appears to have been archived and is no longer active for new submissions under the listed timeline.

Where is the official NIH announcement page for PAR-14-075?

The official announcement link provided is: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-14-075.html

Who should be contacted for technical issues accessing the announcement or linking problems?

The information provided directs users to contact the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) webmaster for technical access or linking issues.

What does NIH mean by expecting centers to serve as “national and international focal points”?

As described, NIH is looking for programs with sufficient scale, expertise, and vision to shape the field, generate broadly useful insights, and serve as hubs for collaboration and leadership. The centers are expected to be visible, field-leading centers of excellence.

How does this FOA frame “precision medicine” in the context of prescribing?

Precision medicine is framed as improving prescribing by understanding and predicting variability in drug response using integrated, multi-layer biological profiling and analytics, with the aim of supporting data-driven prescribing strategies that consider both efficacy and toxicity.

Does the FOA encourage mechanistic and clinically relevant models of drug response?

Yes. The description emphasizes systems-level and pathway-based analyses intended to link molecular signals to pharmacologic outcomes in a way that is mechanistically informative and clinically relevant.