Tools to Enhance the Study of Prenatal and Pediatric Hydrocephalus (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | PA 18 623

Opportunity Information: Apply for PA 18 623

Tools to Enhance the Study of Prenatal and Pediatric Hydrocephalus (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed), Funding Opportunity Number PA 18 623, is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) discretionary grant program in the health area (CFDA 93.853) that supports early-stage, high-impact research aimed at building or significantly upgrading the research tools needed to study hydrocephalus that occurs before birth (prenatal) or during childhood (pediatric). The central idea is that progress in this field is being held back not only by unanswered biological questions, but also by a shortage of robust, widely usable experimental systems and technologies. This FOA is designed to directly address that gap by funding projects that create enabling resources for the broader research community rather than funding a traditional hypothesis-only biology study or a clinical trial.

The main purpose of the opportunity is to remove practical and technical barriers that limit rigorous investigation of disease mechanisms and the exploration of alternatives to shunt-based treatment approaches. Hydrocephalus in infants and children is often managed surgically with shunts, but shunts can fail and do not necessarily address underlying disease processes. By emphasizing tool development, the FOA aims to accelerate discovery of how prenatal and pediatric hydrocephalus begins and progresses, and to make it easier to test and refine potential non-shunt therapeutic strategies in controlled, reproducible ways. In other words, the NIH is prioritizing work that equips the field with better model systems, measurement techniques, and innovative platforms so that many labs can ask better questions and generate more reliable data.

Projects are expected to develop or substantially modify cutting-edge tools that can transform research capabilities in this area. Examples of tool categories highlighted include new or improved animal models and cell-based models that more accurately capture relevant features of prenatal or pediatric hydrocephalus, as well as novel methods and innovative technologies that can be adopted broadly across neuroscience and related disciplines. The emphasis on "widely used throughout the neuroscience community" signals that reviewers will likely value generalizable, well-documented, shareable tools, approaches that can be validated and disseminated, and resources that meaningfully raise the standard of rigor for studying mechanisms and evaluating therapeutic concepts.

The mechanism is an R21, which is commonly used by NIH to support exploratory and developmental research, especially for high-risk, high-reward projects that may generate important proof-of-concept results or deliver a platform that enables future, larger studies. This specific FOA explicitly states "Clinical Trial Not Allowed," meaning the funded work should not involve a clinical trial as defined by NIH policy. Applicants should frame their aims around tool creation, optimization, validation, and demonstration in preclinical or non-trial research contexts, rather than testing an intervention in a clinical trial setting.

In terms of funding details provided here, the award ceiling is listed as $200,000. The opportunity was created on 2018-02-01, and the original closing date shown is 2021-09-07. (In practice, NIH opportunities sometimes reissue or update over time, so applicants typically confirm the current status and active due dates in the official NIH listing before preparing a submission.)

Eligibility is broad and includes a wide range of public and private organizations. Eligible applicants include state, county, and local governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; other Native American tribal organizations; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other organizations. The FOA also explicitly notes additional eligible applicant types such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions; Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs); Hispanic-serving Institutions; Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs); Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs); faith-based or community-based organizations; eligible federal agencies; regional organizations; U.S. territories or possessions; Indian/Native American tribal governments that are not federally recognized; and non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations). This wide eligibility reflects an intent to encourage tool-building contributions from many sectors, including institutions that serve underrepresented communities and international groups with specialized capabilities.

Overall, this grant opportunity is best understood as an NIH push to catalyze the creation of the next generation of practical research infrastructure for prenatal and pediatric hydrocephalus: models that better mirror human disease, methods that make experiments more rigorous and reproducible, and technologies that open up new ways to measure, manipulate, and understand disease mechanisms and potential treatments. The expected end result is not just a set of project-specific findings, but a set of tools that can be adopted broadly to speed up progress across the field.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Tools to Enhance the Study of Prenatal and Pediatric Hydrocephalus (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.853.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2018-02-01.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2021-09-07. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $200,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for PA 18 623

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: