Autism spectrum disorders research grants program

When the program-specific instructions deviate from those in the Application Guide, follow the program-specific instructions. Applications that do not comply with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for review. There are several options available to submit your application through Grants. You must use one of these submission options to access the application forms for this opportunity.

These complex disorders are usually of lifelong duration and affect multiple aspects of development, learning, and adaptation at home and in the community, thus representing a pressing public health need. The etiologies of these disorders are not yet understood, but may include a combination of genetic and environmental influences.

Basic research into the pathophysiology of ASD, including research on brain mechanisms, is of special interest. Also of high priority are clinical and applied investigations that may lead to the development of new treatments and interventions. Epidemiology: Studies of the genetic and environmental epidemiology of ASD to determine risk and protective processes in the etiology of the disorder, including environmental exposures during pregnancy and early childhood; longitudinal studies of high-risk populations; epidemiologic research on the interplay of genetic and non-genetic e.

Screening, Early Identification, and Diagnosis: Studies of key features of ASD associated with various stages of development, including those focused on adults; development of new screening tools for use in a variety of settings; assessment of comorbid features including epilepsy; and the creation of new measures to be used in longitudinal studies, as well as measures that further differentiate subtypes of ASD.

Brain Mechanisms: Studies of brain mechanisms underlying the development, regulation, and modulation of behaviors characterizing ASD, particularly those mechanisms involving social communication and sensory processing; studies of brain mechanisms involved in the development of abnormal electroencephalograms and epilepsy, and studies to clarify the subtypes of seizures and seizure disorders in ASD; studies using model systems to examine brain mechanisms related to ASD; and studies using novel reagents and tools to identify molecular, cellular, or developmental mechanisms relevant to ASD.

Shared Neurobiology of ASD with Fragile X Syndrome, and Other Related Disorders: Studies of developmental and functional processes, pathways, and brain mechanisms that will lead to an understanding of shared etiology or pathophysiology among these disorders; analysis of autism-related neurobiological and behavioral phenotypes in related monogenic disorders; and analyses that would identify useful and specific clinical endpoints that would register measurable improvements in response to treatment interventions in clinical populations.

Cognitive Science: Developmental studies of relevant behaviors during infancy including attention to social and nonsocial stimuli, affective behavior, gaze, imitation, reciprocity and play, and their emergence in infants with, or at-risk for, ASD; research on social behavior and social cognition across the life-span; studies leading to more sophisticated measures of higher cognitive functioning, especially in social communication; and studies of sensorimotor factors and multisensory integration.

Communication Skills: Longitudinal developmental studies of behaviors that are precursors to later communication, and their emergence in children with ASD; research on sensory, motor, and social-cognitive impairments that impact interaction and communication; and studies of predictors of atypical onset patterns in expressive language abilities.

Services Research: Research on the organization, delivery, coordination, implementation, and financing of services for persons with ASD and their families, within or across service settings; studies aimed at better identifying and addressing changes in service and rehabilitative needs across the life-span, including during transitions from childhood to adolescence, and adolescence to adulthood; studies of ways to coordinate, implement or integrate services across settings including specialty mental health, general health, and other settings such as educational, vocational, and housing services, in order to maximize receipt of appropriate services; and research on assessing the value and improving the efficiency of the delivery, scale-up and sustainability of needed services.

This FOA will support mechanistic clinical trials, as defined by the NIH to include studies designed to understand a biological or behavioral process, the pathophysiology of a disease, or the mechanism of action of an intervention. Such trials will not be supported by this FOA. The NIMH has published updated policies and guidance for investigators regarding human research protection and clinical research data and safety monitoring NOT-MH Other Information for award authorities and regulations.

Grant: A support mechanism providing money, property, or both to an eligible entity to carry out an approved project or activity. Renewal of applications in response to PA and PA Applicants seeking a renewal should reach out to the scientific contact prior to submission.

Resubmission from PA and PA Revision from PA and PA Only those application types listed here are allowed for this FOA. Optional: Accepting applications that either propose or do not propose clinical trial s.

Need help determining whether you are doing a clinical trial? The number of awards is contingent upon NIH appropriations and the submission of a sufficient number of meritorious applications.

The scope of the proposed project should determine the project period. The maximum project period is 5 years. All registrations must be completed prior to the application being submitted. Registration can take 6 weeks or more, so applicants should begin the registration process as soon as possible. The NIH Policy on Late Submission of Grant Applications states that failure to complete registrations in advance of a due date is not a valid reason for a late submission. Obtaining an eRA Commons account can take up to 2 weeks.

Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply for NIH support. Applicant organizations may submit more than one application, provided that each application is scientifically distinct. The NIH will not accept duplicate or highly overlapping applications under review at the same time. This means that the NIH will not accept:.

See your administrative office for instructions if you plan to use an institutional system-to-system solution. All applications, regardless of the amount of direct costs requested for any one year, should address a Data Sharing Plan. In order to advance autism research as broadly and effectively as possible, investigators funded under this FOA who are collecting data from humans are expected to share those data among ASD researchers through a broadly accessible repository addressing the needs of the autism research community, e.

Fulfilling this expectation by the awardee will be among the terms and conditions of the award. Established by the NIMH, and supported by other NIH Institutes, the NDA is a secure informatics platform for scientific collaboration and data-sharing that enables the effective communication of detailed research data, results, tools, and supporting documentation.

Data resulting from existing samples, cells, or sequences previously collected are also expected to be submitted to the NDA.

Products such as tools, pipelines, and algorithms that will not result in a commercial product are expected to be shared via the NDA Study. A resource sharing plan, formulated in accordance with these NDA Data Sharing Terms and Conditions, should be included in the grant application. Investigators funded under this FOA are expected to use these technologies to submit and share their research data and results at the appropriate times.

To accomplish this objective, it will be important to formulate a an enrollment and consent strategy that will obtain the information necessary to generate a GUID for each research participant; and, b a budget strategy that will cover the costs of data sharing. Note: Delayed onset does NOT apply to a study that can be described but will not start immediately i.

Foreign non-U. See Part 1. Section III. Part I. Overview Information contains information about Key Dates and times. Applicants are encouraged to submit applications before the due date to ensure they have time to make any application corrections that might be necessary for successful submission. When a submission date falls on a weekend or Federal holiday , the application deadline is automatically extended to the next business day.

Organizations must submit applications to Grants. NIH and Grants. Applicants are responsible for viewing their application before the due date in the eRA Commons to ensure accurate and successful submission. This initiative is not subject to intergovernmental review. Paper applications will not be accepted.

Applicants must complete all required registrations before the application due date. Eligibility Information contains information about registration. For assistance with your electronic application or for more information on the electronic submission process, visit How to Apply — Application Guide. If you encounter a system issue beyond your control that threatens your ability to complete the submission process on-time, you must follow the Dealing with System Issues guidance. See more tips for avoiding common errors.

Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated for completeness and compliance with application instructions by the Center for Scientific Review, NIH. Applications that are incomplete or non-compliant will not be reviewed. Applicants are required to follow the instructions for post-submission materials, as described in the policy.

Any instructions provided here are in addition to the instructions in the policy. Only the review criteria described below will be considered in the review process. In addition, for applications involving clinical trials: A proposed Clinical Trial application may include study design, methods, and intervention that are not by themselves innovative but address important questions or unmet needs.

Additionally, the results of the clinical trial may indicate that further clinical development of the intervention is unwarranted or lead to new avenues of scientific investigation.

Reviewers will provide an overall impact score to reflect their assessment of the likelihood for the project to exert a sustained, powerful influence on the research field s involved, in consideration of the following review criteria and additional review criteria as applicable for the project proposed.

Reviewers will consider each of the review criteria below in the determination of scientific merit, and give a separate score for each. An application does not need to be strong in all categories to be judged likely to have major scientific impact. For example, a project that by its nature is not innovative may be essential to advance a field. Does the project address an important problem or a critical barrier to progress in the field?

Is the prior research that serves as the key support for the proposed project rigorous? How will successful completion of the aims change the concepts, methods, technologies, treatments, services, or preventative interventions that drive this field? In addition, for applications involving clinical trials. For trials focusing on clinical or public health endpoints, is this clinical trial necessary for testing the safety, efficacy or effectiveness of an intervention that could lead to a change in clinical practice, community behaviors or health care policy?

For trials focusing on mechanistic, behavioral, physiological, biochemical, or other biomedical endpoints, is this trial needed to advance scientific understanding? If Early Stage Investigators or those in the early stages of independent careers, do they have appropriate experience and training? If established, have they demonstrated an ongoing record of accomplishments that have advanced their field s?

Do they have appropriate expertise in study coordination, data management and statistics? For a multicenter trial, is the organizational structure appropriate and does the application identify a core of potential center investigators and staffing for a coordinating center? Does the application challenge and seek to shift current research or clinical practice paradigms by utilizing novel theoretical concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions?

Are the concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions novel to one field of research or novel in a broad sense? Is a refinement, improvement, or new application of theoretical concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions proposed?

Are the overall strategy, methodology, and analyses well-reasoned and appropriate to accomplish the specific aims of the project? Have the investigators included plans to address weaknesses in the rigor of prior research that serves as the key support for the proposed project? Have the investigators presented strategies to ensure a robust and unbiased approach, as appropriate for the work proposed?

Are potential problems, alternative strategies, and benchmarks for success presented? If the project is in the early stages of development, will the strategy establish feasibility and will particularly risky aspects be managed? Have the investigators presented adequate plans to address relevant biological variables, such as sex, for studies in vertebrate animals or human subjects? Does the application adequately address the following, if applicable.

Is the trial appropriately designed to conduct the research efficiently? Are potential ethical issues adequately addressed? The Autism Research Program focuses on improving the lives of those living with ASD by funding innovative, and highly impactful research.

Through the program's areas of interest, the Autism Research Program focuses on ways to improve diagnosis, treatment, and studying psychosocial factors for affecting key life time transitions to independence and a better life for those with autism and their families. Promote innovative research that advances the understanding of autism spectrum disorder and leads to improved outcomes for Service Members, their families, and the American public.

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Education and Awareness Use these free mental health education and outreach materials in your community and on social media to spread the word about topics like eating disorders, autism awareness, and suicide prevention. Application Process Explore the NIMH grant application process, including how to write your grant, how to submit your grant, and how the review process works.

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