Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA MH 18 600
The NIH Blueprint grant opportunity titled "Development and Validation of Technologies for Rapid Isolation and Characterization of Extracellular Vesicles of Central Nervous System Origin" (RFA-MH-18-600) is aimed at pushing forward practical, high-performance methods to isolate and study extracellular vesicles (EVs) that specifically come from the central nervous system (CNS). EVs are small, membrane-bound particles released by cells that carry molecular cargo such as RNA, proteins, lipids, and metabolites. Because CNS tissue is difficult to access in living people, the ability to reliably capture CNS-derived EVs from peripheral, more easily collected samples (for example, blood or other non-CNS fluids) could open up new ways to study brain biology, neurological disease mechanisms, and potentially future diagnostic approaches. The core emphasis of this announcement is not on running clinical trials, but on building and validating the underlying technology needed to make CNS-EV work more robust, reproducible, and informative.
A central problem this FOA is trying to solve is that isolating CNS-origin EVs from peripheral samples is technically challenging. Peripheral fluids contain a huge mixture of EVs and other particles released from many tissues throughout the body, along with proteins and other contaminants that can interfere with downstream measurements. NIH is therefore seeking approaches that can isolate and purify CNS-EVs in a way that is consistent across experiments and users, and that produces material of sufficient quality for careful molecular characterization. Successful applications are expected to go beyond incremental tweaks to existing methods and instead deliver genuinely improved tools or platforms that make CNS-EV isolation more specific, cleaner, faster, and more reproducible. Alongside isolation, the FOA also highlights the importance of characterizing what types of CNS-EVs are being captured, what cargo they carry, and how confidently their CNS origin can be established.
The opportunity uses the R21/R33 phased innovation mechanism and explicitly states that clinical trials are not allowed. In practice, the R21 phase is meant to support early, proof-of-concept development of a new technology or tool, while the R33 phase supports expansion and validation once feasibility has been demonstrated and agreed-upon milestones have been met. This structure is designed to encourage higher-risk, higher-reward engineering and methodological work, while still requiring a clear path to a validated, usable technology. Validation in this context can include demonstrating performance across multiple sample types or conditions, showing reproducibility, benchmarking against existing approaches, and proving that the isolated EVs can support downstream analyses. The FOA specifically notes that validation may involve characterizing the full breadth of EV composition, including RNA, proteins, lipids, and metabolites, reflecting NIH interest in platforms that enable multi-omic or integrative profiling rather than single-measure readouts.
From a funding and administrative standpoint, this is a discretionary grant opportunity from the Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, under multiple CFDA program numbers, reflecting participation across NIH components that make up the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research. The award ceiling listed is $200,000, and the FOA anticipated around six awards, indicating a competitive and targeted program focused on a small set of strong technology-development projects. The original posting date was November 6, 2017, with an original closing date of January 22, 2018.
Eligibility is broad and includes many organization types that can credibly develop biomedical research tools: state, county, and city governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled universities; private higher education institutions; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status; for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); small businesses; and other entities as described in the FOA. This wide eligibility reflects the reality that enabling technologies for EV isolation and characterization can come from academic labs, engineering groups, biotech companies, and cross-sector partnerships.
Overall, the FOA is best understood as a technology and methods acceleration effort: NIH is looking for tools that can pull out CNS-derived extracellular vesicles from peripheral samples with high specificity and cleanliness, then reliably characterize their type, cargo, and origin, with validation strong enough to support further biological studies. The end goal is to make CNS-EV analysis more rigorous and accessible so that downstream neuroscience and neuro disease research can rely on well-validated, reproducible EV-based measurements.Apply for RFA MH 18 600
- The Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health in the education, environment, health, income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NIH Blue Print: Development and Validation of Technologies for Rapid Isolation and Characterization of Extracellular Vesicles of Central Nervous System Origin (R21/R33 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): 93.113, 93.121, 93.213, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.286, 93.350, 93.853, 93.865, 93.866, 93.867.
- This funding opportunity was created on Nov 06, 2017.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jan 22, 2018. (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.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 6 candidate(s).
- 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 (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
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FAQs: NIH Blueprint RFA-MH-18-600 (Development and Validation of Technologies for Rapid Isolation and Characterization of Extracellular Vesicles of Central Nervous System Origin)
What is the main goal of this NIH Blueprint funding opportunity (RFA-MH-18-600)?
The goal is to develop and validate practical, high-performance technologies to rapidly isolate and characterize extracellular vesicles (EVs) that originate from the central nervous system (CNS). The emphasis is on producing methods and tools that make CNS-derived EV work more robust, reproducible, and informative.
What are extracellular vesicles (EVs), as described in this opportunity?
EVs are small, membrane-bound particles released by cells. They carry molecular cargo such as RNA, proteins, lipids, and metabolites, which can be measured to learn about the biology of the cells and tissues they came from.
Why does the FOA focus on EVs specifically from the central nervous system (CNS)?
CNS tissue is difficult to access in living people. If CNS-derived EVs can be reliably captured from peripheral, more easily collected samples (such as blood or other non-CNS fluids), researchers could gain new ways to study brain biology and neurological disease mechanisms and potentially support future diagnostic approaches.
What problem is NIH trying to solve with this announcement?
The key problem is that isolating CNS-origin EVs from peripheral samples is technically challenging. Peripheral fluids contain a large mixture of EVs and other particles from many tissues, plus proteins and other contaminants that can interfere with downstream measurements. NIH is seeking methods that can isolate and purify CNS-EVs consistently and cleanly enough to support careful molecular characterization.
What kinds of improvements does NIH expect from proposed technologies?
Applications are expected to go beyond incremental tweaks and deliver genuinely improved tools or platforms. The stated priorities include technologies that make CNS-EV isolation more specific, cleaner, faster, and more reproducible, with performance that supports downstream analyses.
Does this funding opportunity support clinical trials?
No. The FOA explicitly states that clinical trials are not allowed. The focus is on developing and validating the underlying technologies and methods.
What funding mechanism is used in this FOA?
This opportunity uses the R21/R33 phased innovation mechanism. The R21 phase supports early proof-of-concept development, and the R33 phase supports expansion and validation after feasibility is demonstrated and agreed-upon milestones are met.
How are the R21 and R33 phases intended to differ?
The R21 phase is meant for early-stage, proof-of-concept technology/tool development. The R33 phase is meant to expand and validate the technology once feasibility has been demonstrated and milestones have been achieved.
What role do milestones play in moving from the R21 phase to the R33 phase?
The FOA indicates that progression to the R33 phase occurs once feasibility has been demonstrated and agreed-upon milestones have been met. This structure supports higher-risk development while still requiring a clear path to a validated, usable technology.
What does "validation" mean in the context of this FOA?
Validation can include demonstrating performance across multiple sample types or conditions, showing reproducibility, benchmarking against existing approaches, and proving that the isolated EVs can support downstream analyses. The FOA also highlights characterizing the EVs being captured and establishing confidence in their CNS origin.
What types of molecular characterization does NIH highlight for isolated CNS-derived EVs?
The FOA notes the importance of characterizing the full breadth of EV composition, including RNA, proteins, lipids, and metabolites. This reflects interest in platforms that enable multi-omic or integrative profiling rather than single-measure readouts.
What samples are relevant for the technologies targeted by this FOA?
The FOA emphasizes isolating CNS-derived EVs from peripheral, more easily collected samples, and gives examples such as blood or other non-CNS fluids.
Why is isolating CNS-derived EVs from peripheral fluids difficult?
Because peripheral fluids contain EVs and other particles from many tissues throughout the body, as well as proteins and other contaminants. This complexity makes it hard to isolate a CNS-specific EV population and can interfere with downstream molecular measurements.
Is the emphasis more on biological discovery or on tool and method development?
The emphasis is on technology and methods acceleration. The FOA is framed around building and validating underlying tools to make CNS-EV isolation and characterization more robust and reproducible, rather than primarily running biological or clinical studies.
Who is sponsoring this opportunity?
This is a discretionary grant opportunity from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH), involving multiple NIH components that make up the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research.
What is the award ceiling listed for this FOA?
The award ceiling listed is $200,000.
How many awards were anticipated?
The FOA anticipated around six awards, suggesting a competitive and targeted program focused on a relatively small number of strong technology-development projects.
What were the original posting and closing dates listed?
The original posting date was November 6, 2017, and the original closing date was January 22, 2018.
What types of organizations are eligible to apply?
Eligibility is broad and includes: state, county, and city governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled universities; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status; for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); small businesses; and other entities as described in the FOA.
Why is eligibility so broad for this program?
The FOA reflects that enabling technologies for EV isolation and characterization can come from academic labs, engineering groups, biotech companies, and cross-sector partnerships. Broad eligibility is intended to capture that range of potential technology developers.
What kinds of deliverables are most aligned with the FOA's intent?
Deliverables aligned with the FOA include improved platforms or methods that isolate and purify CNS-derived EVs with higher specificity and cleanliness, with reproducible performance across experiments and users, and with validation strong enough to support downstream molecular analyses (including multi-omic characterization).
Does the FOA emphasize confidence in determining EV origin?
Yes. Alongside isolation, the FOA highlights characterizing what types of CNS-EVs are captured, what cargo they carry, and how confidently their CNS origin can be established.
What is the overall intent of this FOA in plain terms?
It is a push to make CNS-derived EV analysis more rigorous and accessible by funding the development and validation of better isolation and characterization technologies. The end goal is to enable downstream neuroscience and neurological disease research to rely on well-validated, reproducible EV-based measurements.
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