Centers of Excellence in Genomic Science (RM1 Clinical Trial Optional) | PAR 22 107

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 22 107

The Centers of Excellence in Genomic Science (CEGS) (RM1 Clinical Trial Optional) funding opportunity (PAR-22-107) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) discretionary grant program designed to create or support academic centers that push genome research forward in bold, high-impact ways. The basic idea is to fund a coordinated, multi-investigator, interdisciplinary team that can tackle a major biomedical problem using transformative genomic approaches. These awards are meant for projects that aim beyond incremental progress and instead propose innovations that could substantially change what is possible in genomic science, genomic medicine, or computational genomics.

A central theme of the opportunity is high-risk, high-reward research. NIH is explicitly looking for proposals that take on difficult, frontier-level challenges where the outcome is uncertain, but where the scientific payoff could be very large. Because of that risk tolerance, applications are expected to include especially strong scientific rationale along with unusually solid planning for leadership, management, and execution. In practice, this means the center should show it can coordinate complex work across disciplines, keep ambitious technology development on track, and still deliver usable methods, data, and insights.

On the research side, a CEGS is expected to focus heavily on developing novel genomic technologies and/or computational methods. That can include new experimental approaches for generating comprehensive genomic datasets, new analytic frameworks for interpreting genome-scale data, or other inventive ways of applying genomics to understand biological systems. The opportunity also emphasizes genome-scale thinking: proposals should be oriented toward comprehensive datasets, broad biological questions, or platform-like methods that can generalize beyond a single narrow use case. Importantly, the program encourages linking these genomic innovations to clinical applications, meaning the work can be positioned to move discoveries, tools, or analytic methods closer to improving diagnosis, understanding disease mechanisms, or enabling precision medicine. As indicated by "Clinical Trial Optional," clinical trials are not required, but proposals can include them when appropriate to the science and consistent with NIH rules.

Beyond the research itself, the program is structured to build institutional and community capacity in genomics. Each funded center is expected to "nurture genomics" at its home institution by bringing together investigators from multiple fields and creating a collaborative environment where engineers, computational scientists, biologists, clinicians, and other specialists interact productively. Training is also a major objective: the award should help develop both new and established investigators, expanding the pipeline of genomics scientists and engineers and strengthening the overall workforce needed for modern genomic research.

Eligibility is broad and spans many organization types, reflecting NIH's interest in supporting genomics innovation across a wide range of settings. 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; tribal organizations (including those other than federally recognized tribal governments); public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education in those nonprofit categories); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other eligible entities. The opportunity also highlights additional eligible applicant categories such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISI), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), eligible federal agencies, faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, and U.S. territories or possessions.

Foreign participation is limited in a way that is typical for many NIH opportunities. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities (foreign organizations and foreign institutions) are not eligible to apply as the applicant organization, and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply. However, foreign components are allowed when they meet the NIH Grants Policy Statement definition, meaning a U.S.-based applicant can include certain foreign elements in the project if they are well-justified and compliant with NIH policy.

Administratively, this is an NIH grant in the health funding activity category, associated with CFDA numbers 93.172 and 93.242. The original closing date listed for the opportunity was November 7, 2022, and the posting creation date was March 8, 2022. The public summary provided does not specify an award ceiling or the expected number of awards, so applicants typically need to rely on the full funding announcement and any NIH institute or center guidance for details on budget expectations, project period limits, and review considerations.

Overall, this opportunity is aimed at teams that can convincingly argue they are building something genuinely new in genomics, can organize a center-level effort to deliver it, and can show how their innovations will enable genome-scale discovery and, where relevant, advance clinical translation. It is as much about creating a durable, collaborative engine for cutting-edge genomics as it is about any single experiment or dataset.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Centers of Excellence in Genomic Science (RM1 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.172, 93.242.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2022-03-08.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2022-11-07. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• 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 PAR 22 107

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