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HCN Grants Est. 2026
No. PAR-25-024 · National Institutes of Health
Open

Development of Biomarkers or Composite Biomarkers for Neurological and Neuromuscular Disorders (R61/R33 - Clinical Trial Optional)

Dealbreakers No cost share required Audit: not stated
Not reimbursement-only
“Grant: A financial assistance mechanism providing money, property, or both to an eligible entity to carry out an approved project or activity.” — From the announcement

At a glance

This program funds phased studies to discover, develop, and preliminarily validate biomarkers or composite biomarkers for neurological and neuromuscular disorders within the NINDS mission. The work must use clinical samples, tissues, and/or data, and it is meant to support use in clinical trials or clinical practice rather than basic mechanism studies. Applications may come from many U.S. organization types, including nonprofits, but foreign organizations are not eligible and foreign subawards or subcontracts are not allowed. Awards are grants with no set budget limit, the R61 phase and R33 phase can each last 1 to 3 years, and total project time cannot exceed 5 years. Clinical trials are optional, and there are no stated cost-share requirements.

AI-generated summary — verify against the announcement

What it funds

  • Health
  • Research & Discovery
  • Researchers & Scholars
  • Biomedical & Disease Research
Official description from grants.gov

The overarching purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to promote the discovery and/or early evaluation of strong candidate biomarkers and biomarker signatures that can be used as tools to facilitate the clinical development of neurotherapeutics and their use in clinical practice. Specifically, the focus of this FOA is on the identification and initial biological, analytical and clinical evaluation of biomarkers and biomarker signatures for neurological and neuromuscular disorders. Although research supported by this FOA can include animal studies, it must also include preliminary human evaluation using carefully standardized human samples or datasets. The goal of this initiative is to deliver candidate biomarkers or biomarker signatures that are ready for definitive analytical and clinical validation studies.

Who can apply

  • City or township governments
  • County governments
  • For-profit organizations other than small businesses
  • Independent school districts
  • Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
  • Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized)
  • Nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status (other than higher education)
  • Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status (other than higher education)
  • Others
  • Private institutions of higher education
  • Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
  • Public housing authorities / Indian housing authorities
  • Small businesses
  • Special district governments
  • State governments
Geographic restriction None found in the announcement — likely nationwide