Elucidating the Functional Roles of Non-Coding RNAs in Viral Infectious Diseases (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA AI 18 025

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA AI 18 025

This NIH funding opportunity (RFA-AI-18-025) supports small, exploratory R21 research projects aimed at clarifying what non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) actually do in the context of viral infectious diseases. The core emphasis is on moving beyond cataloging or profiling and instead producing functional and mechanistic evidence about how specific ncRNAs influence viral infection outcomes. Projects are expected to build on ncRNAs that have already been identified, using experimental approaches to test causality, define pathways, and explain mechanisms in relevant infection models. The announcement is explicit that applications focused mainly on discovering new ncRNAs or simply identifying or listing ncRNAs associated with infection will not be considered responsive to the goals of the FOA.

The work supported under this call is intended to be exploratory and developmental, which is consistent with the R21 mechanism. That generally means the agency is looking for innovative, higher-risk ideas that can generate early, convincing functional data and establish feasibility for larger, more definitive studies later. In practical terms, competitive applications would be expected to ask focused biological questions such as how a particular host or viral ncRNA modulates viral replication, latency, immune evasion, innate immune signaling, cell survival, or tissue-specific pathogenesis, and to use mechanistic strategies (for example, perturbation and rescue experiments, target validation, pathway dissection, and well-justified infection models) rather than purely descriptive omics observations. The FOA also indicates that clinical trials are not allowed, so the work must remain in non-clinical trial research space (for example, laboratory, animal, computational, or human specimen-based studies that do not meet the NIH definition of a clinical trial).

The funding instrument is a grant under the health activity category (CFDA 93.855) administered by the National Institutes of Health. The award ceiling listed is $200,000, reflecting a limited, pilot-style budget appropriate for an R21 project that can deliver a clear functional story without requiring the scale of a full R01. The original closing date for the opportunity was November 15, 2018, and the FOA record was created on June 28, 2018, which places it as a time-limited call rather than an open-ended standing program announcement.

Eligibility is broad and includes a wide range of U.S. and non-U.S. organizations. Domestic eligible applicants span state, county, city, township, and special district governments; independent school districts; public housing authorities; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status; for-profit organizations (other than small businesses) as well as small businesses; and other organizations. The FOA further highlights inclusivity for institutions serving specific communities, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, AANAPISIs, Hispanic-serving institutions, HBCUs, and Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, along with faith-based and community-based organizations and regional organizations. Foreign organizations and foreign institutions are eligible to apply, non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations may participate, and foreign components as defined in NIH policy are allowed, which signals that the NIH intended to enable international collaboration or studies where key expertise, populations, specimens, or viral disease relevance may be outside the United States.

In short, this opportunity is designed for investigators who already have promising candidate ncRNAs linked to viral infection and are ready to prove what those ncRNAs do, how they do it, and why it matters biologically. The strongest fit is mechanistic, hypothesis-driven experimentation that turns prior identification work into functional understanding, while staying clearly away from proposals that are primarily discovery, biomarker cataloging, or any form of clinical trial.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Elucidating the Functional Roles of Non-Coding RNAs in Viral Infectious Diseases (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): 93.855.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2018-06-28.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-11-15. (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 RFA AI 18 025

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