Genomic Centers for Infectious Diseases (U19 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA AI 18 004

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA AI 18 004

The Genomic Centers for Infectious Diseases (GCID) opportunity (RFA AI 18 004) is a National Institutes of Health funding announcement designed to build and support collaborative centers that push forward how genomics is used to understand, track, and ultimately counter infectious diseases. The core idea is to expand both the development and the broad adoption of genomic technologies and advanced computational analysis so researchers can better study pathogens, how those pathogens interact with the human host, and how the microbiome influences infection, disease severity, and outcomes. A major goal is to translate these insights into practical, genomics-based tools that can improve how infectious diseases are diagnosed, prevented, and treated.

The scientific scope is intentionally wide, covering basic research, translational work, and clinically relevant questions, as long as the projects fit within the center-based genomics mission. The announcement emphasizes innovation across the genomics pipeline, meaning applicants are expected to go beyond routine sequencing and incorporate or advance newer approaches such as synthetic biology methods, genome editing technologies, and functional genomics. In practice, this could include efforts to identify genetic determinants of pathogen virulence, uncover host factors that enable or restrict infection, map host immune responses at genomic scale, or understand how microbial communities shape susceptibility or resistance to infection. Strong proposals would typically integrate cutting-edge wet-lab approaches with robust computational strategies, since the opportunity explicitly highlights computational analysis, analytical software tools, and computational models as valuable products of the centers.

A defining feature of the GCID program is its expectation of community impact and resource sharing. The funding is meant to generate more than publications; it is meant to produce reusable outputs such as research datasets, analytic pipelines and software, computational models, standardized experimental protocols, and physical reagents. Importantly, these outputs are expected to be made broadly available to the scientific community through publicly accessible databases and reagent repositories. This reflects an open-science, infrastructure-building orientation, where the centers function as hubs that accelerate progress not only for their own projects but also for other researchers working on infectious diseases.

From an administrative standpoint, this is a discretionary federal funding opportunity in the health category, using a Cooperative Agreement mechanism (U19). A cooperative agreement generally indicates substantial scientific or programmatic involvement by the funding agency compared with a typical grant, and it is commonly used for multi-component, collaborative research efforts that benefit from coordination, shared standards, or program-level stewardship. The announcement is explicitly labeled "Clinical Trial Not Allowed," meaning applicants should not propose studies that meet the NIH definition of a clinical trial. While the work can be clinically relevant and may involve human-derived samples or data depending on the allowable terms, it cannot be structured as an intervention study that prospectively assigns human participants to evaluate health-related outcomes.

Eligibility is broad and includes a wide range of U.S.-based organizations and certain non-U.S. entities. Eligible applicants listed 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; other tribal organizations; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); and small businesses. The announcement also highlights additional eligible 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), faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, and non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities (foreign organizations). This wide eligibility aligns with the program's goal of building capacity and enabling diverse institutions to contribute to genomics innovation in infectious disease research.

Key administrative details from the source include the funding opportunity title "Genomic Centers for Infectious Diseases (U19 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)," funding opportunity number RFA AI 18 004, CFDA number 93.855, and the NIH as the sponsoring agency. The opportunity was created on March 15, 2018, with an original closing date of June 22, 2018. The source information provided does not specify an award ceiling or the expected number of awards, suggesting those details were either not included in the excerpt or were left unspecified in the summarized fields.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Genomic Centers for Infectious Diseases (U19 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 2018-03-15.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-06-22. (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.

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