Muscular Dystrophy Cooperative Research Centers

The summary for the Muscular Dystrophy Cooperative Research Centers grant is detailed below. This summary states who is eligible for the grant, how much grant money will be awarded, current and past deadlines, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers, and a sampling of similar government grants. Verify the accuracy of the data FederalGrants.com provides by visiting the webpage noted in the Link to Full Announcement section or by contacting the appropriate person listed as the Grant Announcement Contact. If any section is incomplete, please visit the website for the National Institutes of Health, which is the U.S. government agency offering this grant.

Muscular Dystrophy Cooperative Research Centers: The purpose of this Request for Applications (RFA) is to establish Muscular Dystrophy Cooperative Research Centers (MDCRCs), in order to increase basic and clinical research on all forms of muscular dystrophy. The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) invite applications for MDCRCs that promote side-by-side basic, translational, and clinical research; provide resources that can be used by the national muscle biology and neuromuscular research communities; and provide training and advice about muscle diseases for researchers and physicians who provide initial diagnosis and treatment, including rehabilitation, care for cognitive and behavioral concerns, and therapy for other system complications. Taken together, the centers will constitute a cohesive program, the MDCRC Program, operating under guidelines for NIH cooperative agreements. The primary goal of this initiative is to establish research centers, each of which will bring together expertise, infrastructure and resources focused on major questions about muscular dystrophy. Centers should use innovative research designs and state-of-the-art technologies. Achieving high levels of expertise and resources may require multi-institutional consortia. Centers are expected to provide an environment and core resources that will enhance collaborations of established basic, clinical, and behavioral science investigators to study muscular dystrophy research questions. Further, the environment should promote cross-disciplinary research training. Each center should develop in accordance with available expertise, interests, and resources, but should also be responsive to national needs related to muscular dystrophy. Although the types of activities that should be included are indicated in these guidelines, specific approaches to accomplish them are left to applicants. In addition to the self-contained activities of individual centers, the MDCRCs will collaborate with other centers, overseen by a Steering Committee involving representation from each center and from NIH. The centers will be funded through NIH Cooperative Agreements with the goal of maximizing collaborative utilization of the unique resources in infrastructure, expertise, and clinical recruitment that will be created. Investigators interested in applying for support of muscular dystrophy research using mechanisms other than this RFA should see NIH PAS01-041, "Therapeutic and Pathogenic Approaches for the Muscular Dystrophies" at http://www.niams.nih.gov/rtac/funding/grants/pa/pas_01_041.pdf.