U.S. CDMRP – Spinal Cord Injury Research Program | Research Funding

Through the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP), the Department of Defense is announcing the 2024 Spinal Cord Injury Research Program (SCIRP) Awards. Several award programs are available:

• The Clinical Translation Research Award is intended to support high-impact and/or new/emerging clinical research that may not be ready for a larger-scale clinical trial and for which feasibility/pilot/optimization studies are necessary. Projects should demonstrate potential to impact the standard of care, both immediate and long term, or contribute to evidence-based guidelines for the evaluation and care of military Service Members, Veterans, and other individuals living with SCI.
   
• The Clinical Trial Award supports the rapid implementation of clinical trials with the potential to have a significant impact on the treatment or management of SCI. Applications should articulate both the short- and long-term impact of the proposed research on individuals with SCI and/or their care partners. The proposed intervention(s) to be tested should offer significant potential impact for individuals affected by SCI within the context of one or more of the FY24 SCIRP Focus Areas
   
• The Translational Research Award is intended to support translational research that will accelerate the movement of promising ideas in SCI research into clinical applications. Although not all-inclusive, some examples include demonstration studies of pharmaceuticals and medical devices in preclinical systems and/or clinical research on therapeutics, devices, or practice using human tissues or resources.
   
• The Investigator-Initiated Research Award is intended to support studies that have the potential to make an important contribution to SCI research, patient care, and/or quality of life. applications may focus on any phase of research from basic through translational, though studies focused exclusively on target identification are discouraged. Permitted research includes preclinical studies in animal models (except where otherwise specified), research with human subjects or human anatomical substances, as well as ancillary studies associated with an existing clinical trial.

• Clinical Translation Research: $1.25M – $1.35M
• Clinical Trial: $3.00 - $3.10M
• Translational Research: $1.25M – $1.35M
• Investigator-Initiated Research: $500,000

• Clinical Translation Research : 3 years
• Clinical Trial: 4 years
• Translational Research: 3 years
• Investigator-Initiated Research: 3 years

• 20 May 2024, 5:00 p.m. Eastern time

• 08 August 2024, 11:59 p.m Eastern Time

• To find the full program announcements and to start your pre-application see here
• A useful summary of each call can be found here
• For questions about the eBRAP or Grants.gov platforms, contact the Research Office.
• Grants.gov Funding Opportunity Numbers:
  • Clinical Translation Research: HT942524SCIRPCTRA
  • Clinical Trial: HT942524SCIRPCTA
  • Translational Research: HT942524SCIRPTRA
  • Investigator-Initiated Research: HT942524SCIRPIIRA

• Preserving and protecting spinal cord tissue at time of injury for improved neurologic outcomes
  • Responsive projects may include surgical and acute care management of SCI, especially within the battlefield/deployed environment.
  • Therapeutics (devices and pharmacologic interventions) to stabilize SCI in the prehospital environment and during transport are encouraged.
  • Applications proposing neuroprotective interventions need to demonstrate a clinically feasible window for treatment and more than an incremental improvement over existing therapies.
• Identifying and validating biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and evaluation of treatment efficacies
  • To be responsive to this Focus Area, biomarker identification or validation must be the primary focus of the proposed research.
  • Biomarkers must focus on diagnosis, prognosis, progression, and/or recovery of SCI.
  • Projects with a clear link between a biomarker and underlying physiology are encouraged. Projects can include imaging and other modalities.
  • Applications should demonstrate a clear path to clinical use. ○ Biomarker studies directed at identifying the best single or combination of treatments for individuals (personalized medicine) are encouraged.
• Developing, testing, and validating promising interventions to address bowel, genitourinary, neuropathic pain, cardiopulmonary or autonomic dysfunction across the life span of people with SCI
  • Mechanism-focused studies must be specific to SCI and demonstrate a clear path from increased understanding to advancing treatments.
  • Studies addressing the needs of and treatments for individuals with SCI across the full life span from acute to chronic injury are encouraged.
• Investigating psychosocial issues relevant to people with SCI, their families, and/or their care partners across the life span
  • To be responsive to this Focus Area, psychosocial issues must be the primary focus of the research.
  • Projects should provide an understanding of critical factors promoting psychosocial wellbeing leading to implementation of potential treatments and interventions.
  • Studies addressing social isolation, loneliness, and depression, as well as resilience, self-efficacy, sexuality and intimacy, and interactions between people living with SCI and their care partners, are especially encouraged.
  • Applications should consider or directly address the needs of Service Members and Veterans across the life span.
  • Preclinical animal studies are not responsive to this Focus Area.
• Rehabilitation and regeneration – maximizing the function of the residual neural circuitry, including harnessing neuroplasticity and recovery to improve function after SCI
  • Studies that address critical questions of dosing, targeting, or safety required to move the research toward clinical use are supported.
  • Applications studying mechanisms of regeneration or identifying novel therapeutic targets must include a feasible projected pathway for translation and clinical implementation.
  • Basic research projects designed to understand general mechanisms underlying axonal sprouting, regeneration, or neuroplasticity are discouraged unless they directly address translatable approaches to promote recovery of function.