NHLBI Program Project Applications (P01 - Clinical Trials Optional) | PAR 18 405

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 18 405

The NHLBI Program Project Applications (P01 - Clinical Trials Optional) funding opportunity (PAR 18-405) is a National Institutes of Health discretionary grant designed to support large, coordinated research programs that fit squarely within the mission of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. The scientific scope is broad across cardiovascular, pulmonary, hematologic, and sleep research, covering both fundamental mechanisms and disease-focused work involving the heart, blood and lymphatic vessels, lungs, and blood. It also explicitly welcomes areas such as transfusion medicine, blood resources, implementation science, health disparities research, and translational research, as long as the overall program addresses NHLBI priorities. Clinical trials are allowed but not required, which gives applicants flexibility to propose basic, translational, clinical, or mixed portfolios depending on what best answers the central research question.

At the core of this announcement is the Program Project Grant (PPG) model, which is meant to fund collaboration that produces more than the sum of its parts. Applicants must propose at least three interrelated research projects that are scientifically connected and built around a single, clearly defined biomedical theme or complex research question. The expectation is not simply that multiple projects sit under the same umbrella, but that they actively interact, inform one another, and create real thematic integration. NHLBI supports this structure because it believes coordinated teams can accelerate discovery more effectively than separate, loosely related projects funded independently. To help the overall program run efficiently, applicants may also include shared core units when justified. These cores are intended to create economy of effort, space, and equipment, for example by centralizing specialized methods, shared instrumentation, data resources, clinical coordination functions, or other cross-cutting capabilities that directly support multiple projects.

A notable emphasis in the FOA is the encouragement of new scientific directions within P01 programs. NHLBI views the P01 mechanism as a way to stimulate innovative, forward-looking program concepts and to bring in scientists who have not traditionally received NHLBI support. The program environment is also framed as a training ground for leadership: it can help emerging scientific leaders learn how to organize and manage a complex, multi-project research program. In line with that, applicants have the option to include a research project led by an Early Stage Investigator (ESI), offering a structured way to integrate newer investigators into a major collaborative effort while still maintaining the program’s overall coherence and rigor.

Eligibility spans a wide range of organization types. Eligible applicants include various levels of government (state, county, city/township, special districts), independent school districts, public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (with or without 501(c)(3) status), for-profit organizations other than small businesses, and small businesses. The FOA also highlights additional eligible categories such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, eligible federal agencies, and tribal governments or organizations, including Indian/Native American Tribal Governments other than federally recognized entities in the categories specified. On the international side, non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities (foreign organizations and foreign institutions) are not eligible to apply directly, and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply. However, foreign components are permitted when they meet the NIH definition in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, meaning a U.S.-based applicant can include a foreign component if it is scientifically justified and compliant with NIH policy.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity is issued by NIH under CFDA numbers 93.233, 93.837, 93.838, 93.839, and 93.840, reflecting the NHLBI research domains it supports. The funding instrument is a grant and the activity category is health. The source record notes an original closing date of 2020-12-02 and a creation date of 2017-10-20; applicants typically need to verify current submission dates, budgets, and any updated policies by checking the live FOA and NIH guidance, since P01 opportunities often use standard receipt cycles or updated reissues. Overall, this FOA is best suited for teams proposing a tightly integrated, multi-project program with a strong unifying theme, clear evidence of synergy across projects, and (where appropriate) shared cores that make the collaboration more efficient and scientifically productive.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NHLBI Program Project Applications (P01 - Clinical Trials Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.233, 93.837, 93.838, 93.839, 93.840.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-10-20.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2020-12-02. (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.

Apply for PAR 18 405

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