Pilot Projects Investigating Understudied G Protein-Coupled Receptors, Ion Channels, and Protein Kinases (R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA RM 20 019

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA RM 20 019

This NIH funding opportunity (RFA-RM-20-019) from the Common Fund program Illuminating the Druggable Genome (IDG) supports small, early-stage pilot research projects focused on "understudied" but potentially high-impact drug target families: non-olfactory G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), ion channels, and protein kinases. The intent is to push the biology of these lesser-characterized proteins beyond what the core IDG Centers can do on their own, while also putting IDG-generated resources (datasets, reagents, experimental approaches, and knowledge-base tools) to practical use in real research settings. The mechanism is an NIH R03, and clinical trials are not allowed under this announcement.

The main scientific purpose is to generate new, credible evidence about what specific understudied proteins do and how they may matter in human disease. Projects are expected to create additional datasets, experimental tools, or enabling reagents that clarify protein function, identify biochemical or cellular activities, and/or connect these proteins to phenotypes in cells or animal models. In other words, the program is trying to convert "we know this gene exists and looks druggable" into "we understand enough about its biology, phenotype, and context to justify deeper study and potential therapeutic exploration." A parallel goal is community-facing: by demonstrating that IDG resources are high quality and useful, these projects should increase broader awareness and use of IDG outputs and extend the characterization of IDG-eligible proteins in ways that compound the value of the overall program.

This opportunity sits within IDG's larger mission to catalyze research on druggable gene families that have historically received limited attention despite strong potential relevance to human health. IDG emphasizes three big outcomes: first, discovering phenotypes for understudied proteins in biochemical assays, cell systems, or animal models; second, enabling the field by producing and distributing tools and reagents that make follow-on work easier and more reproducible; and third, building and sustaining a "minable" knowledge base so that data and annotations can be searched, integrated, and reused by the broader community. Applications responding to this FOA should fit naturally into that pipeline by producing results that are not only novel, but also readily leveraged by other researchers.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based organizations and government entities. Eligible applicants include state, county, city, township, and 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; Native American tribal organizations that are not federally recognized tribal governments; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits (both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3), outside of higher education); for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); small businesses; and other eligible organizations. The FOA explicitly calls out additional eligible applicant categories such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISI), as well as faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, Indian/Native American tribal governments other than federally recognized, and U.S. territories or possessions.

At the same time, the announcement draws clear boundaries on foreign involvement. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply. However, "foreign components" as defined under the NIH Grants Policy Statement are allowed, which generally means a U.S. applicant organization may include certain well-justified international elements within the project while keeping the applicant organization itself eligible and U.S.-based.

Administratively, this is a discretionary grant opportunity under CFDA 93.310, run by the National Institutes of Health. The FOA was created on April 21, 2020, with an original closing date of July 15, 2020. The opportunity title and mechanism indicate that it is intended for smaller, focused pilot studies (R03) rather than large multi-year programs, and the "Clinical Trial Not Allowed" restriction means the work must remain in the preclinical, mechanistic, tool-building, and discovery/validation space rather than testing interventions in human participants.

In practical terms, a competitive project under this FOA would typically center on one or a small number of IDG-eligible understudied GPCRs, ion channels, or kinases, and propose a tightly scoped set of experiments that (1) uses and validates IDG resources and (2) produces new datasets, reagents, assays, phenotypic links, or functional insights that the rest of the community can build on. The expected payoff is not just a single lab's findings, but a multiplier effect: better-characterized targets, stronger public resources, and clearer starting points for future, larger-scale biology and translational research.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Pilot Projects Investigating Understudied G Protein-Coupled Receptors, Ion Channels, and Protein Kinases (R03 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): 93.310.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2020-04-21.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2020-07-15. (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 RFA RM 20 019

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