Data Integration and Statistical Analysis Methods (DISAM) (U01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA HG 23 005

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA HG 23 005

The Data Integration and Statistical Analysis Methods (DISAM) funding opportunity (RFA-HG-23-005) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) cooperative agreement (U01; clinical trial not allowed) focused on creating new, broadly usable statistical and computational methods for analyzing developmental functional genomics datasets. The core scientific target is to enable stronger, more generalizable analysis of data being produced by the human Developmental Genotype-Expression (dGTEx) project and the related non-human primate developmental GTEx effort (NHP dGTEx). In practical terms, NIH is looking for method development that helps researchers draw more reliable conclusions from complex, high-dimensional developmental data, especially where gene expression, regulation, genotype, tissue context, and time/developmental stage are all changing at once.

A major theme of the NOFO is methods that can quantify how genetic variation influences development. That includes approaches that can detect and model developmental stage-specific effects (for example, eQTLs or regulatory effects that appear only during certain windows), methods that handle longitudinal or pseudo-temporal structure across developmental time, and strategies to separate true developmental signals from technical artifacts or shifting cell-type composition. Another emphasized area is comparing gene expression and gene regulation across multiple tissues and across time points, which typically requires models that can borrow strength across conditions, address missingness and uneven sampling, and control error rates when tests are repeated across many tissues, stages, and molecular readouts.

The opportunity also strongly encourages work that uses comparative genomics to clarify developmental and evolutionary processes, particularly by integrating human and non-human primate data. This can include methods for cross-species alignment of regulatory features, models that account for species-specific differences in developmental timing (heterochrony), and statistical frameworks for identifying conserved versus divergent regulatory programs during development. NIH is also interested in tools that connect these developmental GTEx-style resources with existing tissue and cell atlas efforts, implying a need for integrative methods that can harmonize datasets generated with different platforms, resolutions (bulk vs single-cell), or annotation standards. Projects that make it easier to integrate developmental transcriptomic and regulatory data with broader atlas initiatives, while maintaining interpretability and reproducibility, fit squarely within the intent of DISAM.

From an applicant standpoint, the NOFO is intentionally open: eligibility is not restricted to investigators already affiliated with dGTEx or NHP dGTEx, and teams completely outside those consortia are welcome. The eligible applicant pool is broad and includes many institution types and organizational categories. Beyond typical academic and research institutions, eligible applicants include federal agencies, state and local governments, tribal governments and tribal organizations, independent school districts, public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, nonprofit organizations (with or without 501(c)(3) status), for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), and small businesses. The announcement also explicitly highlights additional eligible groups such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, AANAPISI institutions, Hispanic-serving institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based and community-based organizations, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, and non-U.S. (foreign) entities.

Administratively, this is a discretionary NIH opportunity using the cooperative agreement mechanism, which typically indicates a more interactive relationship with NIH staff compared with a standard research project grant (while still requiring investigator-led science). The original application due date listed is November 20, 2023, and the award ceiling is $400,000 (as provided in the source data). The opportunity is associated with CFDA numbers 93.172, 93.242, and 93.865. Overall, DISAM is aimed at advancing the statistical and data-integration toolkit needed to unlock developmental insights from large-scale genotype and gene regulation resources, with particular emphasis on methods that generalize across tissues, time, individuals, and even species, and that can plug into the larger ecosystem of human tissue and cell atlas initiatives.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health, income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Data Integration and Statistical Analysis Methods (DISAM) (U01 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): 93.172, 93.242, 93.865.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2023-04-18.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-11-20. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $400,000.00 in funding.
• 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 HG 23 005

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