Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the Center for Scientific Review (CSR)

December 21, 2021

An anniversary is a time for reflection on our history, the goals we’ve accomplished, the challenges we’ve surmounted, and the lessons we’ve learned along the way. Our video, “Catalyst of Hope and Health,” reflects on CSR’s work over the past 75 years to ensure that grant applications sent to NIH receive fair, independent, expert, and timely scientific reviews that are free from inappropriate influences, so NIH can fund the most promising research. Since its establishment, CSR has also sought to continually improve.

Ensuring Smooth Submission of Inclusion Data

December 20, 2021

NIH requires participant-level data in progress reports for all clinical research that come in on applications for due dates January 25, 2019 or later (see our Inclusion Across the Lifespan policy).  Grantees use the Inclusion Enrollment report template provided through NIH’s Human Subjects System (HSS) to provide the required data. To successfully submit the report, obtain the template by selecting the Download Participant Level Data Template button on the Inclusion Enrollment Report screen.

Should I Report the Sex or Gender of Study Participants to NIH?

December 16, 2021

NIH uses sex/gender to indicate that either sex or gender may be reported for inclusion enrollment purposes. The NIH encourages investigators to design their data collection instruments in a way that allows the participants to self-identify their sex or gender in a way that is meaningful within the study’s context. Participants always have the option not to identify with either sex/gender category. If both sex and gender identity are collected, investigators may choose which one to report based on the scientific question(s) that are the focus of the study.

Did You Know We Have an NIH Grants YouTube Channel?

December 15, 2021

Can’t get enough of NIH grants content? On our YouTube channel we have bingeable playlists all about grants!  Whether you’re looking for an introduction to NIH fundamentals, insight into the peer review, information on NIH policy and compliance or applying for grant funding, an orientation to special funding programs, eRA systems or any of the grants administrative topics covered by our seminars and webinars, you can find it here.  

UNITE Wants to Learn from You: Join an Upcoming Listening Session

December 14, 2021

The UNITE initiative was established to identify and eliminate structural racism in biomedical research, and was publicly unveiled February 26, 2021, at a special meeting of the NIH Advisory Committee to the Director (ACD). On Friday, December 10, 2021, UNITE committee members provided an update to the ACD on progress and future directions for the initiative. How can you become involved in this important initiative? UNITE invites external stakeholders from the biomedical research community who work in diverse settings to participate in its online listening sessions. Sessions began on December 1 and continue through February 2022.

ClinicalTrials.gov Modernization Effort: Beta Releases Now Available

December 10, 2021

Earlier this year, we provided an update on NLM’s efforts to modernize ClinicalTrials.gov, the world’s largest publicly accessible database of privately and publicly funded clinical trials. NLM released a request for information, hosted public webinars, and adopted a user-centered design approach intended to help ensure that modernization is responsive to user needs. These activities, together with input from the NLM Board of Regents Public Service Working Group on ClinicalTrials.gov Modernization, supported the development of beta versions of a new ClinicalTrials.gov website and components of the information submission system, also known as the Protocol Registration and Results System (PRS). The beta releases feature a modern look and feel and provide updated technology to support users.

Tips for the Next Generation of Researchers

December 9, 2021

If you are a trainee, graduate student, post-doc, or faculty in the early stages of your career, you might be interested in the recording of a presentation from the 2021 NIH Virtual Seminar on Program Funding and Grants Administration in which prominent NIH leaders offer a variety of tips for junior investigators and discuss funding targets for early state investigators, keeping our attention on at-risk investigators, getting that second R01, and more.

Refreshing NIH’s Genomic Data Sharing Policy

December 3, 2021

NIH released a “Request for Information on Proposed Updates and Long-Term Considerations for the NIH Genomic Data Sharing (GDS) Policy.”  This is your opportunity to help us shape the future of the GDS Policy.  Stakeholder input is the key to ensuring that NIH strikes the right balance when updating the GDS Policy.  Comments will be accepted until February 28, 2022.