Resources for Rigorous Research

Posted on December 13, 2018 by Mike Lauer

Advancing public health depends on science being empirical, transparent, and rigorous. As yet another step towards fostering rigorous science, we have revamped the Rigor and Reproducibility webpage to highlight and include more resources you might find helpful. Since sketching out our plan last summer with the Advisory Council to the NIH Director, the webpage now reflects policy updates and explores new resources, all in a simple and easy to read manner. Continue reading →

Comments Welcomed on the Draft Report Recommending How to Reduce Administrative Burden in Research with Laboratory Animals: A Next Step in Implementing the 21st Century Cures Act

Posted on December 7, 2018 by Mike Lauer

The 21st Century Cures Act requires federal agencies to “review applicable regulations and policies for the care and use of laboratory animals and make revisions, as appropriate, to reduce administrative burden on investigators while maintaining the integrity and credibility of research finding and protection of research animals.” This past March we requested feedback from the public on ways to reduce regulatory burden while also maintaining the highest standards for protecting animal welfare and scientific integrity. You responded with constructive and helpful feedback with more than19,000 comments. Generally, many responses supported the actions initially proposed in the request, but they were balanced with concerns from animal advocacy and other groups. Continue reading →

Changes to the R15 Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA), and Introducing the R15 Research Enhancement Award Program (REAP)

Posted on December 3, 2018 by Jon Lorsch, Alexandra Ainsztein, and Michael Lauer

Students in institutions with significant amounts of NIH funding, whether they be undergraduate or graduate students, generally have plenty of opportunities to gain exposure to biomedical research. This early exposure is key to engendering interest in exploring careers in science and enhancing understanding of the value of the research process. Institutions with little NIH funding often offer significantly fewer opportunities for students to do hands-on research. That’s where NIH’s AREA program comes in. Continue reading →

New Funding Opportunities for Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans

Posted on November 28, 2018 by Mike Lauer and William T. Riley

Over the past year, since we published an essay in Nature Human Behaviour on “NIH policies on experimental studies with humans,” NIH has engaged in a discussion with the basic science community to find ways to meet our shared obligations to study participants and taxpayers, while respecting the unique goals and outcomes of basic science. While we are still in the midst of that conversation, we are pleased to announce real progress in the form of new funding opportunity announcements for Basic Experimental Studies involving Humans. Continue reading →

Working Together to Protect the Integrity of NIH-funded Research

Posted on November 15, 2018 by Mike Lauer

When research findings are made up from thin air, misrepresented in some way, or blatantly and without credit copied from others, we risk eroding the public’s trust, damaging institutional reputation, harming careers, incurring skepticism, misleading future research, and, arguably most importantly, hurting patients. NIH takes research misconduct seriously. We are being proactive.
Continue reading →

Understanding Age in the NIH Portfolio: Implementation of the NIH Inclusion Across the Lifespan Policy

Posted on November 13, 2018 by Dawn Corbett and Michael Lauer

Last December, NIH announced a revision to its Inclusion of Children Policy to expand the policy to individuals of all ages. The revised policy, now called the Inclusion Across the Lifespan policy, requires individuals of all ages (including children and older adults) be included in clinical research studies unless there are scientific or ethical reasons to exclude them.
A recent Viewpoint Essay published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), co-authored by Drs. Marie Bernard (National Institute on Aging), Janine Clayton (NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health), and Michael Lauer, highlights the need for such a policy. The essay summarizes efforts by NIH to implement 21st Century Cures requirements to publish data on the age of research participants, to convene a workshop on age grouping and exclusions, and to make a determination on whether to revise inclusion guidelines on age.
Continue reading →

What Contributes to the Success of Early Career Scientists? – A NIAID Look

Posted on October 31, 2018 by Mike Lauer

At NIH, we are heavily invested in our workforce and in understanding the barriers they face. What characteristics do they share? How do they compete in the current hypercompetitive environment? When do they stop applying to NIH (drop out), even after receiving their first award? Staff from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) delve into these questions in a paper published recently in PLOS ONE , whose findings I’d like to highlight today. Here, Drs. Patricia Haggerty and Matthew Fenton looked at factors that may contribute to the success of early-career investigators and if these factors affect all junior researchers equally. Continue reading →

NIH Loan Repayment Programs: A Lifeline for Biomedical and Biobehavioral Researchers: Applications Accepted September 1 – November 15

Posted on September 28, 2018 by Mike Lauer

By the time many researchers have completed their education and training, they have amassed on average $160,000 in student loan debt. The NIH Loan Repayment Programs (LRPs) are a set of programs established by Congress and designed to recruit and retain highly qualified health professionals into biomedical or biobehavioral research careers. The LRPs counteract early-career researchers’ financial pressure by repaying up to $35,000 annually ($70,000 over a two-year contract) of a researcher’s qualifying educational debt in return for a commitment to engage in research areas important to the mission of NIH. Continue reading →

NIH Extramural Nexus