NIH Shared Instrumentation for Animal Research (SIFAR) Grant Program (S10) | Research | UW–Madison Skip to main content
University of Wisconsin–Madison

NIH Shared Instrumentation for Animal Research (SIFAR) Grant Program (S10)

To: Chairs and Administrators, Departments in the Biological Sciences; Associate Deans for Research; College/School Research Administrators
From: Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research & Graduate Education
Date: December 21, 2016
Subject: NIH SIFAR PAR-17-075
Deadline for Internal Review: March 20, 2017

Project Description

The Shared Instrumentation for Animal Research (SIFAR) Grant Program encourages applications from groups of NIH-funded investigators to purchase or upgrade scientific instruments necessary to carry out animal experiments in all areas of biomedical research supported by the NIH. Applicants may request clusters of commercially available instruments configured as specialized integrated systems or as series of instruments to support a thematic workflow in a well-defined area of research using animals or related materials. Priority will be given to specialized clusters of instruments and to uniquely configured systems to support innovative and potentially transformative investigations. Requests for a single instrument will be considered only if the instrument is to be placed in a barrier facility. (For single instruments not intended to be used in a barrier facility, applicants should consider applying to the Shared Instrumentation Grant (SIG) Program or High-End Instrumentation (HEI) Grant Program.) This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) supports requests for state-of-the art commercially available technologies needed for NIH-funded research using any vertebrate and invertebrate animal species. It is expected that the use of the awarded instruments will enhance the scientific rigor of animal research and improve the reproducibility of experimental outcomes.

Amount per Award:  One item of the requested instrumentation must cost at least $50,000. No instrument in a cluster can cost less than $20,000. There is no maximum price requirement; however, the maximum award is $750,000.
Duration of Award: 1 Year
Number of Awards: Approximately 12 awards, corresponding to a total of $6 million, for fiscal year 2018.

Eligibility

The PD/PI chosen for this application should have documented (in the biographical sketch) technical expertise directly related to the requested instrumentation or scientific expertise in biomedical research using animals, must be affiliated with the applicant organization, and must be registered on eRA Commons. The PD/PI does not need to have an NIH research grant or any other research support, and may be a Core director, tenured or non-tenured faculty member of the applicant organization.

Multiple PDs/PIs are not allowed under the S10 mechanism.

UW-Madison may submit one application.

Website

The following link contains additional information on the program and specific application instructions:
https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-17-075.html

Internal Competition Application Instructions

Applications for Internal Review

To submit your application, follow this link: https://inic-uwmadison.fluidreview.com/

Please include the following information:

  • Name and full contact information for the PI(s), Departments involved
  • Name and description of the instrument or instrument cluster
  • List of potential users
  • Project Summary/Justification of Need: Describe in detail the requested instrument(s) and justify their configuration. Compare the performance of the requested model(s) with other similar instruments available on the market. Justify the need for specific components of the requested instrument(s).  State the application’s broad, long-term thematic scientific objectives, concisely describing how a cluster/series of instruments or a uniquely configured system will strengthen animal research, enhance the health-related goals of the research projects and contribute to UW-Madison’s long-range biomedical research goals. If a single instrument is requested, state how it will benefit behind-the-barrier animal research which could not have been accomplished otherwise. (3 pages)
  • Budget overview, including total amount of funds requested for each instrument and requested accessories.  Include a financial plan for long-term operation and maintenance of the instrument(s). Explain how various operational costs will be met; specifically, costs associated with routine operation and maintenance of the instrument(s), and costs for support personnel. (1 page)

Sponsor Deadlines

Applications are due to NIH by May 31, 2017.

Questions?

Contact Dave Schuster (608) 263-7274 or email grants@research.wisc.edu.