Scalable and Systematic Neurobiology of Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Disorder Risk Genes: Assay and Data Generation Centers (RM1 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA MH 22 111

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA MH 22 111

The NIH funding opportunity titled "Scalable and Systematic Neurobiology of Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Disorder Risk Genes: Assay and Data Generation Centers (RM1 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" (Funding Opportunity Number RFA-MH-22-111; CFDA 93.242) is aimed at speeding up what happens after gene discovery in psychiatry and neurodevelopmental research. Over the past several years, large human genetics studies have identified many genes that carry an excess burden of damaging mutations in people with conditions such as autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and related neurodevelopmental or psychiatric illnesses. The problem this FOA is trying to solve is that gene discovery has scaled up dramatically, while experimental follow-up has not. In other words, the field can now generate long lists of credible risk genes, but still lacks fast, standardized, and scalable lab platforms to determine what those genes actually do in the nervous system and how specific kinds of mutations alter biological function.

The opportunity supports building and running systematic, high-throughput experimental pipelines that can measure the molecular, cellular, and physiological consequences of disease-linked genetic variation across multiple levels of biological organization. The emphasis is on "systematic and scalable" work, meaning approaches should be designed to handle large numbers of genes (hundreds in parallel) rather than focusing narrowly on one or a few genes. The intent is to create experimental infrastructures and workflows that are closer in spirit to large-scale genomics: standardized assays, reproducible measurements, and outputs that can be compared and integrated across centers. This includes leveraging newer technologies that make high-throughput functional profiling possible, such as multiplexed perturbation approaches, scalable cell-based systems, and organismal platforms that can assess neurobiological endpoints in an efficient and repeatable way.

A central feature of the initiative is that the funded projects are expected to function as part of a consortium rather than as isolated labs. The FOA describes a model where a mix of full-scale projects and pilot efforts contribute complementary assay systems and data types, collectively generating broad characterization of risk genes across endpoints relevant to central nervous system function. The specific platforms can vary and may include cellular systems (for example, neuronal or glial models suited for scalable perturbation and readouts) and organismal systems (model organisms or other experimental contexts that enable higher-level functional assessment). What matters most is that the assays are designed for throughput, produce interpretable functional information tied to gene and variant perturbations, and can be applied consistently across many risk genes.

The announcement also highlights the goal of connecting this new functional-genomics effort with existing NIMH-supported resources and community initiatives, explicitly mentioning PsychENCODE and Convergent Neuroscience. Practically, that means the program is intended to generate data that can be integrated with larger, existing transcriptomic and regulatory maps of the human brain, and to support cross-project synthesis that helps move from lists of risk genes toward shared pathways, convergent mechanisms, and biologically grounded hypotheses. By bridging genetic findings and neurobiology more directly, the program is designed to reduce a major translational bottleneck in psychiatric genetics: understanding how and where risk genes act, what cellular programs they affect, and which phenotypes or circuit-relevant processes they perturb.

The FOA also describes a Consortium Coordination Center (CCC) as a core component of the broader initiative. The CCC is meant to serve as a hub that keeps the consortium operating as a coherent whole, not just a loose collection of separately funded projects. Responsibilities include administrative coordination across the different centers, harmonization of data formats and analytical tools so outputs can be compared and combined, and development of an open-source portal that makes the resulting datasets and tools accessible as a unified resource. Another important deliverable is the creation of standardized biological resources that can be broadly used by the research community, which could include shared reagents, reference constructs, standardized perturbation libraries, or other common materials that enable other groups to build on the consortium's work and reproduce key results.

From an administrative standpoint, this is an NIH discretionary grant opportunity using the RM1 mechanism, and it is explicitly labeled "Clinical Trial Not Allowed," meaning the funded work should be preclinical or otherwise non-clinical-trial research. The agency is the National Institutes of Health, and the original closing date listed for this specific opportunity was 2022-06-10, with a creation date of 2022-01-18. The activity category is health, consistent with NIMH's mission to understand mental illnesses and develop better strategies for diagnosis, treatment, and prevention by grounding them in biology.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based organizations and governmental entities. Eligible applicants listed include state, county, city or township governments, special district governments, and independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education and private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments and other Native American tribal organizations; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations (both with and without 501(c)(3) status, other than institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The FOA also calls out additional eligible applicants such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISISs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, and U.S. territories or possessions. Foreign institutions (non-U.S. entities) are not eligible to apply as applicant organizations, but non-domestic components of U.S. organizations may participate, and foreign components are allowed as defined by NIH policy, which typically means certain international elements can be included when they add specific scientific value and are justified within NIH rules.

Overall, the program is best understood as an effort to industrialize the functional follow-up of psychiatric and neurodevelopmental risk genes: building scalable assay-and-data-generation centers that can systematically perturb many genes, measure consequences across multiple neurobiological levels, and deliver harmonized, open resources that the wider field can use. The expected impact is a faster, more standardized path from human genetic association to biological mechanism, helping researchers identify convergent pathways and actionable neurobiological processes that underlie complex brain disorders.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Scalable and Systematic Neurobiology of Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Disorder Risk Genes: Assay and Data Generation Centers (RM1 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): 93.242.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2022-01-18.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2022-06-10. (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.

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