Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA NS 22 047
The BRAIN Initiative Connectivity across Scales (BRAIN CONNECTS) Comprehensive Centers opportunity (RFA-NS-22-047) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding announcement that supports large, coordinated research centers focused on building next-generation approaches for mapping brain circuit connectivity in humans and non-human primates. The central goal is to push technologies and workflows to a point where they can realistically scale into brain-wide connectivity atlases, while still preserving very fine detail. In practical terms, the centers funded under this FOA are expected to show that it is feasible to map region-to-region wiring with a minimum resolution at the level of individual cells and/or individual axon fibers, rather than stopping at coarse regional connections.
A key emphasis of the program is end-to-end capability, meaning these centers are not only expected to generate data, but also to establish robust pipelines for collecting, processing, analyzing, and sharing it. That includes standardized approaches for tissue handling and imaging (or other acquisition methods), computational methods for reconstruction and connectivity inference, quality control, metadata capture, and dissemination strategies that make the outputs broadly usable. The intent is for each center to operate like a comprehensive engine that can take a defined brain sub-volume from sample acquisition through to a shareable, analyzable connectivity product, demonstrating that the approach could be expanded to much larger portions of the brain over time.
Rather than producing maps as a purely descriptive exercise, the FOA also requires centers to demonstrate why the resulting wiring information matters scientifically. Each center is expected to choose a specific CNS sub-volume as a testbed and use the connectivity mapping approach to evaluate concrete hypotheses that connect circuit structure to function. This “hypothesis-driven demonstration” component is meant to show that the technology and pipeline are not just technically impressive, but also capable of producing insights that move neuroscience forward by linking anatomical circuitry to functional outcomes.
Another major requirement is interoperability and integration across scales and modalities. The FOA highlights that centers should incorporate toolsets and infrastructure that allow separately collected datasets to be integrated, including data acquired from smaller tissue volumes and data coming from different measurement modalities. This reflects a broader BRAIN CONNECTS strategy: no single method will cover every scale perfectly, so the program is pushing the field toward frameworks that can combine information across different resolutions (from micro-scale cellular detail to macro-scale region-level wiring) and across different types of experimental or imaging data. Just as importantly, centers are expected to make the resulting resources usable to the wider community by providing ways for neuroscientists to interact with the datasets, explore them, and mine them for new research questions beyond the original aims of the center.
Organizationally, awards made through this announcement are intended to function as part of a coordinated network rather than isolated projects. Funded centers become part of the BRAIN CONNECTS Network, alongside projects supported through this FOA and companion announcements. The network concept signals shared expectations around coordination, harmonization, and collective progress toward a long-term deliverable: wiring diagrams that can span entire brains across multiple scales. This cooperative, networked structure is reinforced by the funding mechanism itself: a cooperative agreement (UM1), which typically involves substantial programmatic coordination and involvement compared with standard investigator-initiated grants. The FOA is explicitly labeled “Clinical Trial Not Allowed,” indicating the supported work should not be structured as a clinical trial under NIH definitions.
In terms of who can apply, the eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S. and non-U.S. organizations. Eligible applicants listed include state, county, city, township, and special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations that are not federally recognized; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) status (excluding higher education institutions in those nonprofit categories); for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); small businesses; and other entities. The FOA also explicitly calls out additional eligible applicant categories, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, AANAPISIs, Hispanic-serving institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities, Indian/Native American tribal governments other than federally recognized tribes, and U.S. territories or possessions. This breadth aligns with the scale and infrastructure-heavy nature of the work, which often benefits from multi-institutional collaborations and specialized capabilities.
From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity is classified as a discretionary grant program with NIH as the agency, and it falls under multiple CFDA listings (93.173, 93.213, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.286, 93.853, 93.865, 93.866, 93.867). The original closing date shown is June 13, 2023, and the FOA creation date is February 22, 2022. The award ceiling and expected number of awards are not specified in the provided source text, but the “Comprehensive Centers” framing and UM1 cooperative agreement mechanism generally indicate larger, multi-component efforts intended to serve as flagship contributors to the overall BRAIN CONNECTS mapping and data-sharing ecosystem.
Overall, this FOA is designed to accelerate the field toward practical, scalable, and community-accessible connectivity atlases for human and non-human primate brains. It does that by funding center-level efforts that can prove technical feasibility at high resolution, connect wiring maps to functional hypotheses in a defined CNS region, build integration frameworks for combining datasets across scales and modalities, and deliver tools and infrastructure that make the outputs usable well beyond the originating teams, all while operating as part of a coordinated national BRAIN CONNECTS network effort.Apply for RFA NS 22 047
- The National Institutes of Health in the education, health, income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "BRAIN Initiative Connectivity across Scales (BRAIN CONNECTS): Comprehensive Centers for Human and Non-Human Primate Brain (UM1 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): 93.173, 93.213, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.286, 93.853, 93.865, 93.866, 93.867.
- This funding opportunity was created on 2022-02-22.
- Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-06-13. (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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| Coordinating Center to Support Research on Community Level Interventions for Firearm and Related Violence, Injury and Mortality Prevention (CLIF-VP) (U24 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for PAR 22 120 Funding Number: PAR 22 120 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: $1,500,000 |
| Research on Community Level Interventions for Firearm and Related Violence, Injury and Mortality Prevention (CLIF-VP) (UG3/UH3 Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for PAR 22 115 Funding Number: PAR 22 115 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| BRAIN Initiative: Integration and Analysis of BRAIN Initiative Data (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for RFA MH 22 220 Funding Number: RFA MH 22 220 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Clinical Trials Development for Co-Occurring Conditions in Individuals with Down syndrome: Phased Awards for INCLUDE (R61/R33 Clinical Trial Required) Apply for RFA OD 22 010 Funding Number: RFA OD 22 010 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Transformative Research Award for the INCLUDE (Investigation of Co-occurring Conditions across the Lifespan to Understand Down syndrome) Project (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for RFA OD 22 009 Funding Number: RFA OD 22 009 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: $6,000,000 |
| INvestigation of Co-occurring conditions across the Lifespan to Understand Down syndromE (INCLUDE) Clinical Trial Readiness (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for RFA OD 22 007 Funding Number: RFA OD 22 007 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: $275,000 |
| Small Research Grants for Analysis, Curation, and/or Sharing of Down syndrome-related Research Data for the INCLUDE Project (R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for RFA OD 22 008 Funding Number: RFA OD 22 008 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: $1,000,000 |
| HEAL Initiative: Team Research for Initial Translational Efforts in Non-addictive Analgesic Therapeutics Development [Small Molecules and Biologics] (U19 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for RFA NS 22 052 Funding Number: RFA NS 22 052 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: $1,500,000 |
| BRAIN Initiative: Team-Research BRAIN Circuit Programs - TeamBCP (U19 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for RFA NS 22 040 Funding Number: RFA NS 22 040 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| BRAIN Initiative: Research Opportunities Using Invasive Neural Recording and Stimulating Technologies in the Human Brain (U01 Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required) Apply for RFA NS 22 041 Funding Number: RFA NS 22 041 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| BRAIN Initiative: Team-Research BRAIN Circuit Programs - TeamBCP (U19 Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required) Apply for RFA NS 22 039 Funding Number: RFA NS 22 039 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| BRAIN Initiative: Transformative Brain Non-invasive Imaging Technology Development (UG3/UH3 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Apply for RFA EB 22 001 Funding Number: RFA EB 22 001 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| HEAL Initiative: Multilevel Interventions to Reduce Harm and Improve Quality of Life for Patients on Long Term Opioid Therapy (MIRHIQL): Resource Center (U24- Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for RFA DA 23 042 Funding Number: RFA DA 23 042 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: $1,500,000 |
| HEAL Initiative: Multilevel Interventions to Reduce Harm and Improve Quality of Life for Patients on Long Term Opioid Therapy (MIRHIQL) (R01 Clinical Trial Required) Apply for RFA DA 23 041 Funding Number: RFA DA 23 041 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: $750,000 |
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| NIH HEAL Initiative: Coordinated Approaches to Pain Care in Health Care Systems (UG3/UH3 - Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for RFA NS 22 053 Funding Number: RFA NS 22 053 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| BRAIN Initiative: Brain Behavior Quantification and Synchronization (R61/R33 Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for RFA MH 22 240 Funding Number: RFA MH 22 240 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| HEAL Initiative: Translating Research to Practice to End the Overdose Crisis (R33 Clinical Trial Optional) Apply for RFA DA 23 054 Funding Number: RFA DA 23 054 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education, Health, Income Security and Social Services Funding Amount: $750,000 |
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