Oral Diseases and Disorders Research

NIDCR extramural research provides research funds to support basic, translational, and clinical research in dental, oral, and craniofacial health and disease through grants, cooperative agreements, including small business research through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs and contracts that support scientists working in institutions throughout the United States and internationally. Extramural programs plan, develop, and manage scientific priorities through portfolio analyses and consultation with stakeholders, encouraging the most promising discoveries and emerging technologies for rapid translation to clinical applications. The Integrative Biology and Infectious Diseases programs support basic and translational research programs on oral microbiology; salivary biology and immunology; oral and salivary gland cancers; neuroscience of orofacial pain and temporomandibular disorders; mineralized tissue physiology; dental biomaterials; and tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. The branch aims to accelerate progress in basic and translational research in these areas, and further stimulate the discovery pipeline based on clinical needs. The Translational Genomics Research programs support basic and translational research in genetics, genomics, developmental biology, and data science toward the goal of improving dental, oral, and craniofacial health. The focus is on deciphering the genetic, molecular, and cellular mechanisms underlying dental, oral, and craniofacial development and anomalies. The Behavioral and Social Sciences Research programs support basic and applied research to promote oral health, to prevent oral diseases and related disabilities, and to improve management of craniofacial conditions, disorders, and injury. The program prioritizes mechanistic research that contributes to a cumulative science of behavior change, to maximize the rigor, relevance, and dissemination of efficacious behavior change interventions. The Clinical Research programs supports patient-oriented, population, and community based research aimed at improving the dental, oral, and craniofacial health of the nation. The Center focuses on a variety of diseases and conditions through clinical trials, epidemiologic studies, practice-based research, the HIV/AIDS and oral health program, and studies of oral health disparities and inequities in all areas of NIDCR programmatic interest. The program encourages investigations that have the potential to translate findings into evidence-based clinical applications. The Research Training and Career Development extramural programs span the career stages of scientists, supporting research training and career development for PhD and dual degree DDS/DMD-PhD students, postdoctoral scholars and early career, midcareer, and established investigators. The programs manage support for fellowships, research training grants, career development and career transition awards, NIH loan repayment awards, and diversity supplements to support research experiences for high school students through investigators. Extramural programs are accountable for the efficient and effective use of taxpayer funds to support research on dental, oral, and craniofacial diseases and disorders and improving the oral health of all Americans. Extramural programs support research and research training to establish the foundation for scientific discoveries that include transparent and rigorous planning, priority setting, continuous and consistent reviews of progress, and focus on the development of a diverse, highly skilled, and nimble workforce that can rapidly respond to scientific breakthroughs and public health challenges. Extramural programs employ evaluation domains, from needs assessment and strategic planning to implementation and process evaluation, performance measurement, and outcomes and impact analysis to evaluate strategic objectives.

Research Project Grants: Scientists at universities, colleges, medical and dental schools, hospitals, laboratories, and other public or private nonprofit and for-profit institutions. NRSA, career development awards and career transition awards: (1) Nonprofit domestic organizations may apply for institutional awards. (2) Individual candidates or applicants must arrange sponsorship by a public or nonprofit private institution having staff and facilities appropriate to the proposed research training program. (3) All NRSA, career development awardees, and NIDCR postdoctoral to faculty position awards must be citizens, or non-citizen nationals of the United States or have been admitted to the United States for permanent residence. (4) Extramural career transition postdoctoral to tenure track faculty or equivalent position and the R90 component of T90/R90 grants support non-citizen dentists. (4) To be eligible, postdoctoral NRSA, intramural to extramural career transition awardees, and career development awardees must have a professional or scientific degree (M.D., Ph.D., D.D.S., D.V.M., Sc.D., D.Eng., or equivalent domestic or foreign degree). Institutional applicants must be able to provide the staff and facilities suitable for the proposed research education or research training. SBIR and STTR grants: Can be awarded only to domestic small business concerns that meet the following criteria: 1) Is organized for profit, with a place of business located in the United States, which operates primarily within the United States or which makes a significant contribution to the United States economy through payment of taxes or use of American products, materials or labor; 2) Is in the legal form of an individual proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company, corporation, joint venture, association, trust or cooperative, except where the form is a joint venture, there must be less than 50 percent participation by foreign business entities in the joint venture; 3) Be a concern which is more than 50% directly owned and controlled by one or more individuals (who are citizens or permanent resident aliens of the United States), other business concerns (each of which is more than 50% directly owned and controlled by individuals who are citizens or permanent resident aliens of the United States), or any combination of these; no single venture capital operating company, hedge fund, or private equity firm may own more than 50% of the concern, 4) Has, including its affiliates, not more than 500 employees, and 5) meets the other regulatory requirements found in 13 C.F.R. Part 121. For STTR awards, the small business must "partner" with a research institution in a cooperative research and development project. In both Phase I and Phase II for both SBIR and STTR, the research must be performed in the U.S. and its possessions. To be eligible for funding, all grant applications must be evaluated for scientific merit and program relevance by a scientific peer review group and the National Advisory Dental and Craniofacial Research Council

All accepted grant applications competing for research project grants, career development awards, and NSRA awards are reviewed by two advisory groups. Primary review is conducted by an initial review group composed of extramural peer scientists, and secondary review by the National Advisory Dental and Craniofacial Research Council (NADCRC). Secondary review of NRSA fellowship applications is conducted by NIDCR staff rather than by the NADCRC. All accepted SBIR/STTR applications are evaluated for scientific and technical merit by an appropriate initial review group and by the NADCRC. All applications receiving a priority score compete for available SBIR/STTR set-aside funds on the basis of scientific and technical merit and commercial potential of the proposed research, program relevance, and program balance among the areas of research.

Research Project Grants, SBIR/STTR, and NSRA: From 6 to 9 months.