Intellectual Property (IP) or Regulatory Strategy Requirements
Applicants are required to submit their IP and regulatory strategies in their applications. Projects that are appropriate for these FOAs must be at the stage of development where IP and regulatory strategies are being considered. For phased awards, continued development of IP and regulatory strategies will be required and considered for a transition from the R61 phase to the R33 phase of the award.
While IP and regulatory strategy are not required for the Enabling Technologies and Transformative Platforms funding opportunity (RFA-HL-23-010), funded awardees will be expected to develop IP and regulatory strategy as the technology develops.
Accelerator Partners
Accelerator Partner Definition
Accelerator Partners are commercialization experts working as development partners with innovators whose projects are funded through the Catalyze program. Accelerator Partners help innovator-researchers achieve the necessary multidisciplinary approach for developing technologies. Accelerator Partners provide skills development and mentoring to enable innovator-researchers to assess the medical and commercial potential of their projects. They also help advance the proposed projects to a stage suitable to continue product development in the private sector or to apply for support through the NHLBI Catalyze Preclinical or other translational programs.
Accelerator Partners do this by connecting innovator-researchers with people such as:
experienced entrepreneurs and scientists, including those who can facilitate interactions with businesses, industries, sources of private capital, and research-performing institutions,
potential licensing and commercialization partners who can offer advice soon after the researcher gets an award,
ecosystem partners, such as those from biotechnology or pharmaceutical companies, who are knowledgeable about the process for developing therapeutics, devices, and diagnostics,
experts such as clinicians and biostatisticians who are familiar with how the desired product should look to meet vested shared interests,
potential partners who have complementary development expertise and resources for successful project development.
Accelerator Partners Expectations
Accelerator partners are encouraged to provide access to expertise and mentoring related to: product development stages, business development and commercialization strategy, market analysis, preparation of regulatory submissions, intellectual property protection, and reimbursement strategy. Awardees are highly encouraged to use Accelerator Partners for this kind of career development, as these experts can facilitate exposure to the myriad processes required to translate discoveries into therapies.
Applicants are expected to consider how they will identify and foster relationships with Accelerator Partners. At least one Accelerator Partner is required for the R33 portion of the phased awards and the R33 only awards. An Accelerator Partner is not required for RFA-HL-23-010.
For phased awards, awardees will be expected to search for an Accelerator Partner early in the R61 phase. For phased awards, proof of an Accelerator partner is not required at the time of application; however, evidence that an Accelerator Partner has been identified must be provided to NIH in the form of a letter of support prior to the meeting of the NHLBI committee that will decide whether an awardee will transition from the R61 to the R33 award. Transition from R61 to R33 is contingent on procurement of an Accelerator.
Milestones
Milestone Definition
Milestones are an event or moment in time in a project that indicates progress toward a Specific Aim has been made or that a Specific Aim has been completed. The project Specific Aims and milestones should be laid out as a timeline or GANTT chart as a part of the application. Specific Aims or a list of activities planned for each year are not considered milestones because they do not provide decision-making goals. Applicants are expected to propose activities and milestones, with an associated timeline, to be completed during the proposed duration of award. Successful awardees will develop specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound Specific Aims for their project. Each Specific Aim should have at least one milestone associated with it.
Milestone Requirements
Milestones will be peer reviewed as well as programmatically reviewed and if needed will be negotiated with the awardee before they are included in the terms of the award. NHLBI staff will monitor program progress against proposed milestones through quarterly meetings and make non-competing award decisions annually based on achieving milestones. NHLBI emphasizes the importance of the robustness and reproducibility of experimental results in evaluating progress.
Milestones are required for all RFAs (RFA-HL-23-010, 011, 012, 013, and 014).
Phased awards (RFA-HL-23-011 and RFA-HL-23-013). To be responsive to this FOA, applicants must meet the entry criteria to be eligible for the award and propose two separate sets of clear, quantifiable milestones with timelines (one set each for the R61 and R33 phases) to be completed sequentially within a three-year period, but with no more than two years in either stage.
Milestones for the R61 and R33 activities must be submitted at the time of application and will be reviewed simultaneously; however, receipt of funding for the R33 component of phased awards is contingent on achieving pre-specified milestones during the R61 component. Completion of milestones will ensure sufficient progress during the R61 phase to provide the feasibility and scientific rationale to conduct the product definition activities proposed in the R33.
Non-phased R33 awards (RFA-HL-23-010, RFA-HL-23-012 and RFA-HL-23-014). To be considered responsive to the FOA, applicants must meet the entry criteria to be eligible for the award and propose milestones to be completed during the duration of award. These milestones will ensure that projects are sufficiently progressing to be in a position to for further development, including entering into preclinical programs following completion of the award.
Milestones must be identified in the application and may be negotiated, pre-award, by the NHLBI team based on comments from the peer review panel. NHLBI emphasizes the importance of the robustness and reproducibility of experimental results in evaluating progress. For the phased awards, investigators must exhibit successful completion of milestones for consideration of transition to the R33 phase.
Project Management
Each project is expected to use a robust, milestone-driven project management processes that make it possible to assess progress on a continuous basis, relative to established milestones. Applicants should describe their project management strategies and name the individual(s) who will be responsible for implementing them. For more information about developing project management strategies prior to application submission, please contact the NHLBI Catalyze team at catalyze_info@rti.org.