DOD Vision, Focused Translational Team Science Award | W81XWH 21 VRP FTTSA

Opportunity Information: Apply for W81XWH 21 VRP FTTSA

The Department of Defense Vision Research Program (VRP) Focused Translational Team Science Award (FTTSA), Funding Opportunity Number W81XWH-21-VRP-FTTSA, is a FY2021 discretionary funding opportunity run through the Department of Defense, Department of the Army, U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA). It is designed to fund a single, highly collaborative research effort that is explicitly translational in nature, meaning the work should be organized to move beyond basic discovery and toward practical advances that can improve diagnosis, understanding, prevention, and/or treatment. The central goal is to produce a meaningful step forward in how eye injuries and visual dysfunction are understood and treated when those problems arise from military-relevant traumatic events.

The scientific focus is tightly tied to trauma exposures that service members may experience. The opportunity highlights injury mechanisms such as blast exposure, blunt trauma, thermal injury, chemical injury, and directed energy trauma. Projects proposed under this award are expected to address eye injury and/or visual dysfunction linked to these kinds of events, with an emphasis on research that can realistically inform clinical approaches or near-term development pathways. In other words, the intent is not just to add knowledge, but to create a coordinated team effort that can translate that knowledge into something that improves outcomes for affected individuals.

A notable FY2021 feature is the program encouragement for applicants to leverage resources and expertise available through the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS). This is framed as a way to improve efficiency and speed up the translational pipeline, especially for preclinical innovation. The announcement points applicants to NCATS programs and resources that can support preclinical development (referenced via the NCATS preclinical resources webpage), signaling that proposals may be strengthened by showing how they will use established translational infrastructure, tools, or services to reduce development risk and accelerate progress.

From an administrative and funding structure standpoint, the opportunity supports awards through either a cooperative agreement or a grant mechanism under the Science and Technology and other Research and Development activity category (CFDA 12.420). Eligibility is listed as unrestricted, meaning it is open to any type of entity, though applicants are still expected to review the full announcement for any additional eligibility clarifications. The posting indicates an expected number of awards of one, underscoring the program's emphasis on a single, concentrated, team-based initiative rather than multiple smaller projects.

The opportunity was created on May 14, 2021, with an original closing date of November 16, 2021. The award ceiling is listed as 0 in the provided record, which typically means the ceiling was not specified in that particular data extract and would normally be detailed in the full funding announcement or associated program guidance. Overall, this award is best understood as a targeted DoD investment in a coordinated translational research team aimed at delivering tangible advances for trauma-related eye injury and vision dysfunction relevant to military contexts, with added encouragement to use NCATS capabilities to move faster and more efficiently from preclinical work toward practical impact.

• The Department of Defense, Dept. of the Army -- USAMRAA in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "DOD Vision, Focused Translational Team Science Award" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.420.
• This funding opportunity was created on May 14, 2021.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Nov 16, 2021. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for W81XWH 21 VRP FTTSA

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