Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Biospecimen Access (X01) | PAR 17 458

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 17 458

The Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Biospecimen Access (X01) opportunity (PAR-17-458) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding mechanism designed to give qualified researchers controlled access to valuable biospecimens and linked research data from the PATH Study, a large U.S. study focused on tobacco use and its health impacts. Rather than primarily funding a traditional research project with a standard budget, this X01 opportunity is centered on enabling access to existing, high-quality specimens and the accompanying dataset so investigators can answer new scientific questions without having to build a new cohort from scratch. The biospecimen types available through this resource include urine, plasma, and serum, which are especially useful for analyzing biomarkers of tobacco exposure, toxicants, nicotine metabolites, and other biological indicators that can be tied back to participant-reported behaviors and longitudinal health outcomes.

A key feature of this opportunity is that it leverages the PATH Study's breadth: researchers can pair laboratory analyses of biospecimens with rich contextual information already collected by the study, such as tobacco use patterns, attitudes and perceptions about tobacco products, and health-related measures. This makes it possible to study relationships between product use (including changes over time), biological exposure, and downstream health indicators in a way that is difficult to replicate with smaller datasets. The opportunity is particularly relevant for work on tobacco regulatory science, population health, addiction science, biomarker discovery or validation, and studies comparing exposure profiles across different tobacco products or demographic groups.

Applicants are directed to consult the PATH Study documentation hosted through the University of Michigan's National Addiction and HIV Data Archive Program (NAHDAP), which is part of ICPSR. The PATH Study series page (https://doi.org/10.3886/Series606) is the central location for understanding what waves of data exist, what measures are available, how biospecimens are described, and what steps are required for requesting access. In practice, a strong application would typically make a clear case for why the specific specimens requested are needed, how the proposed analyses will be conducted, how the linked PATH measures will be used to interpret findings, and how the team will meet any data security, privacy, and governance requirements associated with controlled-access human subjects resources.

Eligibility for this opportunity is broad across the U.S. research ecosystem. Eligible applicants include state, county, city or 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 tribal governments; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofits (both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3), excluding institutions of higher education where applicable); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The announcement also highlights additional eligible applicant categories such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISISs), as well as faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, and U.S. territories or possessions.

At the same time, the opportunity places clear restrictions on foreign involvement. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and foreign institutions are not eligible to apply. In addition, non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible, and foreign components (as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement) are not allowed. These restrictions matter for applicants who collaborate internationally or maintain overseas branches, since the project structure and performance sites must stay within the permitted U.S.-based scope.

Administratively, this is a discretionary grant opportunity under the NIH, listed under CFDA number 93.279, with an original closing date of September 29, 2020, and a creation date of August 15, 2017. The notice does not specify an award ceiling or expected number of awards in the provided text, which is consistent with access-focused mechanisms where the primary purpose is facilitating use of a shared resource rather than distributing large research budgets. Overall, the program is best understood as a pathway for researchers to tap into an established national tobacco-use study, combine biospecimen-based biomarker work with detailed survey and health outcome data, and produce findings that can inform public health understanding and tobacco-related policy and regulation.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Biospecimen Access (X01)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.279.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-08-15.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2020-09-29. (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.

Apply for PAR 17 458

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