escribes the deliberations of the international scientific board, a 20-member panel of scientists and public health experts from 13 countries, including several from the developing world, which formulated the first 14 Grand Challenges (visit: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/302/5644/398.). According to the article, questions used to evaluate each proposed Grand Challenge included: Does the proposal describe a difficult and discrete roadblock to progress? What are the possible impacts on various diseases if the challenge is successfully met? Will envisioned advances be suitable for implementation in poorer parts of the world? The authors note that none of the goals or Grand Challenges addresses a single disease, in keeping with the initiative's goal to "identify underlying scientific and technical problems that impede progress against multiple disorders."

The FNIH now seeks grant proposals from the international scientific community for research on the 14 Grand Challenges. Grants will be awarded for up to a total of $20 million for a maximum five-year period. Applications are invited from every part of the world, from single or multiple institutions, both non-profit and for profit. To apply for a research grant, investigators must first submit a letter of intent; those that show the most promising and innovative research approaches will be invited to submit a formal grant proposal.

For more detailed information on the Grand Challenges initiative, including the full texts of the Grand Challenges and instructions on the grant submission process, visit http://www.grandchallengesgh.org.

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Contact: Charles Pucie
301-402-5311
NIH/Foundation for the National Institutes of Health
16-Oct-2003

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