Purpose
The purpose of the Understanding the Rules of Life: Epigenetics (URoL:Epigenetics) program is to enable innovative research and to promote multidisciplinary education and workforce training in the broad area of epigenetics. The URoL:Epigenetics program is a wide collaboration across Directorates/Offices within the National Science Foundation with a focus on understanding the relationship between epigenetic mechanisms associated with environmental change, organismal phenotype, and resultant robustness and adaptability of organisms and populations.
Background
Understanding the Rules of Life (URoL): Predicting Phenotype is one of NSF’s 10 Big Ideas and is focused on predicting the set of observable characteristics (phenotype) from the genetic makeup of the individual and the nature of its environment. The development of new research tools has revolutionized our ability to manipulate and investigate the genome and to measure multiple aspects of biological, physical, and social environments. The opportunity now is to assimilate this new information into causal, mechanistic, and/or predictive relationships among the genomic and epigenetic makeup, the environmental experience, and the phenotypic characteristics of biological systems. These relationships are the basis for the Rules of Life – the theoretical constructs that explain and predict the characteristics of living systems, from molecular and sub-cellular components, to cells, whole organisms, communities and biomes.
The URoL:Epigenetics Program offers two submission tracks: Track 1 – for projects with a total budget of up to $500,000 and an award duration of up to 3 years, and Track 2 – for projects with a total budget of up to $3,000,000 and award duration of up to 5 year.
Estimated Number of Awards: 5 to 10
Anticipated Funding Amount: $12,000,000 to $15,000,000
Key Dates
Letter of Intent Due Date(s) (required) (due by 5 p.m. submitter’s local time): December 20, 2019
Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. submitter’s local time): February 06, 2020
URL for more information:
https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2020/nsf20512/nsf20512.pdf
Filed Under: Funding Opportunities