T Cell Reagent Resource for the Study of Allergic Diseases (U19) | RFA AI 16 027

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA AI 16 027

The T Cell Reagent Resource for the Study of Allergic Diseases (U19) funding opportunity (RFA-AI-16-027) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) cooperative agreement designed to build and apply specialized research tools that make it easier to study how T cells drive allergic disease. The central focus is on allergen epitope-specific T-cell responses, meaning the immune reactions triggered when T cells recognize specific, defined pieces (epitopes) of allergen proteins. The FOA supports projects that use allergen epitope-specific reagents to clarify how these T-cell responses contribute to both the development (pathogenesis) of allergic diseases and the way patients respond to treatment. In practical terms, the goal is to strengthen the field's ability to precisely track, measure, and interpret allergen-specific T-cell activity in humans and relevant models, with the broader aim of improving diagnosis, monitoring, and therapeutic strategies.

A key feature of this opportunity is its emphasis on expanding the catalog of known and usable T-cell epitopes across major allergen sources. In addition to supporting studies that leverage existing epitope-specific reagents, the FOA explicitly encourages novel T-cell epitope identification, characterization, and validation for important allergens that have not been previously studied in depth. This includes both food allergens (for example, proteins from common allergenic foods) and aeroallergens (such as pollens, molds, dust mites, or animal dander). The expectation is that applicants will not only discover new epitopes, but also rigorously validate them and develop or apply the kinds of reagents that allow consistent detection and functional analysis of epitope-specific T cells across studies. By doing so, the program aims to create a more standardized and broadly useful "reagent resource" that can be shared or replicated, reducing duplication of effort and enabling comparisons across research groups.

The mechanism is a U19 cooperative agreement, which signals substantial scientific or programmatic involvement by the NIH compared with a standard research project grant. U19 awards commonly support multi-project, collaborative research programs with coordinated aims, shared resources, and a structured plan for generating deliverables that serve the wider research community. In this context, that cooperative structure aligns with the FOA's resource-building purpose: applicants are generally expected to think beyond a single laboratory workflow and consider how resulting reagents, epitope maps, and validation data can be integrated into a coherent platform that accelerates the broader allergy research ecosystem.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity falls under the Health funding activity category and is listed under CFDA numbers 93.855 and 93.856. The original posting indicates a creation date of September 7, 2016, with an original closing date of March 3, 2017. The listed award ceiling is $600,000. While the source text does not specify the exact number of expected awards, the presence of an award ceiling and the cooperative agreement format suggests a program intended to support substantial, coordinated efforts rather than small, isolated projects.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of domestic institutions and organizations, reflecting NIH's typical openness to diverse performers when the scientific capacity and infrastructure are appropriate. Eligible applicants include state, county, city or township governments; 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; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; and a range of nonprofit organizations (both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3), excluding institutions of higher education in those nonprofit categories). The FOA also allows applications from for-profit organizations (other than small businesses) and small businesses, along with other applicant types as specified by NIH. In addition, the FOA explicitly calls out expanded or special categories of eligible applicants, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions; Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs); Hispanic-serving Institutions; Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs); Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs); Indian/Native American Tribal Governments that are not federally recognized; eligible federal government agencies; faith-based or community-based organizations; U.S. territories or possessions; regional organizations; and non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities, meaning foreign organizations can apply as well.

Overall, this FOA is about strengthening the scientific foundation needed to understand allergic disease at a highly specific immune-recognition level. By promoting the discovery and validation of previously understudied food and airborne allergen T-cell epitopes, and by encouraging the development and use of epitope-specific T-cell reagents, the program targets a persistent bottleneck in allergy immunology: the limited availability of standardized, high-confidence tools for pinpointing exactly which allergen fragments drive clinically meaningful T-cell responses, and how those responses change with disease progression or therapeutic intervention.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "T Cell Reagent Resource for the Study of Allergic Diseases (U19)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.855, 93.856.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2016-09-07.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2017-03-03. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $600,000.00 in funding.
• 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.

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