Defense Health Program Research and Development Office: Cooperative Agreement for Restorative Transplantation Research

The FY12 RTR program challenges the scientific community to design innovative research that will foster new directions for and address neglected issues in the field of RTR-focused research. Applications from investigators within the military Services, and applications involving multidisciplinary collaborations among academia, industry, the military Services, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and other Federal Government agencies are highly encouraged. Though the RTR program supports groundbreaking research, all projects must demonstrate solid scientific rationale.

RTR, also known as reconstructive composite tissue allotransplantation or vascularized composite allotransplantation, is a maturing field. This laboratory research program will give special consideration to projects aimed at modifying or restructuring clinical practice guidelines and to projects intended to bring research findings rapidly into RTR clinical practice. The investigator(s) are encouraged to consider approaches utilized in solid organ transplantation for standardization of processes and protocols.

The intent of the FY12 RTR program is to promote multi-institutional, multidisciplinary partnerships among clinicians and basic scientists that accelerate the movement of promising ideas in reconstructive composite tissue transplantation into clinical applications. The Cooperative Agreement is intended to support both new and established scientists across a broad spectrum of disciplines in research projects that are likely to have a major impact on reconstructive composite tissue allotransplantation research. Leveraging already funded restorative transplantation (RT) procedures in order to investigate other aspects of the RTR knowledge base is encouraged. Applicants are also encouraged to demonstrate a portfolio of research projects representing a range of development stages.