NIGMS supports basic research that increases understanding of life processes and lays the foundation for advances in disease diagnosis, treatment and prevention. Most applications to NIGMS are not in response to a specific solicitation, but the Institute does fund research in several special areas, a selection of which appear below. For more information, see the complete list of all NIGMS research funding opportunities, programs and grant mechanisms.
AIDS-Related Structural Biology Program
Research focused on the basic structural, biophysical and cell biological investigation of HIV and its interaction with the host cell.
Cellular Imaging
Research that applies and develops imaging technologies to understand the underlying biology and dynamic processes of living cells.
Chemical Methodologies and Library Development
Centers that develop efficient, general, state-of-the-art methodologies for the design, synthesis, analysis and handling of chemical diversity libraries.
Clinical Research and Training Areas
General information on clinical studies and trials, plus specific research and training programs related to anesthesiology; clinical pharmacology; medical genetics; and trauma, burn, peri-operative injury and wound healing.
Collaborative Science
Glue grants promote large-scale collaborative approaches to solve complex problems in biomedical science. Administrative supplements for collaborative science enable NIGMS grantees to form new collaborations to support the goals of funded grants.
Mathematical Biology
Interagency program designed to bring mathematics into the core of biological research and to broaden the use of innovative mathematics in understanding life processes.
Models of Infectious Disease Agent Study
A collaboration of research and informatics groups to develop computational models that improve the detection, control and prevention of emerging infectious diseases, including those relevant to biodefense.
Pharmacogenomics Research Network
A nationwide collaboration of scientists studying the effect of genes on people’s responses to a wide variety of medicines.
Protein Structure Initiative
An effort to dramatically reduce the costs and lessen the time it takes to determine protein structures, with the ultimate goal of making it easy to obtain a protein's structure from its DNA sequence.
Stem Cell Initiatives
Initiatives to encourage and facilitate basic research on pluripotent stem cells, such as human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, including their use as model systems.
Systems Biology
Centers focused on systems-level studies of biomedical phenomena.