The ARDS, Pneumonia, and Sepsis (APS) Consortium is funded through a collaboration between the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and NIGMS. This large observational study will collect longitudinal data and biospecimens from approximately 4,000 adults hospitalized with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), pneumonia, or sepsis at over 20 hospitals in the United States. The scientific goal is to conduct analyses to gain greater understanding of the biological mechanisms underlying APS and, in particular, to link to well-defined clinical phenotypes.

UPDATE: This position is now closed.

We’re seeking a highly qualified scientist to serve as a program director in our Division of Pharmacology, Physiology, and Biological Chemistry (PPBC). This is a newly created position for the Division as it reorganizes into three Branches. Applicants should have significant interest and experience in the scientific areas comprising the newly formed Chemistry and Chemical Biology Branch. The purpose of the Branch is to foster meritorious research in chemical biology, synthetic biology, chemical catalysis and synthesis, carbohydrate chemistry, natural products, bioinorganic chemistry, and metabolic engineering. We seek candidates with cutting-edge skills and abilities who can complement existing Branch members.

We receive many questions from prospective applicants about getting NIGMS funding for their research: How do I know if my research fits within the scientific interests of NIGMS? What grant programs does the Institute offer? What are NIGMS' research priorities? Whom do I talk to—and when—to learn more?

This post will help to answer those questions. And because it’s the first post in a new series from our staff, think of it as a primer for your initial interactions with us.

UPDATE: The position is now closed.

We’re seeking a highly qualified scientist to serve as a branch chief in our Division of Pharmacology, Physiology, and Biological Chemistry (PPBC). This is a newly created position for the Division as it reorganizes into three branches. Applicants should have significant interest and experience in the scientific areas managed by the Division, which will continue to encompass all the existing research portfolios and will generally be arranged into branches covering physiology and clinical sciences, biochemistry and molecular pharmacology, and chemistry and chemical biology. For a listing of the current scientific topics, see the research areas entries under PPBC.

We want the research community to know about two funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) that NIGMS has joined as part of an NHLBI initiative to support the formation of a multisite study, the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), Pneumonia, and Sepsis Phenotyping (APS) Consortium. The study seeks to better define the heterogeneity underlying critical illness syndromes and to identify the mechanisms of illness development and recovery, as well as relationships and overlap between these syndromes. The FOAs are:

At the September meeting of our National Advisory Council, I presented a concept clearance for our next step in response to the recommendations of the working group on sepsis. The videocast of the presentation is now available.

Watch the sepsis concept clearance at the September Advisory Council meeting.