Centers Without Walls for Collaborative Research in the Epilepsies: Developing Transformative Therapies for Modifying or Preventing Epilepsy (U54) | RFA NS 16 012

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA NS 16 012

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) issued this funding opportunity, RFA-NS-16-012, to support a single Epilepsy Center without Walls (CWOW) under a U54 cooperative agreement mechanism. The central idea behind a "Center without Walls" is to fund a tightly coordinated, multi-site research program that functions like a unified center even though the participating investigators may be distributed across different institutions. The scientific focus is on collaborative preclinical and clinical research that directly positions the field to move potential therapies into translational and clinical development, with an emphasis on treatments that can modify the course of epilepsy (disease-modifying therapies) or prevent epilepsy from developing in the first place (antiepileptogenic or prevention approaches). In other words, the opportunity is not primarily about incremental symptom control; it is aimed at transformative strategies that change the underlying disease trajectory.

A key feature of the FOA is its explicit expectation of integrated work spanning the pipeline from discovery to clinical readiness. Applicants are expected to propose coordinated projects that connect mechanistic and preclinical studies with clinical research components that prepare interventions for human testing, such as identifying and validating targets, developing and qualifying biomarkers, improving patient stratification, and generating the kinds of evidence needed to justify and design clinical trials. Because it is a U54 cooperative agreement, NIH program staff typically have substantial involvement compared with a standard research grant, which usually means clearer milestones, active project oversight, and a strong emphasis on coordination, data sharing, and deliverables that can accelerate translation.

Beyond the lab and clinic, the FOA also highlights the importance of building community partnerships and resources to speed therapy development. This reflects the reality that successful epilepsy prevention or disease-modification research often depends on patient engagement, access to well-characterized cohorts, longitudinal follow-up, and practical infrastructure for recruitment and retention. Community-facing work might include developing shared resources that benefit the broader epilepsy community, strengthening relationships with advocacy groups or community organizations, and creating tools or networks that make it easier to move promising interventions into real-world clinical development. The intention is for the CWOW to act as a hub that not only generates data, but also reduces friction in the ecosystem that turns discoveries into therapies.

In terms of eligibility, NIH opened the competition broadly across many types of U.S.-based organizations. Eligible applicants include state, county, city/township, and 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; tribal organizations that are not federally recognized; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other entities. The FOA also explicitly calls out additional eligible applicant categories such as 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), eligible federal agencies, faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, Indian/Native American tribal governments other than federally recognized ones, and U.S. territories or possessions. At the same time, it draws a clear boundary around foreign participation: non-U.S. entities are not eligible to apply as the applicant organization, and non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply. However, foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed, which generally means a U.S. applicant may include certain justified international elements within the project under NIH rules.

Administratively, the opportunity falls under the NIH health research domain (Funding Activity Category: Health) and is associated with CFDA number 93.853. The award ceiling listed is $3,000,000, and the FOA anticipated making one award, reinforcing that NIH intended to fund a single center designed to operate as a flagship collaborative effort. The original closing date was March 8, 2016, and the FOA was created on September 24, 2015, so the listing reflects a historical competition rather than an open call today. Overall, the opportunity was designed to concentrate resources into one highly coordinated, milestone-driven consortium that could unify preclinical and clinical expertise, create community-connected infrastructure, and push the field toward therapies capable of preventing epilepsy or fundamentally changing its course.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Centers Without Walls for Collaborative Research in the Epilepsies: Developing Transformative Therapies for Modifying or Preventing Epilepsy (U54)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.853.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2015-09-24.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2016-03-08. (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 $3,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• 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.

Apply for RFA NS 16 012

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