In which areas of biomedical research could novel alternative methods—in chemico strategies, in vitro methods, in silico computational models—provide investigators with new means to answer key research questions in ways that cannot be accomplished currently through traditional methods like animal models?
Respond to NIH’s Request for Information on Catalyzing the Development and Use of Novel Alternative Methods to Advance Biomedical Research if you have insights into the challenges and opportunities for developing and using novel alternative methods and ways that these models can serve as complementary tools to animal research. Specifically, NIH wants to hear about:
- The use of novel alternative methods to study human biology, circuits, systems, and disease states. What novel alternative methods:
- Are currently being developed and/or used successfully, including features that maximize scientific utility?
- Are advancing progress into understanding specific biological processes or human states, including potential limitations to addressing human variability?
- Could be truly revolutionary for understanding/treating human health, including currently underserved areas of biomedical research?
- Approaches for catalyzing the development and validation of novel alternative method technologies. To ensure rigor and translatability, what are:
- Challenges for building in robustness, replicability, reproducibility, and reliability of the technologies and the ensuing datasets?
- Strategies for bolstering technology readiness and reliability of these technologies?
- Factors potentially limiting the successful integration of these technologies across research approaches and potential solutions?
- Strategies for maximizing the research value of novel alternative method technologies. To facilitate uptake and translation, what are:
- Areas in which coordinated approaches across research disciplines or research sectors would dramatically advance the development and or use of these technologies?
- Approaches for sharing technology deployment equitably across labs, including incentives for reliable and reproducible methods integration?
- Factors for consideration when maximizing translatability and minimizing bias regarding human variability?
Watch a presentation summarizing NIH’s current thinking on novel alternative methods at Advisory Committee to the Director - June 2023 (Day 2). Beginning at 02:34:10 of the recording, Dr. Lyric Jorgenson and Dr. Howard Chang describe those areas of science with highest and lowest potential for novel alternative methods to bolster existing research strategies. Additionally, in late August, the working group will host a workshop to review progress and discuss potential high-priority areas—registration details will appear on the ACD Working Group webpage once available.
To be clear, the working group views both animal models and alternative methods as necessary to answer complex questions about human health and disease.
The deadline to respond to the request for information (RFI) is August 16, 2023, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Submit your response through the RFI Form on NIH’s Office of Science Policy website. Take care to not include any proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information.
Direct any questions to SciencePolicy@mail.nih.gov.