This program announcement must be read in conjunction with the General Application Instructions, version CD26_01.

Program Announcement for the Defense Health Agency

Spinal Cord Injury Research Program

Translational Research Award

Funding Opportunity Number: HT942526SCIRPTRA

Pre-Application Due: August 03, 2026

Application Due: November 12, 2026 https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01

FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 2

Content

Before You Begin 3

Basic Information Summarizes the funding opportunity, funding details, submission deadlines and review dates

Eligibility Details eligibility factors for the applicant organization and Principal Investigator

Program Description Describes the program mission and intent of the Translational Research Award; provides key award information and considerations; and outlines funding details

Application Contents Presents the two-step application process and instructions for preparing a pre-application and full application

Submission Requirements Provides locations for application packages, instructions for submitting pre-applications and full applications, and describes application verification

Application Review Information Outlines the processes for application compliance review, pre-application and full application selection/notification, and risk assessment. Also, details the review criteria for pre-application screening and both tiers of the CDMRP application review process – Peer Review and Programmatic Review

Federal Award Notices Outlines what a successful applicant can expect if recommended for funding

Post-Award Requirements References policy requirements for funded research; outlines reporting requirements and restrictions related to Principal Investigator changes and institutional award transfers

Other Information Outlines criteria for administrative actions including application rejection, modification, withdrawal and withhold

Appendix 1 Includes a checklist for all full application components to facilitate application submission

Appendix 2 Acronym List

FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 3

Before You Begin

• Active SAM.gov, eBRAP.org and Grants.gov registrations are required for application submission. User registration for each of these websites can take several weeks or longer.

Each applicant must ensure their registrations are active and up to date prior to application preparation.

• Read this funding opportunity announcement in the order it is written before beginning to prepare application materials. It is the responsibility of the applicant to determine whether the proposed research meets the intent of this funding opportunity and that all parties meet eligibility requirements.

• To support application preparation, additional resources are available including an application process FAQ, a Guide for Intragovernmental & Intramural Applicants and a CDMRP Video Series detailing the application process.

Who to Contact for Support

This document uses internal links; you can go back to where you were by pressing the Alt + left arrow keys (Windows) or command + left arrow keys (Macintosh) on your keyboard.

Click to be taken to additional guidance and instructions within the General Application Instructions (GAI).

eBRAP Help Desk

301-682-5507 help@eBRAP.org

Questions regarding funding opportunity submission requirements, as well as technical assistance related to pre-application or intramural application submission.

Grants.gov Support Center

800-518-4726 International: 1-606-545-5035 support@grants.gov

Questions regarding Grants.gov registration and Workspace.

https://sam.gov/ https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/index.htm https://grants.gov/register https://cdmrp.health.mil/#:~:text=Frequently%20Asked%20Questions%20%C2%BB https://cdmrp.health.mil/#:~:text=Guide%20for%20Intragovernmental%20%26%20Intramural%20Applicants https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/Program.htm#:~:text=Journey%20of%20an,Tier%20Review%20Process mailto:help@eBRAP.org mailto:support@grants.gov https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01

Section Shortcuts Basic Information | Eligibility | Program Description | Application Contents and Format | Submission Requirements

Application Review Information | Federal Award Notices | Post-Award Requirements | Other Information

FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 4

1. Basic Information About the Funding Opportunity

Summary: The fiscal year 2026 (FY26) Spinal Cord Injury Research Program (SCIRP) Translational Research Award (TRA) supports translational research that will accelerate the movement of promising ideas in spinal cord injury (SCI) research into clinical applications.

Distinctive Features:

• This funding opportunity contains an Early-Career Partnership Option, which allows for two principal investigators (PIs). If this option is selected, at least one of the named PIs must be an early-career investigator. Only the initiating PI will submit a pre-application, but all PIs will need to submit full applications. The partnering PI’s application is an abbreviated package specific to their distinct portion of the research project. If recommended for funding, each PI will be named on a separate award to the recipient organization(s). Be advised, all associated applications for a research project may be withdrawn if the initiating or partnering application is rejected or administratively withdrawn.

• Applications to this funding opportunity must name at least one SCI community partner (e.g., SCI Lived-Experience Consultant, representative of community-based organizations) who will provide advice and consultation throughout the planning and implementation of the research project.

• **NEW for FY26** An investigator may be named on only one FY26 SCIRP TRA application as a PI.

Funding Details: The Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) expects to allot roughly $8.32M to fund approximately 4 Translational Research Award applications with total cost caps of $2.0M for a Single PI, or $2.16M for the Early-Career Partnership Option, per award. The maximum period of performance is 3 years. It is anticipated that awards made from this FY26 funding opportunity will be funded with FY26 funds, which will expire for use on September 30, 2032. Awards supported with FY26 funds will be made no later than September 30, 2027.

Submission and Review Dates and Times

• Pre-Application (Preproposal) Submission Deadline: 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET), August 03, 2026

• Invitation to Submit an Application: September 18, 2026

• Application Submission Deadline: 11:59 p.m. ET, November 12, 2026

• End of Application Verification Period: 5:00 p.m. ET, November 16, 2026

• Peer Review: January 2027

• Programmatic Review: March 2027

Announcement Type: Initial

Funding Opportunity Number: HT942526SCIRPTRA

Assistance Listing Number: 12.420

Basic Information | Eligibility | Program Description | Application Contents and Format | Submission Requirements

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FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 5

2. Eligibility Information

2.1. Eligible Applicants

2.1.1. Organization

Extramural and intramural U.S. Department of War (DOW) organizations are eligible to apply, including foreign and domestic organizations, for-profit and nonprofit organizations, and public or private entities.

2.1.2. Principal Investigator

Investigators affiliated with an eligible organization are eligible to be named Principal Investigator (PI) on the application, regardless of ethnicity, nationality or citizenship status.

An investigator may be named on only one fiscal year 2026 (FY26) Spinal Cord Injury Research Program (SCIRP) Translational Research Award (TRA) application as a PI.

Single PI Option: Independent investigators at all career levels may be named by the organization as the PI on the application.

Early-Career Partnership Option: If this option is selected, at least one of the named PIs (Initiating or Partnering) must be an investigator with at least three years' research experience (independent or non-independent) beyond a terminal degree but no more than seven years within their first faculty appointment, or equivalent independent research position (excluding time spent on family medical leave). Lapses in research time or appointments as denoted in the biographical sketch should be explained in the application. The other PI (Initiating or Partnering) may be an independent investigator at any career level.

2.2. Cost Sharing

Cost sharing is not an eligibility requirement.

2.3. Other

Awards are made to eligible organizations, not to individuals. Refer to the GAI for additional recipient qualification requirements.

https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Content_Form_Full_App_Submission:~:text=pre%2Dapplication%20submission.-,Extramural%20Organization%3A,-A%20foreign%20or https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Definition_List:~:text=Intramural%20DOW%20Organization%3A%20A%20subset%20of%20intragovernmental%20organizations%3B%20refers%20specifically%20to%20DOW%20organizations%2C%20including%20DOW%20laboratories%2C%20DOW%20military%20treatment%20facilities%2C%20and/or%20DOW%20activities%20embedded%20within%20a%20civilian%20medical%20center.

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3. Program Description

The Defense Health Agency Contracting Activity (DHACA) is soliciting applications to this funding opportunity using delegated authority provided by United States Code, Title 10, Section 4001 (10 USC 4001). The CDMRP is the program office managing this FY26 funding opportunity as part of the Spinal Cord Injury Research Program (SCIRP). The CDMRP is located within the Defense Health Agency Research and Development (DHA R&D), which is a part of the Department of Defense, DOD, herein referred to using the secondary title Department of War, DOW. Congress initiated the SCIRP in 2009 to provide support for traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI)-related research of exceptional scientific merit that has the potential to make a significant impact on improving the health and well-being of military Service Members, Veterans, and other individuals living with SCI. Appropriations for the SCIRP from FY09 through FY25 totaled $477.85 million (M). The FY26 appropriation is $33M.

Mission of the SCIRP: To fund research and encourage interdisciplinary collaborations for the development and translation of more effective strategies to improve the health and well-being of Service Members, Veterans, and other individuals with spinal cord injury

Vision of the SCIRP: Advance the treatment and management of spinal cord injury and ameliorate its consequences

The FY26 SCIRP challenges the scientific community to design research that will advance the development, translation and ultimate adoption of health care solutions for people living with SCI, their families and/or care partners. The SCIRP encourages impactful and well-reasoned research across the continuum of care, at time of injury and throughout the lifespan.

Additionally, to ensure alignment with current program priorities, applicants to SCIRP funding opportunities should consider the following:

• Innovative research that investigates new directions or addresses neglected issues in the field of traumatic SCI is supported, although studies focused exclusively on identifying intervention targets are discouraged.

• Mechanism-focused studies must be specific to SCI and demonstrate a clear path from increased understanding to advancing treatments.

• Applications proposing interventions must demonstrate a clinically feasible window for treatment and more than incremental improvement over existing therapies.

• Studies addressing critical questions essential for advancing research toward clinical use, such as study population selection, dosing and safety are allowable.

• Applications from investigators within the DOW and applications involving multidisciplinary collaborations among academia, industry, the DOW, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and other federal government agencies are highly encouraged. These relationships can leverage knowledge, infrastructure and access to unique clinical populations that the collaborators bring to the research effort, ultimately advancing research that is significant to Service Members, Veterans, their Families and the American Public.

3.1. Program Priority Areas With Programmatic Goals

For FY26, the SCIRP identified near-term and long-term programmatic goals for program-supported research outcomes and products, which align to four key priority areas within the SCI field. Research supported by the FY26 SCIRP must address at least one of the program priority areas and undertake an associated near-team programmatic goal listed below.

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FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 7

Additionally, applicants will be asked to describe the steps the research team will take to further advance the project’s outcome(s)/product(s) in accordance with the long-term programmatic goal of the same priority area.

Priority Area: Acute Injury Intervention

• Near-Term Goal: Develop and/or test interventions, e.g., surgical, device, pharmacologic, that protect spinal cord tissue from further damage shortly after injury and can be administered on a timeline suitable for acute trauma care in both battlefield and civilian settings.

• Long-Term Goal: Adoption of management/stabilization practices into the standard of care for acute spinal cord injury, leading to meaningfully improved outcomes within the prehospital, hospital or deployed environments.

Priority Area: Secondary Health Effects

• Near-Term Goal: Develop and/or test interventions to prevent or manage the secondary health effects of spinal cord injury that impact injury survivors throughout their lifespan.

• Long-Term Goal: Adoption of interventions into the standard of care that significantly reduce the burden of secondary health effects and improve the lifelong health of SCI survivors.

Priority Area: Psychosocial Well-Being

• Near-Term Goal: Develop and/or test psychosocial interventions that are specifically tailored to the unique needs of individuals with SCI, their families and/or care partners.

• Long-Term Goal: Adoption of interventions into the standard of care that promote psychosocial well-being for people with SCI, their families and/or care partners.

Priority Area: Rehabilitation and Regeneration

• Near-Term Goal: Develop and/or test rehabilitation, regenerative, or neuroplastic interventions for individuals with spinal cord injury that can be implemented at any stage of life post-injury.

• Long-Term Goal: Adoption of validated rehabilitation and regenerative therapies into the standard of care that meaningfully improve function, independence, and quality of life after

SCI.

3.2. Award History

The SCIRP Translational Research Award mechanism was first offered in FY12. Since then, 291 TRA applications were received, and 66 were recommended for funding.

3.3. Intent of the Translational Research Award

The SCIRP TRA is intended to support translational research that will accelerate the movement of promising ideas into clinical applications for the SCI community. This funding opportunity supports a range of studies, including preclinical evaluation of interventions and clinical studies involving human subjects, tissues or data. The TRA also supports projects that optimize future trial designs, ancillary studies for existing clinical trials and research that leverages clinical observations to refine preclinical evaluation.

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FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 8

The overarching goal of this funding mechanism is to bridge the gap between discovery and clinical application by supporting well-developed research with a clear and direct pathway to advancing meaningful improvements in care and quality of life for people living with SCI, their families or care partners.

3.3.1. Key Elements for the TRA

• Impact: Applications must articulate how the proposed research will advance at least one of the FY26 SCIRP priority areas and help achieve its associated near-term programmatic goal identified in Section 3.1

• Translational Potential: Applications need to clearly articulate three points along the translational research spectrum:

○ Where the field is now

○ Where the field will be after the successful completion of the proposed research project

○ What the next step will be after completion of the proposed project

• Early-Career Partnership Option: To promote enhanced research capacity within the SCI field, the FY26 TRA includes an option specifically for partnership with or among early-career investigators. The Partnership Option is structured to accommodate two PIs who will work together on a single research project. One PI will be identified as the Initiating PI and will be responsible for the majority of the administrative tasks associated with application submission. The other PI will be identified as a Partnering PI. At least one of the PIs (Initiating or Partnering) must be an early-career investigator. Both PIs should contribute significantly to the development and execution of the proposed research project. If recommended for funding, each PI will be named on a separate award to the recipient organization(s). Each award will be subject to separate reporting, regulatory, and administrative requirements. For individual submission requirements for the Initiating and Partnering PIs, refer to Section 5.3, Submission Instructions.

• Community-Informed Research: Research funded by the FY26 SCIRP TRA must be responsive to the needs of people with SCI, their families, and/or their care partners. To this end, applicants are encouraged to leverage patient perspectives research to inform the proposed research question or study design.

Furthermore, research teams are also required to establish and utilize effective and equitable partnerships with SCI lived-experience community members to maximize the translation and impact potential of the proposed research. Applications to the FY26 SCIRP TRA are expected to name at least one community partner (e.g., SCI Lived-Experience Consultant, representative of community-based organizations) who will provide advice and consultation throughout the planning and implementation of the research project. For additional resources, see Community Collaboration below.

3.3.2. Other Important Considerations for the TRA

Allowable Research: Applications to the FY26 SCIRP TRA may include clinical or preclinical research. Proposal of animal studies is not a required element of this mechanism, though applications including animal studies must include a clear justification for the animal model chosen, including relevance to human SCI.

In accordance with the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, Section 732, CDMRP does not support the conduct of painful research (U.S. Department of Agriculture pain https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Definition_List:~:text=considered%20clinical%20trials.-,Clinical%20Research,-%3A%20For%20the

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FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 9 category D or E) involving domestic cats or dogs, except for studies relating to military or service animals.

The FY26 SCIRP TRA also allows funding for a pilot clinical trial as PART of the funded research project where limited clinical testing of a novel intervention or device is necessary to inform the next step in the continuum of translational research. Such pilot clinical trial studies should be small, make up only a portion of the proposed Statement of Work (SOW), and be utilized to establish feasibility of a potential approach or to aid in device or intervention refinement. Applications that include a pilot clinical trial as part of the proposed research will have additional submission requirements and review criteria.

Applications that consist entirely of a clinical trial or multiple trials, or foundational research, should consider other FY26 SCIRP funding opportunities that may be more appropriate for such research.

If the proposed research relies on access to unique resources or databases, the application must describe the access at the time of submission and include a plan for maintaining access as needed throughout the proposed research.

All projects should adhere to a core set of standards for rigorous study design and reporting to maximize the reproducibility and translational potential of clinical and preclinical research, such as those described in the STROBE, CONSORT, SPIRIT and ARRIVE 2.0 guidelines.

Use of Common Data Elements (CDEs): Use of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke SCI CDEs is strongly encouraged for all human subjects research.

Relevance to Military Health: To help elucidate the realities of treating and managing SCIs while in a deployed environment, a resource document is now available that outlines Spinal Cord Injury Management within the Military Health System (MHS). Applicants are encouraged to read and consider this document before preparing applications. Furthermore, applicants are encouraged to integrate and/or align their research projects with DOW and/or VA research laboratories and programs. Collaboration with the DOW and/or VA is also encouraged. A list of websites that may be useful in identifying additional information about ongoing DOW and VA areas of research interest or potential opportunities for collaboration can be found in Appendix 10 of the GAI.

Community Collaboration: Collaborative research approaches, such as community-based participatory research, participatory action research, and integrated knowledge transition, create partnerships between scientific researchers and community members to create knowledge useable by both sets of stakeholders. Recognizing the strengths of each partner, scientific researchers and community members collaborate and contribute equitably in all aspects of the project, which may include needs assessment, planning, research intervention design, implementation, evaluation and dissemination. Collaborative research approaches feature shared responsibility and ownership for the research project to ensure non-tokenistic involvement of community members within the research team. Research results are jointly interpreted, disseminated, fed back to affected communities, and may be translated into interventions or policy. These methods are critically important for community-level interventions and can also have important impacts on translational research and prototype development to identify and augment the potential impact of a research program on people living with SCI, their families and/or their care partners.

Collaborative relationships with consumers and the lived-experience community are often established through integrating community members into research teams as co-researchers, advisors and/or consultants. Some examples for implementing collaborative research approaches include:

https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Definition_List:~:text=or%20hardware%20procurement.-,Clinical%20Trial%3A,-As%20defined%20in https://cdmrp.health.mil/funding/scirp https://www.strobe-statement.org/ https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-025-03635-5#:~:text=SPIRIT%20and%20CONSORT%20are%20evidence,relevant%20empirical%20evidence%20where%20possible https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-025-03668-w?fromPaywallRec=false https://arriveguidelines.org/arrive-guidelines https://commondataelements.ninds.nih.gov/cde-catalog https://cdmrp.health.mil/scirp/pdfs/Beginner's%20Guide%20to%20Military%20Health%20System.pdf https://cdmrp.health.mil/scirp/pdfs/Beginner's%20Guide%20to%20Military%20Health%20System.pdf https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#DOW_AND_VA_WEBSITES https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#DOW_AND_VA_WEBSITES

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FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 10

• Lived-Experience Consultation: The research team includes at least one project advisor with lived SCI experience who will provide advice and consultation throughout the planning and implementation of the research project. Lived-Experience Consultants may include individuals with SCI, their family members and/or their care partners.

• Partnership With a Community-Based Organization: The research team establishes partnerships with at least one community-based organization that provides advice and consultation throughout the planning and implementation of the research project.

Community-based organizations may include advocacy groups, service providers, policymakers or other formal organizational stakeholders.

• Community Advisory Board Utilization: A community advisory board is composed of multiple community stakeholders and can take many forms, from a board of Lived- Experience Consultants to a coalition of community-based organizations or any combination thereof. As with Lived-Experience Consultants and organizational partners, the community advisory board provides advice and consultation throughout planning and implementation of the research project.

Additional information on collaborative research approaches can be found here:

• Wallerstein, N. and B. Duran. 2010. Community-based participatory research contributions to intervention research: The intersection of science and practice to improve health equity. American Journal of Public Health 100(S1):S40- S46. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2009.184036.

• Gainforth, H.L., F. Hoekstra, R. McKay, et al. 2021. Integrated knowledge translation guiding principles for conducting and disseminating spinal cord injury research in partnership. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation 102(4):656-663.

doi: 10.1016/j.apmr.2020.09.393.

3.4. Funding Instrument

The funding instrument for awards made under the program announcement will be grants

(31 USC 6304).

3.5. Funding Details

Period of Performance: The maximum period of performance is 3 years.

3.5.1. Application Submissions With a Single PI

Cost Cap: The application’s total costs budgeted for the entire period of performance should not exceed $2.0M.

3.5.2. Application Submissions With the Early-Career Partnership Option:

Cost Cap: The combined total costs budgeted for the entire period of performance in the applications of the Initiating PI and the Partnering PI should not exceed $2.16M.

A separate award will be made to each PI’s organization.

The PIs are expected to be partners in the research, and direct cost funding should be divided accordingly unless otherwise warranted and clearly justified.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2837458/pdf/S40.pdf https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2837458/pdf/S40.pdf https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2837458/pdf/S40.pdf https://www.archives-pmr.org/action/showPdf?pii=S0003-9993%2820%2931155-2 https://www.archives-pmr.org/action/showPdf?pii=S0003-9993%2820%2931155-2 https://www.archives-pmr.org/action/showPdf?pii=S0003-9993%2820%2931155-2 https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Recipient_Qualification_Restriction_Info:~:text=Period%20of%20Performance%3A%20The%20time%20interval%20between%20the%20start%20of%20a%20federal%20award%20and%20the%20planned%20end%20date.

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Any application that requests the higher level of funding and that does not include an eligible early-career PI will have its budget reduced as appropriate.

3.5.3. For Both Options Within This Award Mechanism

If indirect cost rates have been negotiated, indirect costs are to be budgeted in accordance with the organization’s negotiated rate. Collaborating organizations should budget associated indirect costs in accordance with each organization’s negotiated rate.

All direct and indirect costs of any subaward or contract must be included in the direct costs of the primary award.

The applicant may request the entire maximum funding amount for a project that may have a period of performance less than the maximum 3 years.

The appropriateness of the budget for the proposed research will be assessed during peer review.

Direct Cost Restrictions: For this award mechanism, direct costs:

May be requested for (not all-inclusive):

• Data and research resource sharing costs.

• Costs associated with collaborative research approach (e.g., consultant costs, equitable participation training, capacity-building activities).

• Research subject compensation and reimbursement for trial-related out-of-pocket costs (e.g., travel, lodging, parking, costs associated with caregiving and resources/equipment to enable participation).

• Travel in support of multi-institutional collaborations.

• Costs for one investigator, per award, to travel to one scientific/technical meeting per year.

The intent of travel to scientific/technical meetings should be to present project information or disseminate project results from the FY26 SCIRP TRA.

Must not be requested for:

• Costs for travel to scientific/technical meeting(s) beyond the limits stated above.

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4. Application Contents and Format

4.1. Application Overview

Application submission is a two-step process requiring both a pre-application submitted via the Electronic Biomedical Research Application Portal (eBRAP) and a full application submitted through eBRAP or Grants.gov. Depending on the submission portal, certain aspects of the application will differ.

Intramural DOW organizations submitting a full application should follow instructions for submission through eBRAP.

Extramural organizations submitting a full application must follow instructions for submission through Grants.gov.

4.2. Pre-Application Components

The PI, or Initiating PI if selecting the Early-Career Partnership Option, must submit the following pre-application components.

Upload documents as individual PDF files unless otherwise noted. Files must comply with the formatting guidelines listed in the GAI.

• Preproposal Narrative (two-page limit): The Preproposal Narrative page limit applies to text and non-text elements (e.g., figures, tables, graphs, photographs, diagrams, chemical structures, drawings) used to describe the project. Inclusion of URLs that provide additional information to expand the Preproposal Narrative and could confer an unfair competitive advantage is prohibited and may result in administrative withdrawal of the pre-application.

The Preproposal Narrative should include the following:

○ Background/Rationale: State the scientific rationale on which the proposed research project is based. Clearly demonstrate that there is sufficient rationale, background data and readiness to support the study. Indicate how the research question or study design is informed by the lived-experience community and/or patient perspectives research.

○ Specific Aims and Study Design: Concisely state the project’s specific aims and describe the scientific approach to address them. Include the animal model proposed, if applicable, along with its relevance to human SCI. If applicable, clearly identify which aims describe the proposed preclinical or clinical studies and which describe the pilot clinical trial. Describe how the outcome of the pilot clinical trial will optimize the design of future clinical trials or inform the next step in the continuum of translational research.

Translation Potential: Explain how the project will accelerate promising laboratory research findings into clinical applications. Where applicable, describe how the proposed research will allow for a reciprocal flow of ideas between basic and clinical science.

In addition to any specific regulatory milestones (e.g., submission of an application for an Investigational New Drug/Investigational Device Exemption [IND/IDE]), clearly articulate the following three points along the translational research spectrum:

– Where the field is now https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/index.htm https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#Appendix2:~:text=APPENDIX%202.%0AFORMATTING%20GUIDELINES https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Full_App_Submission_Grants:~:text=IV.%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%20FULL%20APPLICATION%20SUBMISSION%20THROUGH%20GRANTS.GOV https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Full_App_Submission_eBRAP:~:text=V.%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%20FULL%20APPLICATION%20SUBMISSION%20THROUGH%20eBRAP

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– Where the field will be after the successful completion of the proposed research project

– What the next step will be after completion of the proposed project

○ Impact: Describe the potential impact of the proposed research on at least one of the FY26 priority areas. Indicate how the proposed research will help to achieve a near-term programmatic goal identified in Section 3.1.

○ Relevance to Military Health: Describe whether/how the proposed research project is applicable to spinal cord-injured military Service Members, Veterans, and/or their Family members and care partners. Applicants are encouraged to review the Relevance to Military Health section of this program announcement prior to preparing this section.

• Pre-Application Supporting Documentation: The items to be included as supporting documentation for the pre-application must be uploaded as individual files and are limited to the following:

○ References Cited (one-page limit): List the references cited (including URLs if available) in the Preproposal Narrative using a standard reference format that includes the full citation (i.e., author[s], year published, reference title, and reference source, including volume, chapter, page numbers, and publisher, as appropriate).

○ List of Abbreviations, Acronyms and Symbols: Provide a list of abbreviations, acronyms, and symbols used in the Preproposal Narrative.

4.3. Full Application Components

Applicants must receive an invitation to submit a full application. Uninvited full application submissions will be rejected.

Early-Career Partnership Option: The CDMRP requires separate full application package submissions for the Initiating PI and Partnering PI, even if the PIs are located within the same organization. The application submission process for the Partnering PI uses an abbreviated full application package.

4.3.1. Full Application Components for the PI or Initiating PI

Each application submission must include the completed full application package for this program announcement. See Appendix 1 for a checklist of the full application components.

(a) SF424 Research & Related Application for Federal Assistance Form (Grants.gov submissions only):

IMPORTANT: When completing the SF424 R&R, enter the eBRAP log number assigned during pre-application submission into Block 4a – Federal Identifier.

(b) Attachments:

Each attachment of the full application components must be uploaded as an individual file in the format specified and in accordance with the formatting guidelines in the GAI.

○ Attachment 1: Project Narrative (12-page limit): Upload as “ProjectNarrative.pdf”.

Describe the proposed project in detail using one of the two outlines below, depending on whether or not a pilot clinical trial is included in the proposed research.

https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Recipient_Qualification_Restriction_Info:~:text=APPENDIX%202.%0AFORMATTING%20GUIDELINES https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Recipient_Qualification_Restriction_Info:~:text=(a)%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%C2%A0%20SF424%20(R%26R)%20%E2%80%93%20Application%20for%20Federal%20Assistance%20Form https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Recipient_Qualification_Restriction_Info:~:text=%C2%B7-,Project%20Narrative%3A,-Attach%20as%20%E2%80%9CProjectNarrative

Basic Information | Eligibility | Program Description | Application Contents and Format | Submission Requirements

Application Review Information | Federal Award Notices | Post-Award Requirements | Other Information

FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 14

Outline for projects without a pilot clinical trial:

– Background: Present the ideas and scientific reasoning behind the proposed research project. Provide a review and analysis of relevant literature and completed/ongoing studies, including preliminary studies, preclinical data and community/patient perspectives research as appropriate. If applicable, discuss how the proposed project builds off previous research efforts. This section should establish the relevance of the study and explain the applicability of the proposed findings to the SCI community and at least one of the FY26 SCIRP Program Priorities and associated near-term goal.

– Objectives/Specific Aims/Hypotheses: Describe the purpose of the proposed study with detailed objectives. State the hypothesis/research question to be tested and detail the specific aims that will address the hypothesis/research question. Only describe aims that the SCIRP award would fund.

– Study Design and Feasibility: Describe the research strategy, methods, and analyses, including controls, in sufficient detail for evaluation of their appropriateness and feasibility. Describe how the study is designed to achieve the project aims.

Consult appropriate guidelines to ensure relevant aspects of rigorous and reproducible research are adequately planned for and, ultimately, reported. Address potential problem areas, and present alternative methods and approaches where appropriate. Indicate whether and how the study design is informed by the lived-experience community and/or patient perspectives research.

As appropriate, describe the statistical model and data analysis plan with respect to the study objectives. If applicable, include power analysis calculations. Further information describing the strategy for how sex will be considered as a biological variable will be requested in Attachment 2.

If applicable, briefly describe the use of animal model(s) within the study. Include a rationale for the choice of animal model and the model’s relevance to human SCI.

Full details will be required in the Animal Research Plan (Attachment 10).

If human subjects or human anatomical samples or data will be used, include a detailed plan for the recruitment of subjects or the acquisition of samples or data, including evidence that the research team has access to subjects, samples and/or data. Describe the strategy for the inclusion of women and minorities appropriate to the objectives of the study, including a description of the composition of the proposed study population in terms of sex, racial, and ethnic group, and an accompanying rationale for the selection of subjects. Anticipated enrollment table(s) with the proposed enrollment distributed on the basis of sex, race and ethnicity should be provided as part of the application’s Supporting Documentation (Attachment 2).

If applicable, describe the SCI CDEs to be collected.

– Study Personnel Description: Briefly describe the composition of the study team along with any external consultants or advisors who will provide critical guidance and input to the study team (e.g., statistician, regulatory expert, commercialization consultant, clinical ethicist, patient advocate). Describe relevant background and qualifications that demonstrate appropriate expertise to accomplish the proposed work, including previous interactions with the relevant Regulatory Agency, if applicable. Highlight how the study team composition provides military-relevant subject matter expertise to the proposed research, if applicable.

Basic Information | Eligibility | Program Description | Application Contents and Format | Submission Requirements

Application Review Information | Federal Award Notices | Post-Award Requirements | Other Information

FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 15

Outline for projects with a pilot clinical trial:

– Background: Present the ideas and scientific reasoning behind the proposed research project. Provide a review and analysis of relevant literature and completed/ ongoing studies, including preliminary studies, preclinical data and community/ patient perspectives research as appropriate. If applicable, discuss how the proposed project builds off previous research efforts. This section should establish the relevance of the study and explain the applicability of the proposed findings to the SCI community and at least one of the FY26 SCIRP Program Priorities and associated near-term goal.

– Objectives/Specific Aims/Hypotheses: Describe the purpose of the proposed study with detailed objectives. State the hypothesis/research question to be tested and detail the specific aims that will address the hypothesis/research question. Only describe aims that the SCIRP award would fund.

– Study Design and Feasibility: Describe the research strategy, methods and analyses, including controls, in sufficient detail for evaluation of their appropriateness and feasibility. Describe how the study is designed to achieve the project aims.

Consult appropriate guidelines to ensure relevant aspects of rigorous and reproducible research are adequately planned for and, ultimately, reported. Address potential problem areas, and present alternative methods and approaches where appropriate. Indicate whether and how the study design is informed by the lived-experience community and/or patient perspectives research.

As appropriate, describe the statistical model and data analysis plan with respect to the study objectives. If applicable, include power analysis calculations. Further information describing the strategy for how sex will be considered as a biological variable will be requested in Attachment 2.

If applicable, briefly describe the use of animal model(s) within the study. Include a rationale for the choice of animal model and the model’s relevance to human SCI.

Full details will be required in the Animal Research Plan (Attachment 10).

If human subjects or human anatomical samples or data will be used, include a detailed plan for the recruitment of subjects or the acquisition of samples or data, including evidence that the research team has access to subjects, samples and/or data. Describe the strategy for the inclusion of women and minorities appropriate to the objectives of the study, including a description of the composition of the proposed study population in terms of sex, racial, and ethnic group, and an accompanying rationale for the selection of subjects. Anticipated enrollment table(s) with the proposed enrollment distributed on the basis of sex, race and ethnicity should be provided as part of the application’s Supporting Documentation (Attachment 2).

If applicable, describe the SCI CDEs to be collected.

– Pilot Clinical Trial: Provide plans for initiating and conducting the pilot clinical trial during the course of this award. Further details of the pilot clinical trial will be required in Attachment 12.

Briefly identify the intervention. Describe the type of clinical trial to be performed and outline the proposed methodology. Alternative trial designs to traditional randomized clinical trials are supported by this funding mechanism. Explain how the study design is appropriate to the objective of the trial. Describe potential challenges and alternative strategies where appropriate.

Basic Information | Eligibility | Program Description | Application Contents and Format | Submission Requirements

Application Review Information | Federal Award Notices | Post-Award Requirements | Other Information

FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 16

Describe how the pilot clinical trial is clearly linked to the preclinical or clinical research studies that will also be performed through this award.

Include a description of how the proposed work is responsive to the intent of the FY26 SCIRP TRA and includes only exploratory clinical testing of a novel intervention or device necessary to inform the next step in the continuum of translational research. Describe how the pilot clinical study is small, represents only a portion of the proposed SOW (Attachment 5), and will be utilized to establish feasibility of a potential approach or to aid in device, intervention or future clinical trial design refinement.

Study Personnel Description: Briefly describe the composition of the study team along with any external consultants or advisors who will provide critical guidance and input to the study team (e.g., statistician, regulatory expert, commercialization consultant, clinical ethicist, patient advocate). Describe relevant background and qualifications that demonstrate appropriate expertise to accomplish the proposed work, including previous interactions with the relevant Regulatory Agency, if applicable. Highlight how the study team composition provides military-relevant subject matter expertise to the proposed research, if applicable

○ Attachment 2: Supporting Documentation: Combine and upload as a single file named “Support.pdf”.

There are no page limits for these components unless otherwise noted. Include only components described below; inclusion of items not requested or viewed as an extension of the Project Narrative will result in the removal of those items or may result in administrative withdrawal of the application.

References Cited: List the references cited in the Project Narrative using a standard reference format (include URLs, if available).

List of Abbreviations, Acronyms and Symbols: Provide a list of abbreviations, acronyms and symbols.

Facilities, Existing Equipment and Other Resources: Describe the facilities and equipment available for performance of the proposed project; include any additional facilities or equipment proposed for acquisition at no cost to the award. Indicate whether government-furnished facilities or equipment are proposed for use. If so, reference the original or present government award under which the facilities or equipment items are now accountable. There is not a standardized form for this information.

Publications and/or Patents: Include a list of relevant publication URLs and/or patent abstracts. If articles are not publicly available, then copies of up to five published manuscripts may be included in Attachment 2. Extra items will not be reviewed.

Regulatory Documentation (if applicable): For the purposes of this funding opportunity, Regulatory Agency refers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or any relevant international regulatory agency unless otherwise noted.

▪ For products/interventions that do not require regulation by a Regulatory Agency:

Provide evidence that the clinical trial does not require regulation by a Regulatory Agency. No further information for this attachment is required.

https://ebrap.org/eBRAP/public/gai.htm?version=CD26_01#_Recipient_Qualification_Restriction_Info:~:text=%C2%B7-,Supporting%20Documentation%3A,-Combine%20and%20attach

Basic Information | Eligibility | Program Description | Application Contents and Format | Submission Requirements

Application Review Information | Federal Award Notices | Post-Award Requirements | Other Information

FY26 Spinal Cord Injury Translational Research Award 17

▪ For products that require regulation by a Regulatory Agency:

If the product is not currently FDA-approved, -licensed, or -cleared and requires an IND/IDE or equivalent, provide documentation that supports the feasibility of acquiring an active IND or IDE (and/or international equivalent) for the product as appropriate for the objectives of the study. If available, provide a copy of the communication from the FDA indicating the IND or IDE application is active/safe to proceed.

Letters of Support (two-page limit per letter is recommended): Provide individual letters signed by collaborating individuals and/or organizational officials…