University Of Texas Medical Branch At Galveston

The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (UTMB), a state-controlled academic health center within the University of Texas System, operates as a federal prime recipient and prime contractor delivering preclinical infectious disease research, animal model development, translational science training, and clinical trial services to federal agencies, with no set-aside designations. UTMB competes in full-and-open federal contracting and granting, not under SBA set-asides.

UTMB's federal footprint centers on high-containment infectious disease research, particularly preclinical modeling of viral pathogens and development of medical countermeasures. As a prime contractor, UTMB holds a single-award Basic Ordering Agreement (BOA) with the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery valued at $146.3 million, issued July 15, 2025, for preclinical testing services including small animal models, non-human primate models, alternative animal models, and specialized reagent generation. Recent delivery orders under this vehicle exemplify UTMB's core capability: a $6.285 million order (July 27, 2026) for screening candidate countermeasures for viral hemorrhagic fever using liver-based organ-on-a-chip microphysiological systems; a $5.699 million order (September 1, 2026) for development of Syrian golden hamster models to test medical countermeasures against Nipah virus; a $5.329 million order (September 15, 2026) for evaluation of therapeutics and vaccines in mouse models of dengue virus. All recent orders are priced on a cost-no-fee basis with performance in Galveston, Texas, and ultimate completion dates through 2029. UTMB self-performs the research using its own laboratory infrastructure and technical staff rather than relying on subcontracted delivery.

UTMB's federal grant portfolio is substantial and heavily concentrated in health research. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) dominates UTMB's customer base as a funding agency, with 305 awards carrying a combined potential value of $614.8 million, representing approximately 44% of the total award count and 52% of combined potential value across the top five customer agencies. Recent NIAID grant work includes a $807 thousand project grant (September 1, 2026, through August 31, 2031) supporting a comprehensive reference center for emerging viruses and arboviruses, maintaining over 9,000 virus strains across 21 families with distribution of reagents to researchers nationwide and rapid response capability during emergency outbreaks; a $1.31 million project grant (September 1, 2026, through July 31, 2031) investigating host-pathogen interactions in melioidosis caused by Burkholderia pseudomallei using bacterial pathogenesis, immunology, genomics, and translational research; and a $3.267 million project grant (June 1, 2026, through May 31, 2030) examining the apolipoprotein E-tau axis linking preeclampsia to Alzheimer's disease and related neurodegeneration through primary human trophoblast assays and pre-clinical humanized mouse models. Beyond infectious disease, UTMB recipients support research in neurodegenerative diseases, pediatric health, cancer, aging, and environmental health, with additional funding from the National Institute on Aging (109 awards), National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, Defense Health Agency, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Science Foundation.

UTMB operates as a prime recipient (81% of recent awards) and sub-recipient on federal grants (19%), reflecting its role as an executing research institution within larger multi-site or multi-PI consortia. As a subcontractor on federal grants, UTMB collaborates with Duke University, Emory University, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and other research institutions on projects spanning arenaviruses, HIV vaccine development, tuberculosis pathogenesis, and neurodegenerative disease. Across SCI-reportable federal service contracts (the strictest subset of federal service activity), UTMB invoiced $13.6 million in prime contract labor across FY2022–FY2025, with FY2025 showing elevated activity at $4.8 million across 12.6 FTEs. Government-paid rates on federal service contracts ran a median of $125.01/hour, with senior labor rates reaching the 90th percentile of $313.51/hour. Sub-engagement on prime service contracts remained minimal, with subcontractors representing only 1% of average contractor hours across reportable records.

UTMB's recent recompete exposure includes 131 awards with ultimate completion dates in the next twenty-four months, carrying a combined potential value of $36.9 million. Activity has fluctuated: 89 awards in FY2023, rising to 137 in FY2024, declining to 126 in FY2025, and dropping to 83 in FY2026. The source data capture one award dated into 2027, suggesting the data snapshot reflects activity through approximately October 2026. UTMB's institutional position as the National Institutes of Health-designated operator of the Greater Gulf Coast Translational Science Alliance (GGCTSA) K12 Scholars Program ($711 thousand, September 1, 2026, through May 31, 2031, CFDA 93.350) anchors workforce development in translational science across a four-institution Houston-area alliance and positions UTMB as a hub for biomedical training and research translation. The institution's federal research portfolio spans biosafety level 4 laboratory operations, mammalian and primate infectious disease models, clinical trial infrastructure, and translational science capacity—capabilities concentrated in Galveston with satellite operations in League City, Angleton-Danbury, and the Clear Lake area.