HEAL Initiative: Optimization of Therapeutic Medical Devices through Team Science Mechanistic Research (RM1)

The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, with other NIH Institutes and Centers, plans a grant opportunity to support research on the mechanisms of action of therapeutic medical devices with the goal of improving clinical outcomes through device-based approaches. The work will focus on interdisciplinary, innovative projects that study how medical devices produce therapeutic effects, identify physiological markers relevant to neurological conditions, and assess how device-based therapies influence those markers. Supported approaches may include mechanistic clinical trials, animal studies, and computational modeling or simulation, and the opportunity is open to projects involving investigational devices as well as FDA-approved devices already in clinical use. The notice is being issued to give potential applicants time to build collaborations, and applications are not being solicited at this time; the estimated synopsis post date is June 11, 2026, the estimated close date is October 30, 2026, and the expected award and project start date is July 1, 2027.