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Somdat Mahabir, PhD, MPH
Program Director, Environmental Epidemiology Branch
mahabir@mail.nih.gov
Mukesh Verma, PhD
Branch Chief, Methods and Technologies Branch
vermam@mail.nih.gov
Overview
Microbiomes are the communities of microorganisms that live on or in people, plants, soil, oceans, and the atmosphere. Microbiomes can maintain the healthy functioning of these diverse ecosystems, and influence human health, climate change, food security, and other factors. Dysbiosis and dysfunctional microbiomes have been linked to conditions such as obesity, diabetes, asthma, pre-cancerous states, and cancer.
Analysis of the microbiome and associated metabolites over time can yield information that may serve as a diagnostic of the following: microbial exposure; cancer risk, incidence, and progression; and treatment response. The study of the microbiome in various epidemiologic cohorts may also identify modifiable risk factors and mechanisms of carcinogenesis, which may inform preventative measures and early diagnosis.
Relevant Funding Opportunities
- Modulating Human Microbiome Function to Enhance Immune Responses Against Cancer – expires January 8, 2025
- PAR-22-061 (R01)
- PAR-22-062 (R21)
- Epidemiologic Research on Emerging Risk Factors and Liver Cancer Susceptibility - expires May 8, 2025
- PAR-22-083 (R01)
- PAR-22-084 (R21)
- Microbial-based Cancer Imaging and Therapy - Bugs as Drugs - expires May 8, 2025
- PAR-22-086 (R21)
- Biology of Bladder Cancer – expires September 8, 2025
- PAR-22-218 (R01)
- PAR-22-219 (R21)
- Co-infection and Cancer
- PAR-23-055 (R01) - expires November 6, 2025, unless reissued
- PAR-23-056 (R21) - expires November 17, 2025, unless reissued
EGRP also encourages methods development or hypothesis-driven investigator-initiated grant applications on the topic of microbiome research.
EGRP joins with other NCI Divisions, Offices, and Centers and other Institutes and Centers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fund grant applications submitted in response to funding opportunities.
View All Cancer Control Funding OpportunitiesRelated Workshops
The Epidemiology and Genomics Research Program is dedicated to full accessibility and the inclusion of individuals with disabilities. We continuously strive to improve our recorded webinars' accessibility, recognizing that some may be more accessible than others. If you encounter any recorded webinar that does not meet your accessibility needs, please feel free to reach out to NCIDCCPSEGRPComms@mail.nih.gov.
- Oral Microbiome in Health and Systemic Diseases (June 25, 2024)
- Precision Probiotic Therapies—Challenges and Opportunities (April 2022)
- Next Steps in Studying the Human Microbiome and Health in Prospective Studies - Meeting Summary (May 2017)
Public Resources
- Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) National Microbiome Initiative (NMI) Fact Sheet [PDF]
A May 13, 2016 announcement from the White House OSTP, in collaboration with Federal agencies and private-sector stakeholders, introducing the NMI and various events. The NMI aims to advance understanding of microbiome behavior and enable protection and restoration of healthy microbiome function.
Research Resources
- The Human Microbiome Project (HMP)
The NIH HMP is one of several international efforts designed to take advantage of large-scale, high-throughput multi‘omics analyses to study the microbiome in human health. As a community resource program, the HMP is a partner in an international collaboration to generate rich, comprehensive, and publicly available datasets of the microbiome. This information is available worldwide for use by investigators and others in efforts to understand and improve human health. - Trans-NIH Microbiome Working Group
This internal NIH working group provides a forum for coordinating NIH extramural research activities related to the human microbiome.