Expanding the Target Landscape by Drugging the Undruggable (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)

Summary

This is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) R21 grant funding opportunity focused on expanding the therapeutic target landscape by developing approaches to drug previously "undruggable" biological targets. Clinical trials are explicitly not allowed under this mechanism. The opportunity is open for submissions from June 2025 through February 2028, providing a multi-year window for exploratory/developmental research proposals.

What they want

Risks & flags

• Opportunity number PAR-25-442 references a Program Announcement with Special Referral (PAR), which may indicate NIH has pre-designated specific study sections or program priorities that could favor applicants already aligned with NIH program officers' existing research agendas