To protect the rights and welfare of human subjects, all projects involving human subjects research will require additional documentation and safety measures, including Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval, human subjects protection plan, data and safety monitoring plan, Federalwide Assurance, and certification of human subjects research training prior to release of project funds. Although IRB approval is not required at time of submission, the application must include human subjects research and exemptions information. NIH offers a decision tool that provides additional guidance on how to answer application questions on human subjects research.
Applicants proposing projects involving human subjects research are encouraged to include at least one team member or collaborating institution with experience navigating the IRB process. All organizations conducting non-exempt human subjects research or accessing human subjects data must have an active Federalwide Assurance.
Projects including any component that constitutes a clinical trial as defined by NIH are not eligible for funding in the fifth annual (2025) a2 Pilot Awards competition. NIH defines a clinical trial as any research study in which one or more human subjects are prospectively assigned to one or more interventions (which may include placebo or other control) to evaluate the effects of those interventions on health-related biomedical or behavioral outcomes.
Note that under this definition, it does not matter if your study includes only one intervention that all participants undergo—if you plan to evaluate the effect of any intervention (e.g., interaction with software, use of a device, completion of training) on a health-related biomedical or behavioral outcome in one or more human subjects, then your study is considered a clinical trial and is not eligible for funding in the fifth annual (2025) a2 Pilot Awards competition. Feasibility studies that evaluate how usable, acceptable, or scalable a product is in order to inform technology development but do not evaluate its effect on a health-related biomedical or behavioral outcome are eligible for funding.
This restriction applies solely to the work proposed to be completed during the a2 Pilot Awards project period. Pilot projects that perform technology development and feasibility testing in preparation for deploying the technology in a future, separately funded clinical trial are within scope. Applicants interested in performing technology validation studies are encouraged to discuss their proposed projects with the AITCs to determine which approaches are within scope.
IRB review is not required until finalists are selected following Round 2 of the application process. If the pilot project does not include an institution with its own IRB, the AITC will direct the pilot project to either utilize a commercial IRB or work with the AITC’s IRB (in which case an AITC team member will serve as the Investigator of Record and work with the pilot project PI to submit the IRB application). Projects that are directed to use a commercial IRB may be eligible to use central IRB services provided by the a2 Collective Coordinating Center.
Applicants proposing projects involving human subjects research are encouraged to include at least one team member or collaborating institution with experience navigating the IRB process.
The IRB preparation process can begin as soon as finalist notifications are delivered. Finalists whose projects require IRB review are strongly encouraged to begin the IRB process at this stage as IRB submission or approval may be required prior to the execution of a subaward agreement with the AITC and before project work or invoicing can begin. No-cost extensions of projects are allowable, should IRB review and approval delays occur.
