The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is inviting applications for Optimization and Standardization of Methods to Suppress Ixodes scapularis and Disrupt Enzootic Pathogen Transmission in Settings Posing an Elevated Risk to Humans.
Donor Name: Centers for Disease Control
State: Selected States
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline (mm/dd/yyyy): 01/15/2022
Size of the Grant: $1,000,000
Grant Duration: 5 years
Details:
This NOFO intends to support research to: 1) optimize and standardize implementation of existing strategies to reduce the abundance of host-seeking Ixodes scapularis nymphs infected with human pathogens, especially Lyme disease spirochetes (DIN); 2) evaluate efficacy and reproducibility of operational use (e.g., in the hands of pest control professionals or the public, as appropriate) of these protocols in high-risk settings (e.g., wooded residential properties, high-use wooded recreational areas) across the Midwest, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic United States where baseline DIN is elevated; and 3) develop standard operating procedures that may be used by homeowners or vector control professionals to implement these interventions within communities at risk for exposure to Lyme disease spirochetes and other I. scapularis-borne pathogens.
Objectives/Outcomes
The proposed research projects should be guided by public health needs and are expected to be scientifically sound, statistically robust, and directly relevant to the mission of state, local or tribal public health agencies, publicly funded vector management programs, and private pest control companies or homeowners involved in control of Ixodes scapularis. The emphasis of the research activities should be on intervention studies to evaluate, optimize and standardize implementation of existing environmentally based approaches to suppress the density of Ixodes scapularis ticks infected with human pathogens. Depending on the nature of the intervention, outcome measures may include density of host-seeking ticks; prevalence of infection in the ticks; density of infected host-seeking ticks; tick infestation of key reproductive or pathogen reservoir hosts; and pathogen infection in reservoir hosts. Proposed research should focus on the following:
- Field evaluations of implementation strategies of existing technologies or approaches to: 1) reduce suitable tick habitat; 2) suppress host-seeking Ixodes scapularis ticks or ticks on key host species, by means of application of acaricide or biological control agents; or 3) disrupt pathogen transmission cycles. These field evaluations should aim to maximize intervention efficacy across ecological settings posing an elevated acarological risk for exposure to ticks and/or to define ecological contexts under which such strategies are efficacious. Moreover, implementation strategies must be clearly defined and reproducible. Evaluation of existing technologies should include commercially available products and/or experimental products previously evaluated in the peer-reviewed literature that show reasonable efficacy in at least a limited setting and show promise of achieving >80% efficacy if implementation strategies are improved.
- Field studies aimed at optimizing implementation of tick control products to provide recommendations for pest control firms and homeowners regarding how to optimize tick suppression depending on type of product used, application method, application timing, and vegetation structure in the treated area.
- If integrated strategies are evaluated, each component of the integrated strategy should also be tested singly to allow for evaluation of additive effects of combined interventions.
- Assessments of the potential for incorporating tick management into existing mosquito management programs.
Funding Information
Estimated Total Funding, including direct and indirect costs: $5,000,000
- Award Ceiling: $1,000,000 per Budget Period
- Award Floor: $750,000 per Budget Period
- Total Period of Performance Length: 5 year(s)
Eligible Applicants
- State governments
- County governments
- City or township governments
- Special district governments
- Independent school districts
- Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
- Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
- Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities
- Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
- Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
