Past Opportunity
NSF/CASIS 2022 Tissue Engineering
NSF/CASIS Collaboration
Tissue Engineering and Mechanobiology on the ISS to Benefit Life on Earth
Welcome to the NSF/CASIS Feasibility Review Form. The International Space Station (ISSInternational Space Station) National Laboratory is managed by the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™ (CASIS™(Abbreviation: CASIS™) The nonprofit organization that manages the ISS National Lab, which receives at least 50 percent of the U.S. research allocation on the International Space Station to facilitate research that benefits humanity (NASA manages the other 50% and focuses on research for space exploration purposes).) under a Cooperative AgreementA cooperative agreement is Federal assistance that establishes a relationship between the U.S. Government and a recipient in which the principal purpose of the relationship is to accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation. Since 2011, the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™ (CASIS™) has managed the National Laboratory® through a Cooperative Agreement with NASA. with NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration.
The Divisions of Chemical, Bioengineering and Environmental Transport (CBET) and Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Infrastructure (CMMI) in the Engineering Directorate of the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) are partnering with CASIS to solicit projects in the general fields of tissue engineering and mechanobiology for research that can utilize the ISS National Lab to benefit life on Earth. Only U.S. entities including academic investigators, nonprofit independent research laboratories, and commercial teams are eligible to apply.
NLRAThe abbreviation for an ISS National Lab Research Announcement. NLRAs are one of the ISS National Lab’s primary mechanisms to solicit proposals in specific research areas. / NSF Solicitation #:
NSF 22-535
Open Period:
12/3/2021 – 3/8/2022
Strategic Focus:
Fundamental Science
Research Area:
Life Science
A close up view of the cell culture media change in a chamber containing engineered heart tissues as part of the Cardinal Heart experiment aboard the International Space Station
Media Credit: NASA
Purpose
The purpose of this solicitation is to attract proposals that make use of the ISS National Lab for flight research projects in the field of biomedical engineering. Responsive proposals will describe how the proposed research will utilize the ISS National Lab to develop novel ideas into discovery-level and transformative projects that integrate engineering and life sciences.
Steps to Applying for This Research Opportunity
The two-step process below provides potential offerors with an easy, efficient submission process.
** Please verify that none of the information submitted is subject to the export control laws of the United States, such as the EAR or the ITAR; if any information is subject to such laws, please mark all pages containing such information and identify the appropriate export control jurisdiction and classification. **
Additional Information
Awardees under this solicitation will need to execute a User Agreement with CASIS in order to conduct research on the ISS. A template agreement has been developed to streamline this process.
Implementation Partners
For a list of Implementation Partners that support research projects on the ISS, please view the ISS National Lab Implementation Partners Directory.
An expanded listing of flight hardware and research facilities for support of life science investigations on the ISS provided by NASA can be found at Space Station Research Facilities.
Guidance on Foreign Nationals
Principal and Co-Principal Investigators:
The principal investigator (PI) and any co-principal investigators (Co-PIs) for the proposal are required to be “United States persons” as defined by 22 U.S. Code §6010: “‘United States person’ means any United States citizen or alien admitted for permanent residence in the United States, and any corporation, partnership, or other organization organized under the laws of the United States.”
Other Team Members:
Additional team members on the proposal, those beyond the PI and Co-PIs, are determined strictly at the discretion of the proposing entity. The entity will be fully responsible for compliance with all U.S. export control laws and regulations, including (but not limited to) the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), 22 C.F.R. Parts 120 through 130, and the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), 15 C.F.R. Parts 730 through 799. All licensing and other approvals, including identification, classification, and marking of data subject to these regulations, are the responsibility of the proposing entity.
NASA has compiled a list of “Designated Countries” that have additional restrictions imposed. If a member of the team working on the proposal is a citizen of a country on the “Designated Countries List,” the proposing organization is responsible for prior consultation and approval from NASA Export Control and the NASA Office of International and Interagency Relations. CASIS does not get involved in an entity’s export control program, particularly regarding ITAR and EAR. We rely on universities and companies to take all appropriate measures regarding export, including following NASA regulations.
- NASA’s Export Control Program: https://oiir.hq.nasa.gov/nasaecp
- NASA Designated Countries: www.nasa.gov/oiir/export-control
Access to NASA centers and/or NASA IT data systems is limited to United States persons, as defined above.
We thank you for your interest in conducting research leveraging the ISS National Lab! For general questions regarding this solicitation, contact us at info@ISSNationalLab.org.