National Institutes of Health, Division of Research Contracts, 6100 Executive Blvd., MSC 7540, Room 6E01, Bethesda, Maryland 20892-7540

A -- NIDCD NATIONAL TEMPORAL BONE, HEARING AND BALANCE PATHOLOGY RESOURCE REGISTRY SOL NIH-DC-98-03 POC John P. DeCenzo, (301)496-4487 WEB: Division of Research Contracts Request for Proposals, http://silk.nih.gov/silk/OCM/RFP.HTML. E-MAIL: John P. DeCenzo, jd93o@nih.gov. The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, National Institutes of Health, is soliciting proposals to maintain and further develop the NIDCD National Temporal Bone, Hearing and Balance Pathology Resource Registry that serves as a national resource for both the public and the biomedical research communities to promote research in the pathology underlying diseases and disorders of hearing and balance. The Registry provides information and outreach services to the public and to health care practitioners on the acquisition of temporal bone and related brain tissues for research purposes. It also serves the biomedical research community by establishing and maintaining a catalog of currently active and inactive human temporal bone and brain tissue collections and by conserving temporal bone and brain collections by brokering the transfer of tissue specimens from inactive collections to active research centers. The Registry enables investigators to identify and locate all available processed temporal bones and related brain tissue specimens held in the United States by clinical and histopathologic diagnoses and other pertinent data so that further studies may be pursued. Additional contract activities will continue to encourage the pursuit of research on the diseases and disorders of hearing and balance, particularly research utilizing the techniques of molecular biology and genetics and cellular biology by: 1) disseminating pertinent information to the auditory and vestibular research communities, 2) developing and fostering a program of professional education on pathology of the auditory and vestibular systems, and 3) encouraging investigator collaborations in the study of the human temporal bone and the related brain structures of hearing and balance. This acquisition is a recompetition of Contract Number N01-DC-5-2114, currently being performed by the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. A five-year cost-reimbursement type contract is anticipated, with an award made on or about January 1, 1999. The solicitation is scheduled to be issued on or about February 27, 1998. Proposals will be due sixty days after the date of issuance of the solicitation. THE SOLICITATION WILL ONLY BE AVAILABLE IN ELECTRONIC FORMAT AT THE FOLLOWING INTERNET WORLD WIDE WEB SITE: http://silk.nih.gov/silk/OCM/RFP.HTML. NO HARD COPIES WILL BE PROVIDED. OFFERORS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ROUTINELY CHECKING THIS WEBSITE FOR ANY AMENDMENTS TO THE SOLICITATION. NO INDIVIDUAL NOTIFICATION OF AMENDMENTS WILL BE PROVIDED. All responsible sources may submit a proposal which will be considered by the Government. See Numbered Note 26.***** (0037)

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