Acquisitions Management Operations Branch, NIAID, 6700-B Rockledge Drive, Room 1130, Bethesda, MD 20892-7605

R -- SUPPORT FOR MYCOBACTERIUM TUBERCULOSIS RESEARCH PROGRAMS SOL RFP-NIAID-DIR-RML-00-52 DUE 090799 POC Donna Baker, Contract Specialist or Karin E. Eddy, Contracting Officer, 301-496-3878 The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) is seeking support to obtain tuberculosis research materials. The Contractor will be required to provide extensive risk assessment data, M. tuberculosis cultures, and patient specimens from at least 500 tuberculosis patients per year in population-based prospective studies conducted in the United States. The patients must be drawn from one ethnically-diverse metropolitian county with a tuberculosis case rate in excess of the national average. The Contractor must have demonstrated success of 1) enrolling at least 400 tuberculosis patients per year in each of the last 4 years in population-based prospective studies of tuberculosis in a single metropolitan area; 2) obtaining risk assessment data from enrolled subjects; 3) molecular characterization of at least 2000 M. tuberculosis isolates from one county; (4) handling large, prospective surveillance databases that include strain molecular typing information electronically linked to patientinformation, including, but not limited to demographics, risk assessment data, and medical record information. The Contractor must have fully integrated and contiguous facilities in the target county that include an operational biosafety level-3 area, administrative center, molecular biology laboratory, and automated DNA sequencing facility. The Contractor shall demonstrated ability to enroll at least 30 pediatric tuberculosis patients and acquire blood and other samples from them and their parents and siblings. The Contractor should have demonstrated ability to prepare human genomic DNA suitable for molecular analyses, electronically track relevant patient and family data, and electronically link study subject information and specimen information. The Contractor will be required to hire and provide personnel with proven task-appropriate epidemiologic, microbiologic, and molecular biology expertise. The Contractor will be required to arrange and conduct periodic meetings between facilty personnel and NIAID investigators. The Contractor will be required to transport biologically hazardous materials from local sites to NIAID facilities. Posted 08/04/99 (W-SN362736). (0216)

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