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

A -- THE FEASIBILITY OF AN INTRANEURAL AUDITORY PROSTHESIS STIMULATING ELECTRODE ARRAY SOL NIH-DC-00-05 POC John P. DeCenzo, Contracting Officer, (301)496-4487 WEB: Click here to download a copy of the solicitation., http://www4.od.nih.gov/ocm/drc/rfp.htm. E-MAIL: Click here to contact the Contracting Officer., jd93o@nih.gov. The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, National Institutes of Health, is competing a new requirement for research to determine the feasibility of intraneural, auditory nerve stimulating electrode arrays that could lead to the development of improved human multichannel auditory prostheses. The contractor will choose a suitable animal model, design and fabricate or obtain intraneural electrode arrays, utilize neurophysiological tests to evaluate them acutely in the animal model, implant the arrays chronically and stimulate them in the animal model, utilize histopathological techniques to evaluate the effects of implantation and stimulation on the tissue. Based on these studies the contractor will make a recommendation as to whether further studies should be pursued to develop an actual human intraneural electrode array. The contractor will be required to come to Bethesda yearly to present progress on their work at the Neural Prosthesis Workshop sponsored by the Neural Prosthesis Program. The solicitation is scheduled to be issued on or about July 3, 2000. Proposals will be due sixty days after the date of issuance of the solicitation. THE SOLICITATION WILL BE AVAILABLE ONLY ON THE INTERNET AT THE FOLLOWING WEB SITE: http://www4.od.nih.gov/ocm/drc/rfp.htm. NO HARD COPIES WILL BE PROVIDED. OFFERORS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ROUTINELY CHECKING THE WEB SITE FOR ANY AMENDMENTS THAT MAY BE ISSUED. INDIVIDUAL NOTIFICATION OF AMENDMENTS WILL NOT BE PROVIDED. All responsible sources may submit a proposal which will be considered by the Government. See Numbered Note 26. Posted 06/12/00 (W-SN463761). (0164)

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