A -- PLANT COLLECTIONS AND TAXONOMY

Notice Date

August 31, 2000

Contracting Office

National Cancer Institute, Acquisition Management Branch, TBS, 6120 Executive Blvd, EPS/Rm 603 Bethesda, MD 20892-7220

ZIP Code

20892-7220

Solicitation Number

N02-CM-17013-30

Response Due

November 13, 2000

Point of Contact

Elsa B. Carlton, Contracting Officer, phone (301)435-3811; fax (301)402-6699

E-Mail Address

Elsa B. Carlton, Contracting Officer, (301)435-3811 (ec39g@nih.gov)

Description

ELECTRIC RFP ANNOUNCEMENT. THIS RFP MAY BE ACCESSED THROUGH THE RESEARCH CONTRACTS BRANCH (RCB) HOMEPAGE AT http://rcb.nci.nih.gov/ INTERESTED OFFERORS WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR DOWNLOADING THERI OWN COPY OF THE RFP SOLICITATION AND AMENDMENTS. IT IS THE OFFERORS RESPONSIBILITY TO MONITOR THE INTERNET SITE FOR THE RELEASE OF THIS SOLICITATION AND AMENDMENTS, IF ANY. The Developmental Therapeutics Program (DTP), Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis (DCTD), The National Cancer Institute (NCI) , wishes to establish contracts for the collection and taxonomy of plants from tropical and subtropical Africa and Madagascar, South East Asia, and the continental United States of America, for the evaluation as sources of potential antineoplastic agents, with the ultimate goal being the discovery of novel structural types which can be developed for the selective treatment of cancer. The successful offerors will be expected to provide qualified personnel, materials and equipment for the collection, identification, storage and shipping of plant samples (500 per year from each of Africa and South East Asia, and 1000 from the U.S.A.) to an NCI designated extraction facility. Collections will comprise approximately 0.3-1.0 kg (dry weight) of each sample, and each plant will be taxonomically identified as far as possible at the time of collection. Properly prepared voucher specimens for each plant will be collected for the purposes of unambiguous identification, and for permanent deposition at a minimum of two herbaria designated by NCI. The contractor will be expected to provide detailed documentation, including complete identification, of each plant collected. The collection team should include a qualified plant taxonomist, and personnel experienced in plant collection and identification, and having familiarity with the customs of the local populations. The Principal Investigator should be trained in botany or a related field, and should have at least five years of experience in plant collection and identification. It is anticipated that re-collections of up to 10 plants per year, in quantities of 10-50 kg, will be required, starting in the second year of this project. The number of initial small scale collections will be reduced in proportion to the number and size of the large-scale re-collections undertaken. Collections will include species from as wide a variety of families and genera as possible. In the case of trees and large shrubs, samples of plant parts may be collected and stored separately for individual evaluation, with each part being considered equivalent to a plant sample. A list of genera with number of species collected in each genus since 1986 will be provided with the RFP, in order to aid in the determination of priorities in the collection program. In addition, a list of countries in which collections have been performed, and the number of samples collected in each country, will be provided with the RFP as well. The contractor will be responsible for obtaining all necessary permits including visas, collecting, shipping and export permits from foreign governments and agencies, for delivery of samples and voucher specimens to facilities in the United States. A "Letter of Collection" stating NCI's willingness to collaborate with local scientists and/or authorities in the discovery and development of novel drugs from plants collected will be provided. The Government anticipates the award of one contract for each of the regions designated (Sub-tropical Africa and Madagascar, South East Asia and the continental United States of America). This solicitation represents a re-competition of N02-CM-67244 (Missouri Botanical Garden), N02-CM-67255 (University of Illinois at Chicago), and N02-CM- 67255 (Morton Arboretum Herbarium). This RFP N02-CM-17013-30 will be issued approximately 20 days after publication of this notice. Proposals will be due approximately 45 days after the issue date. No collect calls will be accepted.

Web Link

Research Contracts Branch, Current Requests for Proposals (http://rcb.nci.nih.gov/)

Record

Loren Data Corp. 20000905/ASOL016.HTM (W-244 SN492175)