Systems Biology of Bioenergy-Relevant Microbes to Enable Production of Next-Generation Biofuels and Bioproducts | DE FOA 0001865

Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0001865

The funding opportunity titled "Systems Biology of Bioenergy-Relevant Microbes to Enable Production of Next-Generation Biofuels and Bioproducts" (Funding Opportunity Number DE-FOA-0001865) is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science grant solicitation run through the Office of Biological and Environmental Research (BER), specifically the Genomic Science program. The core purpose is to support basic, foundational research that explains how biological systems work at a genomic and systems level, with a strong emphasis on microbes and microbial communities that matter for DOE missions in sustainable energy and environmental stewardship. Rather than focusing on near-term product deployment, the program is centered on uncovering the underlying rules that connect genetic information to real-world cellular behavior, including how genes are expressed and coordinated through networks of proteins, enzymes, regulatory circuits, and metabolic pathways.

A major motivation behind the opportunity is the DOE mission of developing sustainable bioenergy. The solicitation highlights that improving advanced biofuel and bioproduct manufacturing will depend on a deeper, systems-level understanding of biology and the ability to translate that understanding into improved production traits. In practical terms, DOE is encouraging research that uses modern omics and systems biology approaches (for example, genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and integrated computational modeling) to understand and ultimately enhance microbial biosynthesis. The aim is to tackle scientific challenges that limit microbial production, such as metabolic bottlenecks, regulation of pathway flux, tolerance to industrial stresses, and the broader complexity of multi-gene, multi-pathway traits that determine productivity and robustness.

The opportunity also signals a strategic need to expand the "platform organism" toolkit used for bioenergy and bioproducts. Instead of relying on a small number of standard laboratory microbes, DOE is pushing for work that helps develop and characterize a broader set of organisms with the right native metabolic capabilities, resilience, and stress tolerance for industrially relevant conditions. Alongside this, the FOA emphasizes the importance of having strong genetic and systems-level modification tools for these organisms, which enables researchers to test hypotheses about biological function and to iteratively improve performance. Overall, the scientific vision is that once the governing principles of function are understood at scale, those insights can be used to rationally engineer microbes (and, where relevant, plants) to produce next-generation fuels and valuable chemicals more efficiently and reliably.

Because the program is framed around genomic-scale understanding, it is explicitly interdisciplinary. Competitive projects are expected to bridge multiple domains, such as molecular biology and microbiology, systems biology, chemical and metabolic engineering, and computational biology. The solicitation language points toward research efforts that integrate large datasets with predictive models and mechanistic understanding, rather than treating omics data as an end in itself. The broader theme is integration: linking DNA-level information to system-wide behavior and then using that knowledge to address bioenergy production barriers.

On eligibility, the FOA is relatively open in that "all types of applicants" may apply as the prime (lead) institution, with several key exclusions. DOE/NNSA National Laboratories, other Federal agencies, Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) contractors, and certain nonprofit organizations (specifically 501(c)(4) groups that have engaged in lobbying after December 31, 1995) are not allowed to serve as the lead applicant. However, the solicitation does allow collaborations with these entities, including DOE/NNSA National Laboratories and other federal/FFRDC partners, as long as the lead institution is eligible and the collaboration is truly additive (described as filling critical gaps in expertise). A firm budget rule applies to these collaborations: participating DOE/NNSA labs, other federal agencies, and/or their FFRDCs collectively may not account for more than 50 percent of the total project budget, reinforcing that the main scope and leadership should remain with the eligible prime recipient.

Administratively, this is a discretionary grant under the Science and Technology and other Research and Development category, with CFDA number 81.049. The FOA was created on December 5, 2017, with an original closing date of March 28, 2018. The listed award ceiling is $500,000. The summary provided does not clearly state the number of expected awards (the field appears blank or incomplete), but the ceiling indicates that projects were expected to be sized as mid-scale research efforts consistent with basic research aims in BER Genomic Science.

In short, this opportunity is designed to fund systems biology research that explains and predicts how bioenergy-relevant microbes function at a network level, and to use that understanding to enable improved microbial production of advanced biofuels and bioproducts. It prioritizes omics-driven, integrative, and mechanistic work; development and characterization of robust production organisms; and carefully structured collaborations where national labs and other federal entities can contribute expertise without dominating project leadership or budget.

• The Office of Science in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Systems Biology of Bioenergy-Relevant Microbes to Enable Production of Next-Generation Biofuels and Bioproducts" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 81.049.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-12-05.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-03-28. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $500,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted.

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