Comment from J K

I am a biomedical researcher in cell and molecular neurobiology. I currently hold an NIH 15 grant for my research (and have received both NIH and NSF funding previously) investigating how signals from the gut and other tissues regulate neuronal signaling in different physiological conditions. This research provides critical insights that could lead to the development of new treatment targets for neurological and/or neurodegenerative conditions in which neuronal signaling balance is disrupted – an enormous disease burden in the U.S. I am writing to oppose Section 200.220, which would prohibit most foreign collaborations on federal grants. My current and previous R15 both involve a collaboration with a lab in Belgium. This collaboration, which is built on interest in a shared set of molecules with a variety of physiological functions, has been vital for research progress in my lab. While we are interested in the neuronal aspects of the molecules in question, our European collaborators are studying their role in other aspects of metabolism and growth physiology; however, we are able to make use of many of the same reagents. Given that my research lab employs only undergraduates usually working during the semester in between their courses, the need to generate new strains and reagents for use in our experiments can really slow our progress, Thus, the ability to receive and use these materials that were built by our European collaborators, has massively accelerated our research progress. Likewise, our ability to share our data with them and learn about their results, as well, has also increased the speed at which we are able to understand the molecules in question, further accelerating research progress. Ultimately, from economic perspective, being able to obtain reagents and knowledge from collaborators enables my lab to be as efficient as possible, making maximal use of the NIH or NSF dollars we receive. Put another way, this means we don’t have to spend funds reinventing the wheel making the same reagents that have already been created by others but instead can spend the federal dollars pushing forward with new experiments. If provision 200.461 is enacted, my ability to make rapid research progress, and thus my ability to provide an optimal training environment for my students, would be severely limited, hindering my chances for receiving future grant funding, and limiting my students training opportunities and harming their chances to obtain graduate or professional training positions. This provision would harm multiple other labs at my primarily undergraduate institution where collaborations, including important international collaborations, are the lifeline to research progress. I urge OMB to eliminate provision 200.220 and to allow foreign collaborations in order to strengthen and accelerate U.S. scientific progress through these joint endeavors.