A--Tuberculosis Research Materials and Vaccine Testing

The Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (DMID), of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), is seeking capability statements from organizations with technical expertise and facilities to support NIAID in achieving its goal of providing unique and quality assured resources for Tuberculosis (TB) Research to the scientific community. DMID is seeking a contractor to continue provision of standardized mycobacterial reagents, and vaccine testing services in state of the art animal models of TB infection and disease. This is a recompetition and the current incumbent is Colorado State University. This critical contract will provide standardized research materials, such as inactivated microorganisms, purified protein, lipid and carbohydrate antigens, culture filtrates, nucleic acid constructs and post-genomic research reagents. Furthermore, this contract will fund development of advanced techniques and customized tools for the preparation of mycobacterial reagents and genomic analysis of gene expression in mycobacteria and animal models of TB disease. Data generated by these tools will assist the research community by creating standards for laboratory evaluations of commonly studied mycobacterial strains, and vaccine candidates and adjuvants. Furthermore, the contractor will provide expert guidance in the design, execution, and analysis of targeted experiments for the evaluation of vaccine candidates, adjuvants and immune-modulators. The offeror must have available all facilities that are required to conduct all aspects of the statement of work. This is to include BSL-3 laboratory and animal facilities, equipment to perform aerosol infection and to produce, evaluate and store research reagents, as well as non-BSL-3 laboratories and animal holding space. These facilities and equipment are to be large enough to accommodate the tasks required under this statement of work. The offeror is required to provide adequate documentation as to the availability of these resources as part of the capability statement. The offeror must also document expertise in work with pathogenic mycobacteria and animal models of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection and TB disease. This new contract will be awarded as a cost-reimbursement contract with the emphasis being on the contractor's ability to establish and maintain a quality controlled bank of mycobacterial research reagents, including pathogenic Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains and genetic material, optimize technologies for the production of such reagents, and provide these resources to the US and international researchers. Furthermore, emphasis will be put on the contractor's ability to establish and implement state of the art testing resourced in animals to evaluate the potential utility, and also to demonstrate efficacy of, TB vaccines, adjuvant and immunemodulators. Offerors will be evaluated on: availability an suitability of adequate BSL-3 laboratory and animal facilities, documented expertise in and understanding of the area of animal models of tuberculosis and mycobacteriology, documented expertise in biochemical and genetic methods for mycobacteria to provide above mentioned research reagents, as well as documented ability to establish and coordinate a comprehensive, multidisciplinary contract resource as well as intellectual interactions with the TB research community. Of particular importance will be documented expertise in immunology and animal models for the evaluation of potential TB vaccines, relevant adjuvants and immunemodulators. It is anticipated that the period of performance for this contract will be a total of seven years with an estimated level-of-effort of 29,120 labor hours per year. Interested Small Business organizations should submit two (2) copies of their capability statement addressing each of the areas cited above. See Numbered Note 25. No collect calls will be accepted. No facsimile transmissions will be accepted. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS AND DOES NOT COMMIT THE GOVERNMENT TO AWARD A CONTRACT NOW OR IN THE FUTURE. NO SOLICITATION IS AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. BASED ON CAPABILITY STATEMENTS RECEIVED FROM THIS SOURCES SOUGHT, THIS ACQUISITION MAY BE SOLICITED AS A 100% SMALL BUSINESS SET-ASIDE, NAICS CODE 541710, WITH A SIZE STANDARD OF 500 EMPLOYEES.