SPECIAL NOTICE
B -- Ascertainment of Patients with Inherited Eye Dsieases in Pakistan
- Notice Date
- 9/18/2009
- Notice Type
- Special Notice
- NAICS
- 541380
— Testing Laboratories
- Contracting Office
- Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, Office of Administration, 6011 Executive Blvd, 5th Floor, Rockville, Maryland, 20852-3804, United States
- ZIP Code
- 20852-3804
- Solicitation Number
- LG2009-1199832
- Archive Date
- 10/7/2009
- Point of Contact
- M. Lloyd Garnes, Phone: 3014023341
- E-Mail Address
-
garnesl@od.nih.gov
(garnesl@od.nih.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- The National Institutes of Health (NIH) intends to negotiate under the authority of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 13.106-1(b) a sole source with The National Center for Excellence in Molecular Biology for the continuation of services to support the National Eye Institute (NEI) The contractor shall continue to assist the agency with the following: The National Eye Institute's (NEI) Division of Intramural Research (DIR) conducts a multidisciplinary investigation of a wide rang of blinding and disabling eye diseases, including immunological disorders, diabetic retinopathy, autosomal recessive congenital cataract (arCC), glaucoma, and retinal degenerations. Investigators in the NEI have been studying retinitis pigmentosa (RP), a hereditary, progressive retinal degeneration ultimately resulting in blindness. There are several forms of RP, each of which is caused by a specific, but in most instances unknown, genetic defect. Identifying these defects is crucial to the development of effective diagnosis and treatment for RP. Investigators in the NEI have also been studying inherited cataracts, the most common cause of blindness worldwide, in a similar fashion. A large number of families in Pakistan have members who have been diagnosed with a recessive form of retinitis pigmentosa (arRP) or cataracts. The population of Pakistan forms a distinct genetic group. Because of their consanguinity as well as the tendency for extended families to live in close proximity, these families provide a unique opportunity for scientists to identify the genetic defect causing this form of retinitis pigmentosa or inherited cataracts. Since the collection, assessment, and supply of pedigrees for genetic analysis is of direct benefit to the NEI, a contract is the appropriate instrument for this procurement. In the initial three years of this contract, NEI and Center for Excellence in Molecular Biology (CEMB) investigators have analyzed 100 families with arRP and 100 families with arCC. Of these 225 families, 68 were estimated to be capable of yielding lod scores greater than 3 by themselves. Using these families they have identified 2 novel cataract loci, identifying mutations in one gene, and 2 novel arRP loci in addition to a unique phenotype mapping to a known RP gene, and mapped 2 of the remaining arCC families and 2 of the remaining arRP families to known loci, identifying novel mutations. One hundred and seven families, 80 of which cannot produce a lod score over 3 independently, remain unmapped The Centre represents one of the best places for molecular biological research, in this part of the world. There are three other institutes/laboratories, namely the National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering (NIBGE), Faisalabad; Abdul Qadir Khan Research Laboratories (AQRL), Islamabad, Centre for Genetics, Karachi University, Karachi; engaged in molecular biological work, however, none of these is doing research comparable in scope and quality to that being pursued at the Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology, University of the Punjab, Lahore. Again, this is a notice of intent to negotiate on a sole source basis with The National Center for Excellence in Molecular Biology for the continuation of services and is not a request for competitive proposals. The Government intends to issue a firm-fixed price purchase order for the services requested utilizing simplified acquisition procedures. Interested parties may identify their interest and capability to respond to the requirement or submit capability statements by email to Garnesl@od.nih.gov, Contract Specialist by September 22, 2009 at 1PM EST. A determination by the Government not to compete this requirement based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/HHS/NIH/OoA/LG2009-1199832/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: Bldg 31, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, United States
- Zip Code: 20892
- Zip Code: 20892
- Record
- SN01961947-W 20090920/090919001858-47f1daa7fd952c273554d8d9abc97f94 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
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