The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) intends to negotiate, under the authority of 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(1) and FAR 6.302-1, a modification to its seven (7) year Contract N01-AI-95357 with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital for Influenza Pandemic Preparedness in Asia. The contract currently serves to elucidate the natural history of the emergence of animal influenza viruses, train scientists in the U.S. and Hong Kong in animal influenza surveillance, and prepare a series of research reagents to detect these viruses that are available to the world's influenza research community. Additional contract responsibilities include providing characterized viruses that are suitable for use in human vaccine development and the development or procurement of diagnostic methods for the rapid identification of influenza viruses. The planned negotiated modification, which will provide for a level of increased effort over a period of four (4) years (within the contract's current period), will expand the contract to increase surveillance efforts in Hong Kong to characterize highly pathogenic influenza viruses and identify non-pathogenic surrogate viruses that can be used for the production of vaccine lots. The production of pilot lots of vaccine will also be undertaken and in order to test these vaccine candidates, additional reagents must be produced. The expansion will also include developing a complete complement of reagents (antibodies, recombinant proteins, DNA primers, etc.) for all 15 known serotypes of animal influenza viruses. These reagents will be deposited in a DMID, NIAID repository and made available to both basic researchers and other government agencies, including the FDA, to standardize vaccine candidates. See Government Wide Numbered Note 22. No collect calls will be accepted.

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