PUBLIC NOTICE OF PROPOSED ACQUISITION
National Eye Institute / National Institute of Health
Announcement/Number: EE20-004934
Post Date: August 06, 2020
Closing Response Date: August 16, 2020
Proposed Award Date: August 21, 2020
Project Title: Metagenomic sequencing and bioinformatic analyses service
Contracting Office: National Eye Institute, Building 31, Room 6A52
Contact Point/Contracting Officer/Contract Specialist: Elaine Estrella, estrellaek@mail.nih.gov
North American Classification System (NAICS) Code (include): 541380
Classification Code: Testing Laboratories
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
In the past decade, it has been recognized that the commensal microbiome has a huge impact on all aspects of our health, including immune function and disease development. Autoimmune uveitis is estimated to be responsible for 10–15% of blindness in the US. Many patients exhibit immune responses to retinal components that are thought to be involved in progression of the disease, but the primary cause of these disorders is unknown. Microbial triggers have been suspected in uveitis, and we have shown that commensal microbiota in the gut has a role in triggering uveitis using a spontaneous uveitis model (R161H), in which a transgenic T cell receptor specific for IRBP is expressed. The R161H model is particularly useful to study natural triggers of uveitis including commensal microbiota.
Metagenomic shotgun sequencing is a powerful genomics method of identifying the microbiome, including bacteria, virus and fungi. The sequencing depth allows deeper analyses (to the species level) over our conventional 16S rDNA sequencing with NCI Microbiome Core, which usually identifies up to the genus level of bacteria only.
PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE PROCUREMENT:
The overall project objective is to receive the service on shotgun metagenomic sequencing and bioinformatic analyses on 200 samples from mouse uveitis models.
CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS:
Contractor shall pick up the DNA samples from NEI lab upon request.
- Contractor shall perform sample QC, library preparation and next-generation sequencing.
- Contractor shall upload the data on its Metagenomics Cloud and perform bioinformatics analyses, visualize the data and make a report in downloadable files.
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: 9/01/2020 – 6/30/2021
PAYMENT
Payment will be made 30 days after internal receiving in NIH system.
AWARD TYPE
Firm Fixed
BASIS OF AWARD
A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed contract acquisition based upon responses to the notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will normally be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed. Information provided will be used to assess tradeoffs and alternatives available for the potential requirement and may lead to the development of a solicitation. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. Any solicitation resulting from the analysis of information obtained will be announced to the public in Federal Business Opportunities in accordance with the FAR Part 5. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation. No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any nonproprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s).
Closing Statement: This notice is not a request for competitive proposals. However, interested parties may identify their interest and capability to respond to this notice. Responses to this notice shall contain sufficient information to establish the interested parties’ bona-fide capabilities for fulfilling the requirement and include: unit price, list price, shipping and handling costs, the delivery period after contract award, the prompt payment discount terms, the F.O.B. Point (Destination or Origin), the Dun & Bradstreet Number (DUNS), the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and the certification of business size. All offerors must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) www.sam.gov
A determination by the Government not to compete this proposed action based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. The information received will normally be considered solely for the purposes of determining whether to proceed on a non-competitive basis or to conduct a competitive procurement.
All responses must be received by August 16, 2020 and must reference number EE20-004934. Responses may be submitted electronically to estrellaek@mail.nih.gov or hand delivered in person. Fax responses will not be accepted.
“All responsible sources may submit a bid, proposal, or quotation which shall be considered by the agency.”