Publication Tracking Toolkit

Grant numbers are tricky to search due to the way they are stored in article metadata as unstructured text.

Due to minor variants in the way that grants may be entered (with or without slashes, spaces, or other special characters), and the ways that databases index this information, it is necessary to search across multiple sources with searches adjusted for common formatting variants.

You also might search specifically on the institution code followed by the serial number. For instance, a search for the grant 5U54GM115677 yields no results in PubMed, but GM115677 yields 467 results.

From https://www.nimh.nih.gov/funding/grant-writing-and-application-process/research-funding-frequently-asked-questions-faqs#content_4:

An explanation of each part of the grant number is given below.

1- This is the Type Code. The most common types are:

• 1- never previously funded grants — that is, a new/first time grant application.
• 2- competing continuations — that is, a grant application that was previously funded for a period of time. This new continuing period of support requires peer review.
• 5- non-competing continuations — that is, a grant application that has been funded and is in the midst of its support period. For each year of the support period awarded, there is an administrative review of progress before the next annual installment of support is issued (no peer review is needed). The application that the PI submits as part of this process is called a "non-competing continuation application," and it contains a "progress report" for the period of support just completed.

R01- This is the Activity Code indicating the type of grant mechanism. Other grant mechanisms include R03s (small grants), R13s (conference support grants), "K"s (career awards), "T"s (institutional training awards), etc.

MH- This is the Institute Code. The Institute code identifies the NIH Institute with primary responsibility for payment of this application. MH = NIMH. Each NIH Institute has a two-letter code associated with it. Another example of a two-letter code is for the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA): "DA."

99999- This is the Serial Number. This number provides a unique identification to the project and is assigned sequentially for newly submitted applications. The Serial Number remains the same for as long as a project is active, even when the PI submits a competing continuation for a new period of support.

01- This is the Grant Year. "01" indicates the first year of a grant application or funded grant.

A1- This is the Suffix. "A1" indicates that the application was submitted once previously but did not receive a sufficiently strong priority score to merit funding. This application is an amended version of the original one also called a “resubmission.” At NIH, an R01 may be submitted up to three separate times for review (i.e., an A2 application is the last amended version permitted). Other suffix terms are also used. For example, "S1" refers to a competing supplement request for a currently funded project.