Writing NIH Grant Application in LaTeX

J. Hrabe
Magalien, LLC

Unlike NSF, the NIH does not seem to expect that grant applications (RO1, RO3, R21, ...) could be written in LaTeX. However, it appears possible to do so, fulfilling all NIH requirements and avoiding the horrors of MS Word or annoyances of OpenOffice. The submission SF424 package is contained in a single and rather fragile PDF file (click gently, wait, hope, wait, ...) where form fields are filled and many other PDF files with various bits of information are attached. Almost any of those files can be prepared in LaTeX but this guide is only concerned with the Abstract, Narrative, Specific Aims, Research Strategy, and References. Each of these files can be formatted in an identical way (in separate TEX files) and compiled into PDF files with the pdflatex program. I do this on Gentoo Linux with the texlive LaTeX package compiled with USE flags "extra publishers science tex4ht" but almost any other modern LaTeX installation should work as well.

The NIH guidelines (as of February 2011) require Palatino font, 11 points or larger, typeset in black. Other fonts that NIH allows are not as easily available. Symbols are allowed, which takes care of mathematics. There should be no more than 15 characters per inch and no more than 6 lines per inch. Use at least 1/2 inch margins on all sides of a letter paper with no headers, footers or page numbers. Below, a header common for all of the application files is listed. It ensures that these requirements are satisfied. Solutions for several other often needed features are offered at the end of this document.

% NIH grant proposal file (2011)

\documentclass[11pt,notitlepage]{article}

% Palatino font that NIH allows
\usepackage[T1]{fontenc}
\usepackage[sc]{mathpazo}

% For upright Greek letters in units, such as {\textmu}m
\usepackage{textcomp}

% For Inkscape figure imports
\usepackage{color}
\usepackage{import}

% Better and richer math environment
\usepackage{amsmath}

% EPS and PDF figures
\usepackage{graphicx}

% Side captions of figures
\usepackage{sidecap}

% More flexible figure legends
\usepackage[labelfont=bf]{caption}

% Nicer tabular environment
\usepackage{booktabs}

% Make 0.5'' margins on all sides
\usepackage[top=0.5in,bottom=0.5in,left=0.5in,right=0.5in]{geometry}

% No page numbers
\pagestyle{empty}

% Hyphenation hints
\hyphenation{ionto-pho-re-tic iso-tro-pic}

\begin{document}

\thispagestyle{empty}

\section*{A. Significance}
.
.
.
\begin{SCfigure}[50][h]
\centering
\includegraphics{figures/fig_1.pdf}
\caption{Sketch of a ...}
\label{fig:fig_1}
\end{SCfigure}
.
.
.
\section*{C. Approach}

\subsection*{Theory}
.
.
.
$$Q = \int_V \alpha(\vec{r}) c(\vec{r}, t) \, d V \quad \text{.}$$
.
.
.
\begin{SCfigure}[50][h]
\centering
\import{figures/}{fig_2.pdf_tex}
\caption{An illustration of ...}
\label{fig:fig_2}
\end{SCfigure}
.
.
.
\end{document}


As shown above, I used the SCfigure to place a figure (usually half a page wide) and its caption next to each other to save space. For vector graphics, I found the Inkscape program quite useful and mature. It offers a great option of exporting a PDF graphics file along with a TEX file which contains all the lettering. As shown in the example for Figure 2, the TEX file is imported. It in turn brings in the corresponding PDF file, places it in the usual way and then renders onto its surface all the lettering, using the appropriate LaTeX font. This is really nice as it keeps all typography consistent and powerful, equally in the text and figures. It is best to set the Inkscape canvas size to match the exact final size of the figure and export the entire canvas page as a PDF file (with the LaTeX option selected). Beware that the LaTeX option appears only after initiating the PDF export. An example PDF file with Figure 1 (the LaTex option off) and Figure 2 (the LaTeX option on) can be examined here.

For individual specific aims, and also for references, I use the "description" environment:

\begin{description}
\item[Aim 1: Simple analysis.]  Implement ...
.
.
.
\end{description}
.
.
.
\section*{References}

\begin{description}
\item[] \textbf{Hrabe J, Hrabetova S, Segeth K (2004).}  A model
of effective diffusion and tortuosity in the extracellular space
of the brain.  \textit{Biophys J} 87:1606--1617.
.
.
.
\end{description}


Admittedly, this is not as flexible as the proper BibTeX solution but it is simpler, given that references must be placed in a separate file.

If you find any problems with this guide, please let me know. The NIH system accepted my application in this format but I could not find any official NIH statement regarding the LaTeX use. Consequently, any further information would be welcome.