Biomechanics and Mechanobiology

The Biomechanics and Mechanobiology (BMMB) program is administered by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under the Directorate for Engineering, specifically within the Division of Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Innovation. It resides in the Mechanics of Materials cluster and focuses on supporting fundamental research that explores the intersection of biological systems and mechanical forces. The NSF, as an independent federal agency, promotes the progress of science and advances national health, prosperity, and welfare through the support of research and education in non-medical fields of science and engineering. BMMB supports transformative research that deepens the understanding of engineering biomechanics and mechanobiology. Proposals submitted to this program must demonstrate a strong biological component and a clear mechanics aspect that advances knowledge of the mechanical behavior of living systems. This includes research from the sub-cellular level up to entire organisms. The program encourages viewing biological tissues as smart materials, capable of self-design, and supports efforts to elucidate the role of in vivo mechanical forces in processes such as tissue formation, maintenance, repair, and aging. The program welcomes theoretical, computational, experimental, or hybrid research approaches. Although clinical trials are not eligible, feasibility studies with human or animal subjects may be funded if they are scientifically justified. Projects must clearly articulate the novelty and potentially transformative nature of the research, the engineering relevance, and the societal or industrial impact if successful. Multiscale mechanics approaches are encouraged but not mandatory. Proposals that fall outside the core focus of BMMB may still be considered, but the NSF recommends that investigators contact the program director in advance to confirm alignment. Projects heavily focused on tissue engineering, physiological mechanisms, neural control, biomaterials design, rehabilitation, manufacturing systems, or biomolecular dynamics may be more appropriate for related NSF programs such as Engineering of Biomedical Systems, Physiological Mechanisms & Biomechanics, Perception, Action, & Cognition, Biomaterials, Disability and Rehabilitation Engineering, or Molecular Biophysics. Applications can be submitted at any time and are evaluated according to NSF’s standard policies and procedures. There are no specified deadlines for unsolicited proposals. However, proposals submitted through related solicitations such as CAREER, EAGER, or RAPID must adhere to their respective deadlines and requirements. Single-investigator projects typically include support for one graduate student and one month of PI time per year, while multi-investigator awards may be larger. Investigators are encouraged to contact the program director for guidance on unusually large budgets or novel concepts. The primary contact for the program is Shivani Sharma, reachable at [email protected] or (703) 292-4204. Additional guidance and access to examples of recent awards are available through the NSF website, including links to funded projects and related program pages. This program accepts full proposals submitted via Research.gov or Grants.gov in accordance with the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide. Although the program accepts proposals continuously, researchers are advised to stay current with policy updates and research security requirements, such as the new training and reporting rules introduced in July 2025.