Since announcing in Nature that NIH will require a deliberate approach in considering sex in preclinical research, we have heard from nearly every sector of the biomedical research community on this upcoming policy change.

Many researchers have expressed that it's about time to go beyond one size fits all science, and that this change will be an important step toward delivering the kind of rigorous and relevant science that drives the medical advances we need.

We've also heard from members of our community who have questions and concerns about how this upcoming policy will affect their work. We know that addressing sex influences in cell and animal studies is a change in the way many scientists conduct their research, and we understand that such change cannot be accomplished in one step. We want to make sure that stakeholders in the research community are informed about the importance of studying the influence of sex, and that scientists understand how to maximize preclinical research experimental design, analysis, and reporting to produce findings for males and females that can guide clinical studies for men and women. To help answer some immediate questions, please review our Q and A guide.

This is a meaningful change that we are working to apply in a meaningful way. We recognize that this requires new approaches that will affect the research community. We look forward to engaging the scientific community in the coming months in this important conversation so that together we can make NIH-funded science even stronger.