National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute

What National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute does

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) is one of 27 institutes and centers within the National Institutes of Health (NIH), operating as a U.S. federal government research institute headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. Founded in 1949 as the National Heart Institute and renamed in 1969 and 2011 to reflect expanding scope, NHLBI provides national leadership for research, training, and education programs targeting heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders. It serves four primary constituencies: the general public seeking health education, healthcare providers ordering patient education materials, academic and clinical researchers receiving grant funding and data access, and underserved populations reached through federally qualified health centers.

NHLBI's core technology platforms include BioData Catalyst, a cloud-based data ecosystem enabling researchers to analyze data related to NHLBI focus areas such as Long COVID, sickle cell disease, asthma, and heart disease, and the Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) Program, which leverages genetic, environmental, and molecular data to predict, prevent, diagnose, and treat disease. The institute manages major longitudinal cohort studies including the Jackson Heart Study (over 5,300 participants since 2000), Framingham Heart Study, ARIC, CARDIA, and MESA, providing decades of population health data. NHLBI also funds AI/ML research externally, including transformer-based neural network tools for sleep apnea cardiovascular risk prediction and GPT-3 diagnostic accuracy studies.

NHLBI's business model is non-commercial: it is funded entirely by federal appropriations through NIH and does not generate product revenue. Health information, publications, BMI calculator tools, DASH dietary resources, and clinical trial listings are distributed at no cost through the nhlbi.nih.gov website, a national call center, mail distribution, and partner networks including the Healthy Hearts Network, Breathe Better Network, and federally qualified health centers. Its education programs — The Heart Truth®, Learn More Breathe Better®, We Can!®, and the Blood Diseases & Disorders Education Program — are registered trademarks operated as national awareness campaigns. Recent strategic investments include $14.5 million grants each to Jackson State University and the University of Southern Mississippi for cardiovascular research training, a $3.32 million grant to Mount Sinai for AI-based sleep apnea tools, and international studies across 44 sites in North America and Europe.

Name

National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute

Legal name

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Website

https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov

Company type

Public

Founded year

1948

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute is a U.S. federal research institute within NIH that conducts and funds research, training, and public education programs on heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders, serving the general public, healthcare providers, and academic researchers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Federal Health Research Institute

NAICS

Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Health Research Funding Agencies (Public/Quasi-Public) (HLAJALAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Chronic Disease & Health Promotion Program Funding (HLAJALAJ), Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA), Healthcare & Clinical Professional Development (CME/CE) (EDAGANAJ)

Keywords

• Biomedical research funding
• Cardiovascular disease research
• Public health education
• Clinical trial programs
• Population health studies

Headquarters

HQ city

Bethesda

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) conducts and supports basic, clinical, and population-based research in heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders. It funds investigator-initiated research through federal grants and contracts, operates national health education and awareness programs (The Heart Truth®, Learn More Breathe Better®, Blood Diseases & Disorders Education Program, We Can!®), maintains cloud-based research data platforms such as BioData Catalyst and the TOPMed Program, and provides free clinical guidelines, dietary plans, and patient education materials to the U.S. public.

Product overview

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) is a federal research institution that provides health education programs and resources rather than commercial products. Its portfolio includes national education programs (The Heart Truth®, Learn More Breathe Better®, Blood Diseases & Disorders Education Program, We Can!®), health assessment tools (BMI Calculator), and dietary resources (DASH Eating Plan, Aim for a Healthy Weight). These offerings are distributed through the NHLBI website as informational resources, clinical trial listings, and publication downloads. The COPD National Action Plan represents a policy initiative. The programs work together to address heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders through public health education and awareness.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Heart Truth®: National education program raising awareness about heart disease and its risk factors in women.
• Learn More Breathe Better®
• We Can!® (Ways to Enhance Children's Activity & Nutrition)

Products and services

• The Heart Truth® A national education program that raises awareness about heart disease and its risk factors, with a specific focus on women's heart health.
• Learn More Breathe Better® A national health education program that raises awareness about asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and lung health.
• Blood Diseases & Disorders Education Program A national health education program that brings greater visibility to blood diseases, disorders, donation, and safety.
• We Can!® (Ways to Enhance Children's Activity & Nutrition) A national science-based education program designed to give parents, caregivers, and entire communities tips, tools, and strategies to help children maintain a healthy weight.
• DASH Eating Plan Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) — a flexible and balanced eating plan that helps create a heart-healthy eating style for life, including daily and weekly nutritional goals.
• BMI Calculator An online tool that calculates body mass index (BMI) for adult men and women based on height and weight, providing BMI categories and ranges.
• Aim for a Healthy Weight A program providing science-based weight control information for patients, the public, and health professionals, including healthy eating plans, menu planners, recipes, and physical activity tips.
• COPD National Action Plan The first-ever blueprint for a multi-faceted, unified fight against COPD, providing a comprehensive framework for action by those affected by the disease.
• BioData Catalyst Research Platform A cloud-based ecosystem where researchers can analyze data related to NHLBI focus areas, including Long COVID, sickle cell disease, asthma, and heart disease.
• TOPMed (Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine) Program A program enabling researchers to use data from omics studies focused on heart disorders to predict, prevent, diagnose, and treat medical conditions based on patient genes, environment, and molecular signatures.
• NHLBI Publications and Resources Library A repository of patient and health-professional publications and resources covering NHLBI health topics such as asthma, heart disease, and sickle cell disease, available in multiple languages including English and Spanish.
• NHLBI Clinical Trials Participation Program A program enabling public participation in NHLBI-sponsored clinical trials and studies on heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders.
• NHLBI Research Grants and Training Programs Federal grants, contracts, training, and career-development programs supporting investigator-initiated research and workforce development in heart, lung, blood, and sleep sciences.

Quantifiable outcome

• 21.8% of intervention participants achieved blood pressure target of less than 120 mm Hg versus 15.1% in control group
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NIH-Funded International Research ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 May 2026NIH-funded researchers at 44 sites across North America and Europe conducted a large international study of nearly 2,700 patients over seven years to develop a new risk assessment model for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, published in JAMA.
• Longeveron Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 May 2026Collaboration through NIH grants for Phase 2b clinical trial (ELPIS II) evaluating laromestrocel stem cell therapy for hypoplastic left heart syndrome at 12 leading pediatric cardiac centers across the United States, with top-line results anticipated in August 2026.
• University of PennsylvaniacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 April 2026University of Pennsylvania researchers (Jin Bennett, Albert Maguire, Catherine A. Haig) won the 2026 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences ('Science Oscar') for developing gene therapy treatments producing Luxturna and enabling Casgevy CRISPR therapy.
• Federally Qualified Health Centers (Louisiana and Mississippi)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 April 2026NIH-funded clinical trial at 36 health centers demonstrating that team-based care intervention significantly reduced systolic blood pressure in low-income participants by more than 15 mm Hg compared with standard care, at approximately $760 per patient.
• Jackson State UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 February 2026Jackson State University received a 10-year, $14.5 million contract from NIH (NHLBI and National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities) to extend the Jackson Heart Study Graduate Training and Education Center, established in 2013 to prepare students for careers in biomedical and public health sciences. The university has received more than $25 million through NIH funding tied to its work on the Jackson Heart Study since 2013.
• Montreal Heart InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 December 2025First patient treated in pivotal clinical study for Thermedical's SERF Ablation System targeting ventricular tachycardia, expanding treatment options for patients with complex VT.
• University of Southern MississippicoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025University of Southern Mississippi was awarded a $14.5 million federal contract to establish the Jackson Heart Study Graduate Training and Education Center, developed by the College of Nursing and Health Professions' Gulf South Center, to train 10 graduate students annually in cardiovascular and public health research through a two-year program.
• Icahn School of Medicine at Mount SinaicoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 September 2025Mount Sinai awarded $3.32 million, four-year grant from NHLBI to study an AI-based tool that predicts cardiovascular event risk and treatment response among individuals with obstructive sleep apnea using transformer-based neural networks.
• Cornell Center for Health EquityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 July 2025Research collaboration with Cornell Center for Health Equity and NHLBI supporting home health care workforce research led by Senior Associate Dean Ariel Avgar and Dr. Madeline Sterling to elevate home health care workers.
• Harvard Medical SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2024Harvard Medical School researchers conducted study comparing GPT-3 AI diagnostic and triage accuracy against laypeople and physicians, funded by NHLBI, finding GPT-3 correctly diagnosed 88% of cases versus 54% for laypeople and 96% for physicians.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• National Cancer Institute: A peer NIH institute that funds and conducts biomedical research across basic, clinical, and population science; structurally identical to NHLBI but focused on oncology, making it the closest comparator for funding mechanisms, peer review, and intramural/extramural program design.
• National Institute on Aging: Another NIH sibling institute focused on aging research, sharing the same federal appropriation, grant-making, and intramural research model as NHLBI; structurally comparable and a useful funding-allocation peer.
• National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke: An NIH institute with an overlapping cardiovascular and translational-research portfolio (stroke intersects with NHLBI's vascular mission); uses the same study-section peer-review and grant mechanisms.
• National Human Genome Research Institute: NIH institute co-stewarding large omics and precision-medicine infrastructure (e.g., TOPMed collaborations); comparable in operating large-scale data platforms and cohort programs of similar nature to NHLBI's BioData Catalyst.

Broad incumbents

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: A peer federal public-health agency that complements NHLBI through surveillance, vital statistics, and population health programming; comparable in mission but differs by being disease-agnostic and emphasizing epidemiology versus mechanism-driven research.
• Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute: A federally funded research funder focused on comparative-effectiveness and patient-centered outcomes studies; competes with NHLBI for some implementation-research dollars and shares the multi-site clinical trial operating model.
• American Heart Association: A large nonprofit that funds cardiovascular research and runs national awareness campaigns (Go Red for Women is analogous to The Heart Truth®); complements NHLBI's mission through private fundraising, peer-reviewed grants, and public education at much larger scale than NHLBI's awareness budgets.
• National Science Foundation: A federal agency that co-funds basic biomedical and data-science research with NIH; relevant peer for grant-making scale and workforce-training programs, though broader in scope across all scientific disciplines.

Emerging players

• Howard Hughes Medical Institute: A large private biomedical research organization supporting investigator-initiated science at universities; comparable in funding model but operates without federal appropriation and pursues higher-risk, mechanistic research overlapping NHLBI's extramural portfolio.
• American Lung Association: A nonprofit funder and advocate for lung-health research, mirroring NHLBI's lung-disease mission through private grants and the Learn More Breathe Better®-adjacent awareness work; smaller in absolute funding but mission-adjacent.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/NIH
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/NHLBI
• Facebookfacebook.com/nih.gov
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/national-institutes-of-health

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments67 records

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Frequently asked questions about National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute