Key Dates
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National Institute on Aging (NIA)
This Notice informs the research community that the National Institute on Aging (NIA) intends to issue a limited competition Request for Applications (RFA) for applications to provide critical network support for advancing development in a specific high-priority area of behavioral and social research on Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and AD-related dementias (ADRD): The Harmonized Cognitive Assessment Protocol (HCAP) Network. Network activities include, but are not limited to: meetings to develop novel research areas and strategize on the development of infrastructure; small-scale pilots to test or tailor measures in new populations or contexts; development of guidance on selected topics such as biomarkers, diagnosis and classification of dementia, protocol development, fieldwork challenges, statistical harmonization, and analytic methods; educational activities such as intensive summer institutes, series of workshops and related network activities, or advanced seminars on methodology; dissemination and outreach activities; and coordination of activities with other related networks on AD/ADRD.
This Notice is being provided to allow potential applicants sufficient time to develop meaningful collaborations and responsive projects.
The NOFO is expected to be published in Fall 2023 with an application due date in November 2023.
This NOFO will utilize the Resource-Related Research Projects – Cooperative Agreements (U24) activity code. Details of the planned NOFO are provided below.
NIA’s Division of Behavioral and Social Research (BSR) supports basic behavioral, social, psychological, and economic research and research training on the processes of aging at both the individual and societal level. A summary of BSR research objectives is available on the NIA website and in the report from the 2019 National Advisory Council on Aging Review of the BSR program. Though a significant portion of research supported by BSR in pursuit of NIA's mission falls within a specific discipline or field, the division encourages transdisciplinary approaches to behavioral and social research.
BSR’s AD/ADRD priority areas in Cognitive and Dementia Epidemiology and Behavioral and Social Pathways to AD/ADRD, as well as AD/ADRD milestones 1C. Diverse new cohorts and 2.J Disease mechanisms: Social and psychosocial factors motivate the goals of: 1) providing the research community with comparable estimates of AD/ADRD across countries, and 2) supporting cross-national research on AD/ADRD that can help us better understand how aging in different institutional, policy, environmental, economic, social, geographical, and cultural contexts can lead to different AD/ADRD-related outcomes for individuals and populations.
The Harmonized Cognitive Assessment Protocol (HCAP), a sub-study of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), provides a framework to achieve these goals. HCAP seeks to measure and understand dementia risk by using a selected set of established cognitive and neuropsychological assessments, as well as informant reports, to better characterize cognitive function among older people.
While typical research grants support research and data production for many areas of behavioral and social science in aging, some emerging, transdisciplinary, and high-priority research areas require more nimble resources to flourish. NIA has successfully fostered such research areas through the development of research “networks,” flexible programs intended to support the creation of innovative research and research resources. BSR utilized the network approach to advance the adoption of the HCAP internationally, thereby accelerating the study of international differences in the prevalence, incidence, and outcomes of dementia globally with comparable data. The HCAP Network has facilitated the fielding of similar HCAP projects in multiple countries around the world through numerous coordination activities. To date, HCAP data has been collected in seven countries: the U.S., England, Mexico, Chile, India, China, and South Africa. In addition, data collection is planned or has been initiated in the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Northern Ireland, the Dominican Republic, Lebanon, and Nepal.
With additional waves of the HCAP studies across countries, harmonization of data and coordinated analyses will be vital. Thus, there is a need for continued support for a network focused on these activities.
This NOFO invites applications to support the continuation of the HCAP Network. This network supports harmonization and collaboration across international studies conducting the HCAP, which provides new and rich data to study the prevalence, predictors, outcomes, and future trends in cognitive functioning and dementia, as well as cross-national comparisons.
Network support includes all activities designed to bring together leading scientists across disciplines and institutions to develop resources for HCAP Network members. The application should explain how the proposed network will have a substantial impact on the progress and quality of behavioral and social research on AD/ADRD using HCAP and associated HRS international studies by virtue of the proposed activities. Networks are intended to serve the broader community of behavioral and social researchers engaged in AD/ADRD-relevant research in cognitive and dementia epidemiology and are consequently unlikely to be limited to a single institution.
Examples of network support activities include, but are not limited to:
- Meetings, both large and small, to develop novel research areas and strategize on the development of infrastructure related to the HCAP.
- Small-scale pilots to test or tailor measures in new populations or contexts; develop data, theoretical frameworks, or empirical methods; or support the development of novel or high-risk approaches requiring interdisciplinary collaboration.
- Educational activities such as intensive summer institutes, series of workshops and related network activities, advanced seminars on methodology, or short-term residential opportunities including exchanges of scientists and trainees across the international partners.
- Development of guidance on selected topics such as biomarkers, diagnosis and classification of dementia, protocol development, fieldwork challenges, statistical harmonization, and analytic methods to current members of the HCAP International AD/ADRD Research Network as well to new/potential entrants into the HCAP family of studies.
- Dissemination and outreach activities to draw researchers from relevant disciplines into the field and broaden awareness of the HCAP.
- Coordination of activities with other related networks on AD/ADRD and other networks harmonizing the HRS family of studies.
The networking, education, and infrastructure-building activities required for these efforts are rarely covered under an individual grant and often do not fit the timelines for typical support mechanisms. Furthermore, the researchers that can support a successful network in an emerging area often span multiple disciplines and are rarely located at a single institution. Therefore, this NOFO is designed to provide the research resources and network development needed to create opportunities to shape the direction of an emerging field.
Funding Information
NIA intends to commit $600,000 in fiscal year 2024.
NIA intends to fund 1 award.
Application budgets are limited to $385,000 in direct costs and need to reflect the actual needs of the proposed project.
93.866
Private Institution of Higher Education
Nonprofit with 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institution of Higher Education)
Small Business
For-Profit Organization (Other than Small Business)
State Government
Indian/Native American Tribal Government (Federally Recognized)
County governments
Independent school districts
Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities
Indian/Native American Tribally Designated Organization (Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
U.S. Territory or Possession
Indian/Native American Tribal Government (Other than Federally Recognized)
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entity (Foreign Organization)
Regional Organization
Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government
Applications are not being solicited at this time.
The purpose of this limited competition NOFO is to continue implementation of the HCAP Network. Continuation of this Network requires both familiarity with HCAP and experience leading networks. Therefore, this NOFO is limited to applicants with both sets of skills.
Inquiries
Minki Chatterji, Ph.D.
National Institute on Aging (NIA)
Telephone: 301-402-8788
Email: Minki.Chatterji@nih.gov
and Human Services (HHS)
