Notice of Special Interest: Alzheimer’s-Focused Administrative Supplements for NIH Grants that are Not Focused on Alzheimer’s Disease
Notice Number:
NOT-AG-22-025

Key Dates

Release Date:

July 7, 2022

First Available Due Date:
October 01, 2022
Expiration Date:
October 02, 2022

Related Announcements

PA-20-272 - Administrative Supplements to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Parent Admin Supp Clinical Trial Optional)

Issued by

National Institute on Aging (NIA)

National Eye Institute (NEI)

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)

National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)

National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)

National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB)

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)

National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)

National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)

National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)

National Library of Medicine (NLM)

Fogarty International Center (FIC)

National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

All applications to this funding opportunity announcement should fall within the mission of the Institutes/Centers. The following NIH Offices may co-fund applications assigned to those Institutes/Centers.

Division of Program Coordination, Planning and Strategic Initiatives, Office of Research Infrastructure Programs (ORIP)

Purpose

The participating Institutes and Centers (ICs) are inviting applications to expand existing awards that are not currently focused on Alzheimer’s disease and its related dementias (AD/ADRD)—frontotemporal dementia, Lewy body dementia, Vascular Contributions to Cognitive Impairment and Dementia (VCID), and multiple etiology dementias—to allow the research to develop such a focus. Active awards with project end dates in FY 2024 or later are eligible. The award may not be in a terminal no-cost extension or going into a no-cost extension in FY 2023. Please note that a few ICs limit no-cost extensions in the final non-competing year of an award. For that reason, it is important to contact staff at the IC supporting the award when planning the request.

As administrative supplements, the work proposed needs to be within the scope of the research or training that is already supported. Center awards and resource awards are most likely to be able to justify these supplements, as they tend to have a broad content scope. Some research grants will also qualify if the current research is on a related topic (such as cognitive decline in aging, caregiving, the biology of neurodegeneration, genetics, imaging, computational methods, pain perception, or biostatistical tools that have application to research on AD/ADRD). NIA hosts a website that provides details on how Alzheimer’s disease and its related dementias are defined and some examples of currently supported research. Awardees are expected to seek competing support to continue promising leads from the research supported through the supplement. Additional information on areas of interest and funding opportunity announcements can be found here: Funding Opportunities | National Institute on Aging (nih.gov).

Awards that currently focus on research on Alzheimer’s disease or its related dementias are not eligible for this program. If an investigator is uncertain whether the project does carry an Alzheimer’s focus as defined by NIH, then the investigator may contact the appropriate program officer who can check that status. (For example, the parent award may be focusing on cognitive change due to chemotherapy in cancer patients. Does that research have a current focus on Alzheimer’s or its related dementias? Contact the program officer for the award to check its status.)

Institute-, Center-, and Office-Specific Information

National Eye Institute

The National Eye Institute (www.nei.nih.gov) supports basic and clinical research into diseases and disorders of the visual system and the special needs of people with impaired vision or who are blind. NEI supports research in many areas that pertain to Alzheimer’s disease and its related dementias. These include but are not limited to: molecular signaling in the cornea, lens, and retina, degeneration of the optic nerve and brain tissue, and the decline of visual cognition in cases of dementia. Particularly appropriate for this supplement are studies that compare visual system biology in normal animals to that observed in animal models of Alzheimer’s disease.

National Human Genome Research Institute

NHGRI will support studies that provide generalizable methods and knowledge in all three scientific areas of genome sciences, genomic medicine and genomics and society. Work proposed in supplements must fall within the scope of the aims of the NHGRI grant to be supplemented.

Investigators are encouraged to contact their NHGRI Scientific Program Officer for the grant to be supplemented before preparing an application, to discuss the relevance of the proposed research to the parent grant and to the Institute's research priorities.

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

NIAAA is interested in understanding alcohol’s impacts on the onset and progression of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and its related dementias (AD/ADRD). The research areas include, but not limited to:

  • Determine the effects of alcohol on pathology and cognitive decline associated with onset and progression of dementias across a spectrum of alcohol drinking patterns.
  • Examine the fundamental mechanism underlying alcohol effects on the vulnerability to the cognitive impairments associated with dementias.
  • Determine how alcohol’s effects on the multi-organ systems contribute to the pathology and cognitive changes associated with dementias.
  • Investigate how possible interactions of alcohol-related peripheral immune disruption may contribute to dementias.
  • Investigate sex differences in alcohol’s impact on the vulnerability to develop dementias and the disease progression.
  • Examine how alcohol’s effects on neuroinflammation, neuroimmune interactions, and the neurovascular system contribute to the pathology and cognitive impairments associated with dementias.
  • Determine how alcohol exposure across the lifespan, including prenatal or adolescent alcohol exposure, impacts susceptibility to and development of dementias.

Investigators are encouraged to contact their NIAAA Scientific Program Officer for the grant to be supplemented before preparing an application to discuss the relevance of the proposed research to the parent grant and to the Institute's research priorities.

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

NICHD is particularly interested in studies that explore the linkages between early life events and later development of Alzheimer’s disease and its related dementias (AD/ADRD). Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The linkages between pregnancy complications such as hypertension and preeclampsia and later development of dementia
  • The connection between pediatric CNS infections and post-infectious complications and/or effects of in utero exposure to infection/inflammation and later development of dementia
  • The role of head trauma and brain injury in the later development of dementia and the possible benefit of rehabilitation interventions for cognition and gait/balance in AD/ADRD
  • The significantly increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease in adults with Down syndrome
  • Population-representative data that examines how cognitive changes in later life are affected by exposures and experiences during early life, and by social determinants—directly and through interaction with biological variables
  • The use of statistical modeling to address issues related to the development and treatment of cognitive decline leading to AD/ADRD

Investigators are encouraged to contact their NICHD Scientific Program Officer before preparing an application to discuss the relevance of the proposed research to the parent grant and to the Institute's research priorities

National Institute of Nursing Research

The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) supports research to solve pressing health challenges and inform practice and policy - optimizing health and advancing health equity into the future. NINR discovers solutions to health challenges through the lenses of health equity, social determinants of health, population and community health, prevention and health promotion, and systems and models of care. Drawing on the strengths of nursing’s holistic, contextualized perspective, core values, and broad reach, NINR funds multilevel and cross-sectoral research that examines the factors that impact health across the many settings in which nurses work, including homes, schools, workplaces, clinics, justice settings, and the community. Observational, intervention, and implementation research are of interest.

National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities

NIMHD is interested in supporting multi-level, multi-domain research (see the NIMHD Research Framework, https://www.nimhd.nih.gov/about/overview/research-framework.html) that examines Alzheimer’s disease and its related dementias (AD/ADRD) risk, incidence, morbidity, and mortality in U.S. populations that experience health disparities. NIH-designated health disparity populations include Blacks/African Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, American Indians/Alaska Natives, Asians, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders, socioeconomically disadvantaged populations, underserved rural populations, and sexual and gender minorities. Studies may include, but are not limited to, multidisciplinary translational, biobehavioral, epidemiological, or health services research projects. Additionally, projects can involve primary and/or secondary data collection and analyses.

Priority areas of interest include, but are not limited to:

  • How multiple health determinants (social, environmental, biological/genetic/epigenetic, psychosocial, economic, and health care) contribute to AD/ADRD risk, incidence, age of onset, morbidity and mortality in health disparity populations.
  • How geographic and neighborhood-level factors contribute to AD/ADRD risk, resilience, and health outcomes in health disparity populations.
  • The role of access to and quality of care related to AD/ADRD risk assessment, diagnosis, and treatment in AD/ADRD-related health disparities.
  • Trajectories of AD/ADRD risk and resilience across the life course in the context of the NIMHD research framework.

National Cancer Institute

Aging is a significant risk factor for most adult-onset cancers and Alzheimer’s disease and its related dementias. Examples of research areas in NCI’s award portfolio that might qualify for this administrative supplement program include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Biologic and genetic mechanisms of cancer and aging
  • Preclinical drug/drug combination development in an aging context
  • Cancer- and cancer treatment-related neurocognitive function
  • Treatment tolerability, toxicity, and symptom management
  • Behavioral and social risk factors and outcomes
  • Attention, sensation, and perception
  • Geriatric assessment
  • Epidemiologic cohort studies of cancer risk or survivorship
  • Premature/accelerated/accentuated aging in those with a history of cancer
  • Financial toxicity
  • Cancer caregiving
  • Clinical trial development for, and accrual of, older adults
  • Transitions in care and models of health care delivery
  • Multimorbidity/multiple chronic conditions
  • Computational methods, biostatistical tools, and measurement development
  • Imaging and image-guided cancer intervention

While not a research area per se, the inclusion of underserved and understudied populations in research studies is encouraged.

Review Process

Each IC will conduct administrative reviews of applications from their IC separately. NIA will make funds available to each of the participating ICs, provided that sufficient funds are available.

Criteria:

  1. Is the work proposed within the scope of the active award?
  2. Is the work proposed focused on Alzheimer’s disease or its related dementias?
  3. Is the work likely to stimulate additional activity leading to progress on any, or all, of these dementias?

Application and Submission Information

Applications for this initiative must be submitted using the following opportunity or its subsequent reissued equivalent.

  • PA-20-272 - Administrative Supplements to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Parent Admin Supp Clinical Trial Optional)

All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide and PA-20-272 must be followed, with the following additions:

  • Application Due Date(s) – October 1, 2022 by 5:00 PM local time of applicant organization.
  • For funding consideration, applicants must include “NOT-AG-22-025” (without quotation marks) in the Agency Routing Identifier field (box 4B) of the SF424 R&R form. Applications without this information in box 4B will not be considered for this initiative.
  • Only electronic submissions will be accepted for this funding opportunity. Use one of the methods described in PA-20-272. Paper submissions and applications submitted as attachments will be returned.
  • Requests may be for one year of support only.
  • Individual requests can be no more than $250,000 in direct costs exclusive of Facilities and Administrative costs on sub-contracts but cannot exceed the direct costs of the parent award and must reflect the actual needs of the proposed project.
  • The proposed budget period must be within the project period of the parent award.
  • Requests must also adhere to the funding caps associated with the respective parent FOA (e.g., salary caps on K’s, SBIR/STTR limits, etc.).
  • The Research Strategy section of the application is limited to 6 pages.
  • Applicants may apply for more than one supplement to a given parent grant/award, provided they are scientifically distinct.
  • As part of the application, investigators must submit an abstract of the proposed research that shows the relevance to Alzheimer’s disease and/or its related dementias. Place the abstract in the Project Summary/Abstract section of the SF424 (R&R) form. The work may include pilot projects or resource development.

Inquiries

Please direct all inquiries to:

Rene Etcheberrigaray, M.D.
National Institute on Aging (NIA)
Telephone: 301-451-9798
Email: rene.etcheberrigaray@nih.gov

Martha C. Flanders
National Eye Institute (NEI)
Phone: 301-827-5191
Email: martha.flanders@nih.gov

Jue Chen
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Phone: 301-435-0532
Email: chenj19@nhlbi.nih.gov

Bettie Graham
National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)
Phone: 301-496-7531
Email: grahamb@odder.nhgri.nih.gov

Abraham P. Bautista, Ph.D.
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
Phone: 301-443-9737
Email: bautista@mail.nih.gov

Michael Minnicozzi, Ph.D.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
Phone: 240-627-3532
Email: minnicozzim@niaid.nih.gov

Jana S. Eisenstein
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)
Email: jana.eisenstein@nih.gov

Randy Lee King
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB)
Phone: 301-451-0707
Email: randy.king@nih.gov

Melissa Parisi, MD, PhD
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Phone: 301-435-6880
Email: parisima@mail.nih.gov

Judith Cooper, Ph.D.
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
Phone: 301-496-5061
Email: cooperj@nidcd.nih.gov

Preethi Chander, PhD
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
Phone: 301-827-4620 
Email: preethi.chander@nih.gov

Brad Cooke, Ph.D.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
Phone: 301-480-9896
Email: brad.cooke@nih.gov

Roger Little, Ph.D.
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Phone: 301-435-1316
Email: Roger.Little@nih.gov

Jonathan Hollander, Ph.D.
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
Phone: 984-287-3269
Email: jonathan.hollander@nih.gov

Paula F. Flicker
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Email: flickerp@nigms.nih.gov

Jovier Evans, Ph.D.
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Phone: 301-443-6328
Email: jevans1@mail.nih.gov

Keith William Whitaker, Ph.D.
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
Phone: 301-496-5680
Email: keith.whitaker@nih.gov

Karen A. Kehl, Ph.D., RN
National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
Phone: 301-594-8010
Email: karen.kehl@nih.gov

Priscah Mujuru, DrPH, MPH, RN
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)
Phone: 301-594-9765
Email: mujurup@mail.nih.gov

Meryl Sufian
National Library of Medicine (NLM)
Phone: 301-761-6249
Email: sufianm@mail.nih.gov

Unja Hayes
Fogarty International Center (FIC)
Phone: 301-827-6830
Email: unja.hayes@nih.gov

E-mail: Emrin Horgusluoglu, Ph.D.
National Center for Complementary & Integrative Health (NCCIH)
Phone: 240-383-5302
Email: emrin.horgusluoglu-moloch@nih.gov

Paige Green, Ph.D., MPH
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Phone: 240-276-6899
Email: paige.green@nih.gov

Oleg Mirochnitchenko
Office of Research Infrastructure Programs (ORIP)
Phone: 301-435-0748
Email: mirochnitcheno@mail.nih.gov