Cleared concepts: An early heads-up for savvy scientists seeking funding
February 13, 2019

Marie A. BERNARD [Former NIA Staff],
Deputy Director,
Office of the Director (OD).

Our most recent National Advisory Council on Aging meeting yielded a bumper crop of new cleared concepts for NIA funding opportunity announcements (FOAs). Since there were no new concepts from the last Council meeting in September, we are pleased to have a feast of interesting opportunities and ideas to share with the research community this time around.

The fine print

As in the past, we’ve published summaries of the newly cleared concepts on our website, along with contact information for the appropriate NIA program staff for each. Please note that these listings do not include award mechanisms or funding allocations, which won’t be  set until the FOAs are developed for official publication in the NIH Guide.

We first began posting cleared concepts in fall 2016, and they have since been enthusiastically received by our scientific community. We hope that this is a valuable early notice to our readers and their colleagues, and we look forward to continuing this service in future posts.

The envelope please

Without further ado, here are the most recent crop of approved concepts:

• Aging, Driving and Early Detection of Dementia
• Basic Biology of Aging in Reproductive Tissues
• Cognitive Systems Analysis of Alzheimer’s Disease Genetic and Clinical Data
• Dementia Care: Home- and Community-Based Services (HCBS)
• Early Career VA Physician-Scientist Award for Mentored Research in Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and AD-Related Dementias (ADRD)
• Enabling Storage, Processing, and Sharing of Standardized Alzheimer’s and Related Dementia Neuroimaging Biomarkers
• Expansion of the Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Centers (OAICs)
• Genome Center for Alzheimer’s Disease (GCAD)
• Increasing Competitiveness of Potential Alzheimer’s Disease Centers (ADCs)
• Increasing Research Capacity in Behavioral and Social Science Research on Alzheimer’s Disease and AD-Related Dementias
• Infectious Etiology of Alzheimer's Disease
• Innovations to Foster Healthy Longevity in Low-Income Settings
• Interpersonal Processes in AD/ADRD Clinical Settings
• Lucidity in Dementia
• Non-invasive Neurostimulation in AD/ADRD
• National Research Service Award  (NRSA) Short-Term Institutional Research Training Grant
• Oscillatory Pattern of Gene Expression in Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease
• Proposed NIA Initiative on Early-Stage T1 Translational Aging Research (Bench to Bedside)
• Regulation of Brain Regional and Cell Type Specific Proteome Dynamics in Normal Brain Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease
• Renewal of the Grants for Early Medical/Surgical Specialists’ Transition to Aging Research (GEMSSTAR) Program
• Renewal of the Nathan Shock Centers of Excellence in the Biology of Aging
• Science of Behavior Change (SOBC) Resource and Coordinating Center
• Stimulating Multidisciplinary Programs for AD/ADRD
• Tailoring Interventions to Improve Preventive Health Service Use
• Transition to Aging Research Award for Predoctoral Students
• Understanding Senescence in Brain Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease

Time to start planning and preparing

Now that the latest concepts are released, it’s an excellent time for researchers in corresponding fields of study to get an early start brainstorming on how you might respond to possible future related Program Announcements, Requests for Applications, or Notices of Special Interest. This planning should include taking stock of personnel, facilities, and other necessary resources to make sure they will be sufficient to investigate your desired topic. It’s also never a bad idea to begin holding informal discussions with colleagues about strategies to attack a problem or topic and to begin game-planning ideas.

Lastly, a reminder to regularly monitor the NIH Guide (or better yet, subscribe to it) and bookmark the NIA Grants and Funding page. You can also subscribe to receive a monthly e-alert of the latest funding opportunities.

Above all, we share these concepts because we value your input. We hope they are a helpful resource. Please read up on them, then get in touch with program staff with questions or comments, or comment below on this post. We look forward to hearing from you as you explore these invigorating new ideas!