Funding Opportunities

The goal of this Notice of Special Interest (NOSI) is to encourage the use of existing cohorts and datasets for well-focused secondary analyses to investigate novel scientific ideas and/or address clinically related issues on: (1) aging changes influencing health across the lifespan (e.g., Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Alzheimer's disease-related dementias (ADRD)), (2) diseases and disabilities in older persons, and/or (3) the changes in basic biology of aging that underlie these impacts on health (the hallmarks of aging). Activities of high priority include those addressing specific hypotheses in basic biological research, clinical aging research, behavioral or social research, and/or translational geroscience to inform: the design and implementation of future epidemiologic or human intervention studies; interventions in animal models of aging; research on behavioral and social factors over the life course that influence health (e.g., early life adversity); current geriatric practice in maintenance of health, disease management, and prevention of disability; or research testing of possible causal relationships between rates of aging and findings extracted by secondary analysis of the existing data. Existing datasets may also be used to develop and test new mathematical modeling and statistical analytical approaches. Analyses of sex and/or gender differences across health disparity groups (e.g., racial and ethnic groups, socioeconomic status, and sexual and gender minorities) are of high relevance. Use of cohorts that are linked to electronic health record systems and/or Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) administrative data are especially welcome.

The National Institute on Aging (NIA) is issuing this Notice of Special Interest (NOSI) to encourage analyses of the unique research resources generated by the CALERIE (Comprehensive Assessment of Long-term Effects of Reducing Intake of Energy) trial to improve our understanding of the effects of sustained caloric restriction (CR) in humans and its underlying mechanisms. NIA invites applications for innovative research (R01) projects and exploratory research (R21) projects which leverage the CALERIE Phase 2: 1) biological datasets and biospecimens and/or 2) the CALERIE Tracking System (CTS) behavioral database to address novel hypotheses on the following areas: Biological, phenotypic, and functional aging, and their related pathways, Risk factors for chronic diseases and the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms, and Behavioral and psychological aspects of sustained CR. The CALERIE research resources are broadly accessible to investigators through the NIA Aging Research Biobank. Prior to any submission of an application for the analysis of CALERIE biospecimens, a request to access the CALERIE biospecimens must be submitted to the NIA Aging Research Biobank and approved by the NIA Biobank Scientific Review Committee. Prospective applicants are strongly advised to seek the necessary permissions well in advance of the anticipated submission date for their applications.

Supports the development of early-stage or new data repositories or knowledgebases that could be valuable for the biomedical research community. The overall goal is to support pilot activities that demonstrate the need and potential impact of the data resource.

The objective of this funding is to support established biomedical data resources, that have demonstrated impact and have potential for continued benefit to the mission of one or more of the NIH Institutes and Centers participating in this announcement.