The Alzheimer's Disease Research Center's (ADRC) competing renewal application for funding for years 26-30 is due May 2009. In addition to continued support for the ADRC's Cores (Clinical, Neuropathology, Data Management and Statistics, Genetics, Education, Administration), the renewal will fund up to 3 small R01-like projects for 5 years each. The anticipated level of funding for each of these projects is $100,000 to 115,000 annually (direct costs). The project start date is expected to be 5-1-2010.

Research Projects
Applications should request funding for two or three research projects (similar to small R01s). The research projects should request up to five years of funding and propose studies that will advance our understanding of the basic and clinical underpinnings of Alzheimer's Disease and related disorders. Projects may focus on areas such as preclinical etiology, genetics, pathogenesis, epidemiology, diagnosis, therapeutic interventions including small scale clinical trials, patient management, and caregiver issues.  Projects that are translational, focusing on drug discovery or preclinical drug development for Alzheimer's Disease or other neurodegenerative diseases are also encouraged. These may focus on: validation of new therapeutic targets, development of new assays or animal models, screening of candidate compounds or acquisition of preliminary preclinical efficacy data. The projects should be similar in quality to small R01 grants and subprojects of program project grants. It is required that at least one of the projects predominantly utilize patients or patient samples from the clinical core or neuropathology resources. As part of the mission of the Centers program is to train and encourage new researchers in the field of Alzheimer's Disease, at least one of the projects must be led by a junior investigator (to include post doctoral fellows and junior faculty who have not yet had NIH R01 grant support) or someone new to the field.

Interested investigators are asked to contact This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it  or This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it   with questions or for additional information. Short proposals (an abstract and specific aims, as well as noting whether ADRC Core resources will be used) for possible projects to be included in the renewal application that will be submitted by the Director & Principal Investigator on June 1, 2008 are welcomed. The ADRC leadership will review
all submissions; some will be selected for presentation to our External Advisory Committee on June 25 for their input.

Selected paragraphs from the current RFA for the Centers program are provided below to give more information about the scope of the ADRC's mission and about the projects. The complete RFA can be found at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-AG-09-001.html

"The principal aim of the ADRCs should be to enhance the performance of innovative research on AD and related topics, including research that may lead to potential disease modifying therapy or behavioral or other symptom treatments.  Centers are requested to concentrate their attention on better defining normal aging and the transition from normal aging to MCI to the earliest stages of dementia, whether AD itself or other dementias associated with aging. Clinical and pathological information about the earliest cognitive changes is now beginning to make it possible
to develop strategies to prevent the disease from developing or slow its progression. Attention should also be paid
to mixed dementias and overlapping neurodegenerative syndromes that sometimes occur with AD, as well as co-occurring conditions in other organ systems that may contribute to clinical dementia.

Centers are expected to provide an environment and core resources which will enhance cutting-edge research by bringing together biomedical, behavioral, and clinical investigators to study the etiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of AD, and to improve health care delivery. Centers should also foster the development
of new lines of research and provide a rich training environment for fellows and junior faculty to acquire research skills and experience in interdisciplinary AD research. The Centers provide investigators and research groups with well-characterized patients and control subjects, family information, and brain tissue and biological specimens. Centers should incorporate contemporary biochemical/molecular techniques and pursue research, when feasible, in genomics, epigenomics, proteomics and metabolomics. Centers are encouraged to develop in accordance with local talents, interests, and resources, but should also be responsive to national needs related to AD.

The ADRCs provide a mechanism for fostering and coordinating the interdisciplinary cooperation of a group of established investigators conducting programs of research on AD and related dementing disorders of older people.  The central focus may be translational research, clinical - pathological research, basic research or a combination. Applicants are strongly encouraged to include efforts to address the needs of, and research on, ethnically and
racially diverse people as well as other underserved populations.