This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) encourages collaborative research applications on drug abuse and addiction that take advantage of special opportunities that exist outside the United States. Special opportunities include access to unusual talent, resources, populations, or environmental conditions in other countries that will speed scientific discovery. Projects should have relevance to the mission of NIDA and where feasible should address NIDA's international scientific priority areas (http://www.drugabuse.gov/international/research-priorities). While the priorities will change from year to year, in FY15 priority areas include: linkages between HIV/AIDS and drug abuse; prevention, initiation, and treatment of nicotine and tobacco use (especially among vulnerable populations such as children, adolescents, pregnant women, and those with co-morbid disorders); the neuroscience of marijuana and cannabinoids; and the effect of changes in laws and policies on marijuana and its impact.
Despite significant scientific advancements made in substance use disorder research over the last century, the causes and consequences of drug use in later life remain poorly understood. The intent of this funding opportunity announcement is to support innovative research that examines aspects of marijuana and prescription opioid and benzodiazepine use in adults aged 50 and older. This FOA encourages research that examines the determinants of these types of drug use and/or characterizes the resulting neurobiological alterations, associated behaviors, and public health consequences. This initiative will focus on two distinct populations of older adults: individuals with earlier onset of drug use who are now entering this stage of adult development or individuals who initiate drug use after the age of 50. Applications are encouraged to utilize broad methodologies ranging from basic science, clinical, and epidemiological approaches. The insights gleaned from this initiative are critical to our understanding of the determinants of drug use in later life, as well as its consequences in the aging brain and on behavior. This knowledge may have the potential to identify risk factors and to guide clinical practices in older populations.
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