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The purpose of this funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is to 1) expand the collection of clinical data and biological specimens in the NINDS Parkinsons Disease Biomarkers Program (PDBP), a community research resource, to include data from patients with Lewy Body Dementias (including Dementia with Lewy Bodies and Parkinson's Disease with Dementia), and 2) to support hypothesis-driven clinical research to discover biomarkers that will improve the efficiency and outcome of Phase II clinical trials for the Lewy Body dementias and to provide an expansion of this existing research resource center for dissemination of information and access by the scientific community for further advancing research in this field. Applications may include both of these goals if justified.

The purpose of this funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is to 1) expand the collection of clinical data and biological specimens in the NINDS Parkinsons Disease Biomarkers Program (PDBP), a community research resource, to include data from patients with Lewy Body Dementias (including Dementia with Lewy Bodies and Parkinson's Disease with Dementia), and 2) to support hypothesis-driven clinical research to discover biomarkers that will improve the efficiency and outcome of Phase II clinical trials for the Lewy Body dementias and to provide an expansion of this existing research resource center for dissemination of information and access by the scientific community for further advancing research in this field. Applications may include both of these goals if justified.

In May of 2013 the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), with input from the National Institute on Aging (NIA), held an Alzheimer's Disease-Related Dementias Conference in response to the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease. The Conference brought together national and international experts and members of the public to develop research priorities for accelerating the development of therapies for the Alzheimer's disease-related dementias (ADRDs). The ADRD 2013 research recommendations that resulted are part of the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease. This FOA addresses the National Plan's highest priority for human-based research on vascular contributions to cognitive impairment and dementia (VCID): to develop noninvasive markers of key vascular processes related to VCID in Alzheimer's and related dementias. The research program initiated here underscores the need to facilitate the development of biomarkers to improve the efficiency and outcome of Phase II and III clinical trials and advance therapeutic development. These companion FOAs (RFA-NS-16-019, i.e. this FOA; and RFA-NS-16-020 for the Biomarkers Development Projects) establish the Small Vessel VCID Biomarkers Consortium, and are focused on small vessel (i.e. arterioles, capillaries, and venules) VCID in vascular cognitive impairment (VCI), vascular dementia, and all mixed and pure cognitive impairment and dementias with contributing small vessel vascular disease, including such as commonly occurs in sporadic Alzheimer's disease. Awards funded under these two FOAs create a consortium and infrastructure to complete development projects as well as planning that will enable follow-up activities (to be carried out under future separate funding; for example large scale multi-site validation studies and other activities, for future FDA qualification of small vessel VCID biomarkers and use in clinical trials).

The purpose of this funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is to support hypothesis-testing research on the systems, cellular and/or molecular mechanisms and consequences of TDP-43 proteinopathy in common dementias using whole animal models, animal/human cellular model systems, as well as postmortem tissue and other biospecimens. Research on TDP-43 proteinopathy in common dementias, including the clinical syndrome of Alzheimer's disease (AD), multiple etiology dementias (MED) and related dementia syndromes is the focus of this FOA. In addition, comparative studies of TDP-43 proteinopathy in common and rare neurodegenerative diseases, as well as during normal aging and in pre-symptomatic disease stages are within scope.

The goal of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to encourage biomedical, behavioral and social sciences research that will enhance knowledge of mechanisms underlying neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) in persons with Alzheimer's disease (AD) or Alzheimer's disease-related dementias (ADRD) so as to enable novel treatment development. NPS, or Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD), include aggression, psychosis, anxiety, apathy, depression, agitation, sleep disturbances and wandering, and can be significant challenges to the care and treatment of people with dementia. These symptoms lead to accelerated declines in both functional abilities and may lead to earlier nursing home placement. Currently, few pharmacological treatments are available. In addition, there is a need to understand behavioral and environmental targets to further refine and develop promising behavioral treatments for these disorders.  

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) supports the development of PET radioligands that identify proteinopathies or pathological processes associated with the human biology of Alzheimer's disease related dementias (ADRDs). Activities supported under this FOA include, but are not limited to the in vitro screening of existing ligands against human ADRD brain tissue, medicinal chemistry support for development of new compounds and improvement of existing ligand specificity and selectivity, initial screening of ligands in appropriate animal models, and radioligand formulation and first-in-human testing. The Center without Walls should encompass research that will move promising ligands through in vitro and in vivo optimization to first-in-human studies. Applications must include an administrative core, a medicinal chemistry core, a clinical core, a scientific governance structure, and a minimum of two research projects with milestone plans that address workflows for screening of existing and newly derived ligands against human ADRD tissue and appropriate animal models. Synergy must be evident among Center research projects and cores, such that successful completion of the aims could not be accomplished without the Center structure. This FOA is in response to the Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (ADRD) challenges outlined in the 2016 update to the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease.

The purpose of the FOA is to support the structural characterization of protein species associated with Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (ADRDs) through the utilization of cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) and cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET) of proteins expressed in human tissue and cell sources. Studies in response to this RFA should also include the development of research tools and resources to further characterize/validate the protein species. This FOA is in response to the Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (ADRD) challenges outlined in the 2016 update to the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease.

The National Institute on Aging is seeking applications on systems biology approaches using non-mammalian laboratory animal models to increase our understanding of the basic biology underpinning neurodegeneration. It is expected that research supported under this FOA will provide new insights into molecular networks that might be involved in causing, amplifying or protecting against neurodegeneration, and that, in turn, might ultimately contribute to Alzheimer's disease or related dementias. Importantly, a major goal of this FOA is to use interaction and regulatory networks produced and analyzed using systems biology to gain these new insights. Because this FOA is directed toward discovery, currently employed genetically modified laboratory animals used to study AD are not required, although they may be used. Because this FOA requires systems biology approaches, data used to build interaction or regulatory networks may also come from humans or other mammals in which AD, related dementias, or aging-related cognitive decline have been observed. This FOA will only support studies using non-mammalian laboratory animal models; studies involving humans or experiments with mammals will not be allowed under this FOA.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) invites applications for P30 Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers. NIA-designated Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers (ADRCs) serve as major sources of discovery into the nature of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related dementias and into the development of more effective approaches to prevention, diagnosis, care, and therapy. They contribute significantly to the development of shared resources that support dementia-relevant research, and they collaborate and coordinate their research efforts with other NIH-funded programs and investigators.

The Diagnostics Accelerator program was created in July 2018 with initial funding commitments totaling nearly $35 million from a variety of partners, including ADDF co-founder Leonard Lauder, Bill Gates, the Dolby family, and the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation. Since its inception, the program has welcomed additional funders, including the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration and, most recently, Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos, bringing current program funding to nearly $50 million. Through this RFP, ADDF seeks proposals for the development and validation of digital biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Digital biomarkers are defined as objective, quantifiable physiological and behavioral data that are collected, measured, and analyzed by means of digital devices such as portables, wearables, or ambient sensors. They can range from computerized or app-based versions of traditional neurocognitive tests to novel technology platforms that combine multiple complex data sources into a phenotypic signature.

This FOA invites applications that will systematically and comprehensively characterize alpha-synuclein and amyloid-beta subspecies present in human Lewy Body Dementia (LBD) post-mortem brain tissue, identify toxic subspecies and potential mechanisms of toxicity, and characterize any interactions between the proteins that may contribute to increased toxicity and/or explain selective vulnerabilities of cells/circuits. Applications are required to include at least 3 hypothesis-driven projects that address these goals, an administrative core, and other cores as appropriate. Applicants will be expected to focus on the use of human tissues. All applications will be expected to include plans for developing a publicly-available library of fully characterized alpha-synuclein and amyloid-beta subspecies found in LBD.

To that end, grants of up to $5 million will be awarded in support of research on innovative pharmacologic interventions for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, including clinical trials, regulatory studies for novel drugs (small molecules and biologics, including antibodies, peptides, gene therapies), repurposed drugs (existing drugs that are approved for other diseases and conditions), repositioned drugs (existing drugs that have entered clinical trials for other indications and have not yet been approved), and natural products.

Since 1998, ADDF has provided more than $29 million in funding for early stage clinical drug trials for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. To help propel novel drugs into the clinic, ADDF also has provided over $6.5 million in support of final preclinical studies required by regulatory agencies for the initiation of clinical research studies. The goal of the foundation's PACT program is to increase the number of innovative treatments tested in humans for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. To that end, the program will fund clinical trials through Phase 2a of novel drug candidates, including small molecules and biologics (antibodies, oligonucleotides, peptides, gene therapies, cell therapies); proof-of-concept biomarker-based trials in patients for repurposed/repositioned drugs; and regulatory studies for investigational new drug (IND)/clinical trial application preclinical packages that are required before testing novel drugs in human subjects. Proposed molecular targets will be evaluated based on the strength of available evidence linking the target to the disease and demonstrating that modulating its biological activity will improve symptoms or modify disease progression. Current target areas of interest include but are not limited to neuroprotection, inflammation, vascular function, mitochondria and metabolic function, proteostasis, ApoE, epigenetics, and synaptic activity and neurotransmitters.

To that end, grants of up to $5 million will be awarded in support of research on innovative pharmacologic interventions for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, including clinical trials, regulatory studies for novel drugs (small molecules and biologics, including antibodies, peptides, gene therapies), repurposed drugs (existing drugs that are approved for other diseases and conditions), repositioned drugs (existing drugs that have entered clinical trials for other indications and have not yet been approved), and natural products.

The ADDF seeks to support comparative effectiveness research, prevention clinical trials, and epidemiological studies that probe whether the use or choice of drugs alters the risk for dementia or cognitive decline. Specifically, the Prevention Beyond the Pipeline RFP supports: * Studies Leveraging the Consortium of Cohorts for Alzheimer's Prevention Action (CAPA) * Comparative Effectiveness Research: Methods may include randomized trials or epidemiology. * Studies of Cognitive Decline and Cognitive Reserve: Methods may include epidemiology or clinical trials. Current target areas of interest include: - Epigenetics - Inflammation - Mitochondria & metabolic function - Neuroprotection - Proteostasis - Synaptic activity and neurotransmitters - Vascular function - Other aging targets (e.g. senescent cells) - Other novel targets or pathways that are supported by compelling evidence demonstrating a rational biological connection to age-related cognitive decline or dementia risk   

The purpose of this FOA is to support innovative interdisciplinary, multi-institute research that will lead to the identification and validation of molecular mechanisms relevant to human biology that contribute to tau toxicity associated with Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD). It is anticipated that this research will also contribute to tool development that can be applied to target validation in FTD clinical trials.Applications must include an administrative core, a scientific governance structure, a minimum of three research projects with milestone plans, resource core(s) that support the basic research efforts of at least two proposed research projects, a data coordination core that will facilitate the distribution of data generated through the Center without Walls with the broad research community and a human biology validation core that will support the validation of mechanisms identified and resources developed under this FOA. Synergy must be evident among Center research projects and cores, such that successful completion of the aims could not be accomplished without the Center structure. This FOA is in response to the Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (ADRD) challenges outlined in the 2015 update to the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease.

The purpose of this FOA is to support innovative interdisciplinary, multi-institute research that will lead to the identification and validation of molecular mechanisms relevant to human biology that contribute to tau toxicity associated with Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD). It is anticipated that this research will also contribute to tool development that can be applied to target validation in FTD clinical trials.Applications must include an administrative core, a scientific governance structure, a minimum of three research projects with milestone plans, resource core(s) that support the basic research efforts of at least two proposed research projects, a data coordination core that will facilitate the distribution of data generated through the Center without Walls with the broad research community and a human biology validation core that will support the validation of mechanisms identified and resources developed under this FOA. Synergy must be evident among Center research projects and cores, such that successful completion of the aims could not be accomplished without the Center structure. This FOA is in response to the Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (ADRD) challenges outlined in the 2015 update to the National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease.

he goal of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to encourage applications for studies that will enhance knowledge of mechanisms associated with neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) in persons with Alzheimer's disease (AD) or Alzheimer's disease-related dementias (ADRD). The findings from such research are expected to advance mechanistic understanding of both biobehavioral and neurobiological pathways leading to NPS, and may provide insights into novel targets for interventions that might alleviate some burden associated with these symptoms, or suggest strategies for preventing the development of NPS as related to AD or ADRD 

This Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) seeks to stimulate research on and development of (R&D) wearable, mobile-based, or other technology (software applications, etc.) to collect continuous data on variables assessing functions of daily activities in individuals at risk for or with Alzheimer's disease (AD) or AD-related dementias (ADRD).

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) invites applications that focus on clarifying the relationship between delirium and Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD). Specifically sought is research focusing on understanding why persons with ADRD are at increased risk to develop delirium, often with a worse prognosis compared to those without antecedent ADRD, and why patients who experience delirium are at higher risk to develop subsequent short- and/or long-term mild cognitive impairment or ADRD, often with an accelerated rate of cognitive decline compared to those without preceding delirium. Relevant research projects may focus on, but are not limited to, those that A) provide insight into possible common, sequential, causative, contributory and/or synergistic pathways underlying both ADRD and delirium, B) elucidate mechanisms that lead to the development of delirium against the background of aging and/or neurodegeneration, with particular emphasis on use of appropriate animal models, C) identify risk factors for the onset and/or progression of delirium in those with ADRD and vice versa, D) diagnose and assess one condition in the setting of the other, E) identify putative phenotypes of patients with co-existing ADRD and delirium, or F) test pharmacologic and/or non-pharmacologic strategies to prevent, treat, or reduce the impact of delirium in patients with ADRD and vice versa. Research supported by this FOA is intended to provide mechanistic insight to improve risk assessment, diagnosis, phenotyping, prevention, and management approaches for both delirium and ADRD.

The purpose of the FOA is to support the large scale molecular platform analysis of brain tissue, human biofluid or human induced pluripotent stem cell resources for the identification of targets and pathways associated with Alzheimer's Disease Related Dementias (ADRDs) pathophysiology.

The purpose of this funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is to support hypothesis-testing research to elucidate cellular and molecular mechanisms that underlie diffuse white matter disease and small vessel disease in the brain, the relationships between them, and how they may contribute to cognitive impairment and dementia.