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The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to encourage applications from the scientific community to support outstanding research related to the role of the gut microbiome in regulating metabolism and reproduction, and its impact on the fertility status. The overarching goal is to gain fundamental insight into the possible role of the gut microbiome in regulating reproduction through HPG, HPA, and HPT axes in the brain. The results of the study could lead to development of diagnostic markers (signature microbiomes) for reproductive and metabolic failure. The project is pertinent to multiple portfolios in the Fertility and Infertility Branch, e.g., basic ovarian biology, fertility preservation, assisted reproductive technology, spermatogenesis and sperm function, and therapeutic interventions to infertility. The emphasis on the gut microbiome and its impact on reproduction through its effects on HPG, HPA, and HPT axes leading to obesity, metabolic syndrome, stress disorders, infection and anxiety is also of interest to the Maternal and Pediatric infectious disease Branch, Pediatric Growth and Nutrition Branch and IDDB.

Despite significant increases in the proportion of women pursuing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) doctoral degrees, women are significantly underrepresented as faculty, particularly in upper ranks, and in academic administrative positions, in almost all STEM fields.  The problems of recruitment, retention, and advancement that are the causes of this underrepresentation vary by discipline and across groups of women faculty (e.g., by race/ethnicity, disability status, sexual orientation, foreign-born and foreign-trained status, and faculty appointment type).  The ADVANCE program is designed to foster gender equity through a focus on the identification and elimination of organizational barriers that impede the full participation and advancement of all women faculty in academic institutions.  Organizational barriers that inhibit equity may exist in areas such as policy, practice, culture, and organizational climate.

Despite significant increases in the proportion of women pursuing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) doctoral degrees, women are significantly underrepresented as faculty, particularly in upper ranks, and in academic administrative positions, in almost all STEM fields.  The problems of recruitment, retention, and advancement that are the causes of this underrepresentation vary by discipline and across groups of women faculty (e.g., by race/ethnicity, disability status, sexual orientation, foreign-born and foreign-trained status, and faculty appointment type).  The ADVANCE program is designed to foster gender equity through a focus on the identification and elimination of organizational barriers that impede the full participation and advancement of all women faculty in academic institutions.  Organizational barriers that inhibit equity may exist in areas such as policy, practice, culture, and organizational climate.

This NOFO will support implementation and acceleration of comprehensive HIV prevention, care, and treatment programs for HIV/AIDS epidemic control in Fort Portal Region of Uganda. This will entail implementation of comprehensive HIV/AIDS services in line with the new WHO guidelines,including targeted HIV testing services (HTS) to find more people living with HIV (PLHIV), especially men and key and priority populations (KP/PP) through HIV care and treatment; TB/HIV prevention, diagnosis, and treatment;elimination of Mother-to-Child Transmission (eMTCT); Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC); services for orphans and vulnerable children (OVC); and associated laboratory and strategic information (SI) services through a health systems strengthening approach. Additionally, the recipient will work closely with the Ministry of Health (MOH) to strengthen the technical capacity of regional structures and District Health Teams (DHTs) for an effective public health decentralized HIV/AIDS response. Expected outcomes include improved access,coverage, and quality of HIV services ensuring 90% of PLHIV know their status;90% of people diagnosed with HIV infection receive antiretroviral therapy (ART); and 90% of those on treatment are virally suppressed.

The purpose of this FOA is to stimulate research on interventions to reduce HIV/AIDS-associated stigma and its impact on the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS and on the quality of life of People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWH). Specifically, this initiative will support research on a) novel stigma reduction interventions that link to increase in care-seeking behavior and/or decrease in transmission; b) reducing the impact of stigma on adolescent and/or youth health; c) strategies to cope with the complex burden of stigmatization due to HIV and one or more comorbidities/coinfections; d) reducing effects of stigma on and/or by family members or caregivers of PLWH; and e) innovative and improved stigma measurement in the context of implementation of an intervention. The overall goals are to understand how to reduce stigma as a factor in HIV transmission, to eliminate or mitigate the aspects of stigma that limit beneficial health outcomes for the infected and at-risk individuals and communities, and to initiate exploratory studies to determine the feasibility of stigma interventions related to HIV prevention, treatment and/or care in Low and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs).

The key element of the national HIV/AIDS program is ART scale up contributing towards strategic goals of treatment cascade. This project will build on the successful creation of a HIV medical information system through the ACCESS project by scaling up implementation of the MIS to treatment sites in all 12 PEPFAR focus oblasts, including capacity building of healthcare workers, improving information management, analysis and use. The project will also develop and implement a laboratory information system module. In addition, the project will work with the treatment sites to implement quality improvement and facility index testing activities in coordination with other PEPFAR and Global Fund supported activities. The major expected project results are 1) functional HIV MIS is operated by a GOU affiliated Operator at treatment sites in the 12 PEPFAR priority regions and Vinnitsa; 2) MIS data used by sites, GoU, PEPFAR , and other stakeholders; 3) laboratory module implemented; 3) quality improvement activities are implemented at all supported treatment sites; 4) high coverage facility index testing is performed at supported sites.

DHAPP's goal is to maximize program impact by focusing on the drivers of the epidemic specific to the military, and to support the development of interventions and programs that address these issues. DHAPP works with militaries of foreign countries to devise plans based on the following process:* Meet with key partners in country to determine provisional major program areas and other technical assistance needs DoD HIV/AIDS Prevention Program (DHAPP), based at the Naval Health Research Center (NHRC) in San Diego, California, provides technical assistance, management, and administrative support of the global HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment for foreign militaries. DHAPP administers funding, conducts training, and provides technical assistance to participating militaries. In addition DHAPP staff members, both HQ and country based, serve on most of the PEPFAR Technical Working Groups (TWG) and Core teams through the Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator. DHAPP provides HIV program execution and monitors outcomes, with staff that includes active duty military, civil service, and contractor personnel.

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) calls for research on the health of transgender and gender nonconforming people of all ages, including both youth and adults who are questioning their gender identity and those individuals who are making or who have made a transition from being identified as one gender to the other. This group encompasses individuals whose gender identity differs from the sex on their original birth certificate or whose gender expression varies significantly from what is traditionally associated with or typical for that sex.