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This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) invites applications from researchers with broad expertise to study the consequences of alcohol consumption on immune function with a goal toward improving the outcome of patients who abuse alcohol. Alcohol abuse has long been associated with increased susceptibility to opportunistic infections. This association has led to extensive research demonstrating that alcohol abuse has a profound and negative impact on immune cell number and function and development of immune defense against pathogens. This pattern of drinking differentially affects the outcome of alcohol abuse: binge alcohol consumption suppresses host innate immune defense; chronic alcohol consumption suppresses most immune functions including phagocytic activity of macrophages and development of adaptive immune defense, yet paradoxically activates chronic inflammation. Cumulative evidence now also supports a role for alcohol-induced immune alterations, in particular inflammation, in a wide range of alcohol related illnesses involving organ or tissue injury. In some cases, interventions against such alcohol-induced immune dysfunctions, such as anti-oxidant supplements and probiotics, are found to be effective in improving the clinical outcome. A comprehensive understanding of alcohol-induced immune dysfunctions and the underlying mechanisms is critical for developing effective diagnostic, preventive, and treatment approaches.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) invites applications from researchers with broad expertise to study the consequences of alcohol consumption on immune function with a goal toward improving the outcome of patients who abuse alcohol. Alcohol abuse has long been associated with increased susceptibility to opportunistic infections. This association has led to extensive research demonstrating that alcohol abuse has a profound and negative impact on immune cell number and function and development of immune defense against pathogens. This pattern of drinking differentially affects the outcome of alcohol abuse: binge alcohol consumption suppresses host innate immune defense; chronic alcohol consumption suppresses most immune functions including phagocytic activity of macrophages and development of adaptive immune defense, yet paradoxically activates chronic inflammation.  Cumulative evidence now also supports a role for alcohol-induced immune alterations, in particular inflammation, in a wide range of alcohol related illnesses involving organ or tissue injury. In some cases, interventions against such alcohol-induced immune dysfunctions, such as anti-oxidant supplements and probiotics, are found to be effective in improving the clinical outcome. A comprehensive understanding of alcohol-induced immune dysfunctions and the underlying mechanisms is critical for developing effective diagnostic, preventive, and treatment approaches.  

Alcohol abuse has long been associated with increased susceptibility to opportunistic infections. This association has led to extensive research demonstrating that alcohol abuse has a profound and negative impact on immune cell number and function and development of immune defense against pathogens. This pattern of drinking differentially affects the outcome of alcohol abuse: binge alcohol consumption suppresses host innate immune defense; chronic alcohol consumption suppresses most immune functions including phagocytic activity of macrophages and development of adaptive immune defense, yet paradoxically activates chronic inflammation.  Cumulative evidence now also supports a role for alcohol-induced immune alterations, in particular inflammation, in a wide range of alcohol related illnesses involving organ or tissue injury. In some cases, interventions against such alcohol-induced immune dysfunctions, such as anti-oxidant supplements and probiotics, are found to be effective in improving the clinical outcome. A comprehensive understanding of alcohol-induced immune dysfunctions and the underlying mechanisms is critical for developing effective diagnostic, preventive, and treatment approaches.  

The purpose of this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is to reduce risky alcohol use among women of childbearing age through system-level implementation of alcohol screening and brief intervention (SBI) in health systems providing women’s health services. Risky alcohol use can result in a variety of negative health and social consequences, such as motor vehicle crashes, intimate partner violence, and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. It is costly, results in over 88,000 deaths annually, and can affect serious medical conditions, such as hypertension, liver disease and certain types of cancer. Health professionals are uniquely positioned to intervene with patients with acute and chronic health conditions caused or exacerbated by risky alcohol use. Alcohol SBI implementation efforts within health systems will focus on development and implementation of: a training and technical assistance plan; alcohol SBI protocols in primary care clinics; system-level approaches that facilitate uptake (e.g., electronic health record integration and performance metrics); an evaluation plan assessing feasibility and impact of system-level implementation; a dissemination plan on promising models and lessons learned; and a sustainability plan. Expected performance outcomes include documenting provider/clinic readiness to conduct alcohol SBI, documenting implementation barriers and proposed solutions, tracking clinic-level data on alcohol SBI, and assessing the use of system-level strategies.

HIV+ alcohol users remain at high risk for medication non-adherence and rapid disease progression, medication toxicities, organ failure, and poor viremic control, leading to increased risk of transmission and premature death. Recent advances in technology and biomedical science (e.g., new pharmacological agents, alcohol and inflammation biomarkers, internet and mobile technology) open new opportunities for strengthening the quality of HIV/alcohol-related implementation research through utilization of novel technology and biomarkers. This initiative seeks to advance knowledge on implementation and comparative effectiveness of alcohol-focused interventions among HIV+ individuals. Multiple factors need to be investigated, including potentially important patient and provider characteristics, and the organizational, financial, and structural factors that facilitate or inhibit the delivery of evidence-based services for HIV+ individuals with a range of severity of alcohol use problems. The overall goal is to inform clinical decision-making to implement effective interventions that will improve prevention, care, and outcomes across the continuum of HIV and alcohol problem severity and patterns of alcohol use. This solicitation is divided into two major topics. An application may choose to address one or both. These topics include: 1) comparative effectiveness research focused on understanding factors related to early detection, patient engagement and retention in appropriate alcohol and HIV care, and achieving and maintaining optimal treatment responses in diverse settings, and 2) modeling and testing alternative implementation approaches to improve uptake and scaling-up of effective interventions and reduce HIV disease transmission and progression.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is intended to appeal to a broad audience of alcohol and HIV/AIDS researchers, including alcohol researchers with no prior experience in HIV/AIDS research but with a keen appreciation for the relationship between problem drinking and HIV/AIDS and a strong interest in acquiring such experience; HIV/AIDS researchers with no prior alcohol research experience who realize the importance of more intensive alcohol interventions to improving clinical outcomes among HIV-infected individuals; and those with prior research experience in the area of co-occurring HIV/AIDS and alcohol and other substance abuse. The primary objective for this announcement is to support small research projects : 1) to characterize the relative importance of reducing alcohol misuse in the prevention of acquisition and transmission of HIV in order to identify and apply appropriate alcohol and HIV interventions as public health measures; 2) to more fully understand and prevent the progression of HIV disease in the presence of continued alcohol exposure; and 3) to develop operational research frameworks for addressing the occurrence and persistence of infections in high-risk populations (e.g. minority women, young gay men, etc.), and translate findings into effective, culturally appropriate preventive and treatment interventions for these targeted populations.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is intended to appeal to a broad audience of alcohol and HIV/AIDS researchers, including alcohol researchers with no prior experience in HIV/AIDS research but with a keen appreciation for the relationship between problem drinking and HIV/AIDS and a strong interest in acquiring such experience; HIV/AIDS researchers with no prior alcohol research experience who realize the importance of more intensive alcohol interventions to improving clinical outcomes among HIV-infected individuals; and those with prior research experience in the area of co-occurring HIV/AIDS and alcohol and other substance abuse. The primary objectives for this announcement are to increase innovative developmental research: 1) to characterize the relative importance of reducing alcohol misuse in the prevention of acquisition and transmission of HIV in order to identify and apply appropriate alcohol and HIV interventions as public health measures; 2) to more fully understand and prevent the progression of HIV disease in the presence of continued alcohol exposure; and 3) to develop operational research frameworks for addressing the occurrence and persistence of infections in high-risk populations (e.g. minority women, young gay men, etc.), and translate findings into effective, culturally appropriate preventive and treatment interventions for these targeted populations. Given the breadth of research objectives included in this announcement, potential applicants are encouraged to carefully review all sections of the announcement for research opportunities.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is intended to appeal to a broad audience of alcohol and HIV/AIDS researchers, including alcohol researchers with no prior experience in HIV/AIDS research but with a keen appreciation for the relationship between problem drinking and HIV/AIDS and a strong interest in acquiring such experience; HIV/AIDS researchers with no prior alcohol research experience who realize the importance of more intensive alcohol interventions to improving clinical outcomes among HIV-infected individuals; and those with prior research experience in the area of co-occurring HIV/AIDS and alcohol and other substance abuse. The primary objectives for this announcement are to increase research: 1) to characterize the relative importance of reducing alcohol misuse in the prevention of acquisition and transmission of HIV in order to identify and apply appropriate alcohol and HIV interventions as public health measures; 2) to more fully understand and prevent the progression of HIV disease in the presence of continued alcohol exposure; and 3) to develop operational research frameworks for addressing the occurrence and persistence of infections in high-risk populations (e.g. minority women, young gay men, etc.), and translate findings into effective, culturally appropriate preventive and treatment interventions for these targeted populations. Given the breadth of research objectives included in this announcement, potential applicants are encouraged to carefully review all sections of the announcement for research opportunities.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), issued by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), is intended to support novel research on how prenatal alcohol exposure may contribute to the etiology of chronic diseases and health conditions later in life. Central to this theme is the developmental origins of health and disease (DOHaD) concept which suggests that fetal adaptations in response to adverse intrauterine conditions may increase the risk for childhood and adulthood disease. The goal of this FOA is to stimulate a broad range of research to: 1) leverage existing prospective birth cohorts to define the role of maternal alcohol consumption in the DOHaD process; 2) investigate the biological, cellular, and molecular mechanisms by which prenatal alcohol exposure may impact disease outcomes later in life; and 3) identify biomarkers associated with gestational alcohol exposure that may predict adult disease susceptibility in exposed offspring. Studies supported by this FOA will provide fundamental insights into a possible fetal-basis to adult disease that is influenced by maternal alcohol use. Also listed under R01

HIV+ alcohol users remain at high risk for medication non-adherence and rapid disease progression, medication toxicities, organ failure, and poor viremic control, leading to increased risk of transmission and premature death. Recent advances in technology and biomedical science (e.g., new pharmacological agents, alcohol and inflammation biomarkers, internet and mobile technology) open new opportunities for strengthening the quality of HIV/alcohol-related implementation research through utilization of novel technology and biomarkers. This initiative seeks to advance knowledge on implementation and comparative effectiveness of alcohol-focused interventions among HIV+ individuals. Multiple factors need to be investigated, including potentially important patient and provider characteristics, and the organizational, financial, and structural factors that facilitate or inhibit the delivery of evidence-based services for HIV+ individuals with a range of severity of alcohol use problems. The overall goal is to inform clinical decision-making to implement effective interventions that will improve prevention, care, and outcomes across the continuum of HIV and alcohol problem severity and patterns of alcohol use

The goal of this FOA is to support basic and clinical research on the influence of alcohol on susceptibility and progression of Alzheimer's disease and its related dementias. Recent longitudinal studies have provided strong evidence that alcohol use disorder is associated with the high risk of all types of dementias, and frequent heavy drinking increases risk of both Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. Even moderate alcohol consumption may be a risk factor for adverse brain outcomes and cognitive decline. Although these studies link heavy and frequent alcohol drinking to dementias in aging populations, mechanisms contributing to this relationship are not well understood. With this FOA, we solicit research projects that combine diverse expertise and use innovative approaches to investigate mechanisms by which alcohol affects brain aging processes to produce dementias and influences development of Alzheimer's disease. This FOA strongly encourages collaborations between alcohol researchers and experts in Alzheimer's disease and its related dementia research

The foundation encourages basic and clinical research, including epidemiology. Examples of research topics include factors influencing underage drinking, mechanisms of alcohol-related organ injury, fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, and effects of alcohol on general health. Areas of particular interest include studies on how particular patterns of consumption (quantity of alcohol consumed, types of alcoholic beverages consumed, frequency of consumption, and context) are related to health and behavioral outcomes; and interdisciplinary, bioinformatics, and other approaches to genetic and environmental factors that influence the patterns of consumption of alcoholic beverages and related consequences.

The misuse of alcohol by college students is of great concern to the NCAA. In an effort to educate students about the risks involved with the misuse of alcohol, the NCAA has developed the NCAA CHOICES Grant Program, through the support of the Anheuser-Busch Foundation. The NCAA CHOICES Alcohol Education Grant Program provides funding for NCAA member institutions and conferences to integrate athletics departments into campus-wide efforts to reduce alcohol abuse. NCAA CHOICES projects must partner athletics with other campus departments in the development and implementation of effective alcohol education projects.

The goal of this FOA is to support basic and clinical research on the influence of alcohol on susceptibility and progression of Alzheimers disease and its related dementias. Recent longitudinal studies have provided strong evidence that alcohol use disorder is associated with the high risk of all types of dementias, and frequent heavy drinking increases risk of both Alzheimers disease and vascular dementia. Even moderate alcohol consumption may be a risk factor for adverse brain outcomes and cognitive decline. Although these studies link heavy and frequent alcohol drinking to dementias in aging populations, mechanisms contributing to this relationship are not well understood. With this FOA, we solicitate research projects that combine diverse expertise and use innovative approaches to investigate mechanisms by which alcohol affects brain aging processes to produce dementias and influences development of Alzheimers disease. This FOA strongly encourages collaborations between alcohol researchers and experts in Alzheimer's disease and its related dementia research.

HIV+ alcohol users remain an underserved group at high risk for medication non-adherence and rapid disease progression, medication toxicities, organ failure, and poor viremic control leading to increased risk of transmission and premature death. It has been estimated that the effective implementation of alcohol interventions for HIV+ individuals may reduce the rates of new infections by nearly 20% and extend life by up to 15 years in some at-risk and patient populations respectively. This new initiative seeks to advance knowledge of the effective implementation and comparative effectiveness of alcohol-focused interventions among HIV+ individuals. Multiple factors need to be investigated, including potentially important patient and provider characteristics, and the organizational, financial, and structural factors that facilitate or inhibit the delivery of evidence-based services for HIV+ individuals with a range of alcohol use disorders. The overall goal is to inform clinical decision-making that will enhance treatment outcomes and reduce harms associated with interventions for HIV+ individuals with alcohol use disorders. This solicitation is divided into two parts, one or both of which an applicant may choose to address. These parts include: 1) comparative effectiveness research focused on understanding factors related to patient engagement in appropriate alcohol and HIV care and retention in treatment; and 2) modeling and testing alternative approaches to the implementation of effective interventions to reduce HIV disease transmission and progression. This announcement addresses the need to further develop patient- centered approaches for making informed health care decisions and to improve research on health care delivery and outcomes.

HIV+ alcohol users remain an underserved group at high risk for medication non-adherence and rapid disease progression, medication toxicities, organ failure, and poor viremic control leading to increased risk of transmission and premature death. It has been estimated that the effective implementation of alcohol interventions for HIV+ individuals may reduce the rates of new infections by nearly 20% and extend life by up to 15 years in some at-risk and patient populations respectively. This new initiative seeks to advance knowledge of the effective implementation and comparative effectiveness of alcohol-focused interventions among HIV+ individuals. Multiple factors need to be investigated, including potentially important patient and provider characteristics, and the organizational, financial, and structural factors that facilitate or inhibit the delivery of evidence-based services for HIV+ individuals with a range of alcohol use disorders. The overall goal is to inform clinical decision-making that will enhance treatment outcomes and reduce harms associated with interventions for HIV+ individuals with alcohol use disorders. This solicitation is divided into two parts, one or both of which an applicant may choose to address. These parts include: 1) comparative effectiveness research focused on understanding factors related to patient engagement in appropriate alcohol and HIV care and retention in treatment; and 2) modeling and testing alternative approaches to the implementation of effective interventions to reduce HIV disease transmission and progression. This announcement addresses the need to further develop patient- centered approaches for making informed health care decisions and to improve research on health care delivery and outcomes.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) issued by the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse (NIAAA), National Institutes of Health, is a limited competition FOA encouraging a resource project (R28) application from a center currently supported under an existing grant, entitled Brain Tissue Resource Center for Alcohol Research to (i) develop a bank of brain tissues (fresh-frozen and formalin-fixed) from alcoholic and control cases with confirmed clinical and pathological diagnoses, (ii) develop and promote a prospective brain donor program in Australia (Using our Brains) to enhance the brain bank, (iii) establish an associated DNA (blood) bank from the brain donor group, and (iv) invite research groups with an interest in alcohol-related brain damage to submit applications for studies using these tissues.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism is publishing a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) to seek applications on novel genetic mechanisms underlying the development of tolerance and the progression to alcohol use disorder. Alcohol use disorders are complex, multifactorial, and influenced both by genetic and environmental factors. The purpose of this FOA is to stimulate and support efforts on identifying genetic, genomic and epigenetic factors contributing to the development of sensitivity and tolerance to alcohol.

The purpose of this funding opportunity is to encourage collaboration between alcohol researchers in the extramural community and those within the NIAAA intramural research program. The objective of this Funding Opportunity Announcement is to bring together the research expertise that, as a functioning collaborative unit, will address key alcohol-based research questions that would not otherwise be possible by the same individuals working towards similar goals in isolation. The goal of the research proposed by the collaborating investigators should address questions that advance the alcohol research field with respect to issues surrounding alcohol use disorders including dependence and the effects of alcohol on health. The NIH Intramural Scientist will be a tenured or tenure-track scientist from the NIAAA Intramural Research Program, with whom the PD/PI has made prior contact for the collaborative project.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) encourages the submission of investigator-initiated research grant applications to support the secondary analysis of existing data sets with the goal of enhancing our understanding of patterns of alcohol consumption and the epidemiology of alcohol-related problems. Research grants for the Secondary Analysis of Existing Alcohol Epidemiology Data Sets are intended to provide support for studies that utilize currently available data sets to increase our understanding of the incidence, prevalence and etiology of alcohol related problems and disorders in the population, as well as the risk and protective factors associated with them. Research that employs analytic techniques which demonstrate or promote methodological advances in alcohol-related epidemiologic research is also of interest.