Analyses of Human Datasets and Biospecimens to Characterize Aging related Phenotypes Relationships to Circulating Polypeptides and Proteins that Reverse or Accelerate Aging Changes (R01) | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) - NIH RFA-AG-16-012 (R01)

What is the focus of NIH grant opportunity RFA-AG-16-012?

This funding opportunity is an NIH R01 research announcement focused on clarifying how specific blood-borne signaling factors (circulating polypeptides and proteins) relate to aging in humans. It emphasizes testing in people what experimental evidence (often from animal models or mechanistic studies) suggests about whether certain circulating factors might slow, reverse, or accelerate age-related biological decline.

What kind of research approach does this FOA prioritize?

The FOA prioritizes using already-existing human resources rather than creating new large cohorts. That means secondary analysis of established epidemiologic studies and clinical trials, especially those with existing datasets and stored biospecimens (such as serum or plasma) and well-characterized follow-up.

Does this opportunity fund the creation of new cohorts or new large-scale participant recruitment?

No. The announcement is specifically aimed at extracting more value from existing epidemiologic studies and completed clinical trials by analyzing existing datasets and/or stored biospecimens, rather than funding the creation of new large-scale cohorts.

What types of biological factors are applicants expected to study?

Applicants are expected to select one or more candidate circulating polypeptides or proteins that (1) change in concentration with age in humans and (2) have credible experimental evidence suggesting they may influence aging trajectories (positively or negatively).

Is it acceptable to study just one aging endpoint?

The FOA emphasizes connecting the candidate molecule(s) to multiple aging-relevant outcomes, not just a single endpoint. The multi-outcome approach is important because a molecule that appears beneficial for one aspect of aging could have tradeoffs or adverse effects in other areas.

What outcomes are considered relevant under this FOA?

The FOA points toward broad aging phenotypes and profiles, such as physical function and frailty-related measures, cognitive outcomes, cardiometabolic traits, inflammatory status, organ-specific function, patterns of morbidity, and possibly mortality, depending on what the underlying cohorts or trials have available.

What kinds of data sources can be used for the proposed research?

Projects can use established observational cohorts and completed clinical trials that have banked biospecimens and longitudinal participant follow-up. Applications may leverage datasets where protein measurements already exist, or may propose measuring candidate proteins in stored samples and linking them to longitudinal phenotypes.

Does the FOA allow new laboratory measurement of proteins in stored biospecimens?

Yes. The opportunity explicitly includes biospecimen-based measurement within existing human cohorts, such as measuring candidate proteins in stored serum or plasma samples and connecting those measurements to aging-related outcomes.

What methodological issues are applicants expected to address?

Because the goal is to characterize relationships in human populations, strong applications are expected to address common challenges in cohort-based biology, including confounding, comorbidities, medication effects, baseline health status, demographic differences, and correlations among biomarkers and disease burden.

Does the FOA encourage evaluating both beneficial and adverse effects of candidate proteins?

Yes. The announcement explicitly signals interest in evaluating both potential beneficial effects and potential adverse effects, consistent with the idea that a circulating factor might look helpful for one aging dimension but harmful for another.

Is determining causality required?

The FOA indicates a preference for approaches that can test whether associations are consistent with a causal role versus merely reflecting downstream consequences of aging or illness, to the extent feasible with existing data. Examples mentioned include careful longitudinal modeling, sensitivity analyses, and stratified analyses, or other strategies appropriate to the dataset.

What grant mechanism is used for this opportunity?

This is a discretionary NIH grant using the R01 mechanism.

What is the CFDA number and research area for this announcement?

The activity falls under aging research (health-related activity category) with CFDA 93.866.

How much funding is available and what is the award ceiling?

The total estimated funding listed is $635,000, with an award ceiling of $400,000.

Is cost-sharing or matching required?

No. The opportunity states there is no cost-sharing or matching requirement.

When was this opportunity posted and what were the key dates?

The opportunity was posted April 28, 2015, and created May 21, 2015. It had an original closing date of July 9, 2015, later reflected as August 3, 2015. The archive date is September 3, 2015, indicating it was time-limited.

Is this funding opportunity still active?

Based on the listed archive date (September 3, 2015) and the time-limited closing dates in 2015, it appears to have been a closed/archived solicitation rather than an always-open program.

Who is the sponsoring agency?

The sponsoring agency is the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

What types of organizations are eligible to apply?

Eligibility is broad and includes public and private academic institutions, nonprofit organizations (with and without 501(c)(3) status), small businesses, and other for-profit entities (including those other than small businesses). It also includes multiple levels of government (state, county, city/township, and special districts), tribal governments, and tribal organizations.

Are minority-serving institutions specifically included as eligible applicants?

Yes. The announcement explicitly notes eligible categories such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving institutions, tribally controlled colleges and universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian serving institutions, and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander serving institutions (AANAPISIs).

Are faith-based or community-based organizations eligible?

Yes. Faith-based or community-based organizations are explicitly listed among eligible applicant categories.

Can foreign organizations or non-U.S. entities apply?

Yes. The eligibility list includes non-U.S. entities/foreign organizations and regional organizations.

Are U.S. territories or possessions eligible?

Yes. U.S. territories or possessions are included in the eligibility list.

What is the core scientific goal of the FOA in plain terms?

The core goal is to take specific circulating proteins that are known to change with age and have experimental evidence suggesting they influence aging, then test whether those same kinds of effects (beneficial or harmful) can be observed across multiple aging outcomes in real human populations using existing cohort and trial resources.

Is this FOA aimed at untargeted biomarker discovery?

No. The emphasis is less on discovering brand-new biomarkers in an untargeted way and more on carefully testing specific candidate circulating factors that are already mechanistically interesting and age-linked.