CoNDA Center requesting pilot project proposals

Tony Wilson, PhD

The Cognitive Neuroscience of Development and Aging (CoNDA) Center is pleased to announce an opportunity for pilot project funding through an National Institutes of Health/National Institute of General Medical Sciences grant.

The CoNDA Center is a new Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) that focuses on the cognitive neuroscience of lifespan development and strives to support and develop all neuroimaging and human neuroscience research in the region.

The goal of the Pilot Projects Program is to provide support to emerging scholars in this area by enabling them to pursue promising new research directions and acquire the preliminary data necessary to apply for and obtain external federal funding. Successful applicants will receive up to $50,000 in direct costs per year for one to two years, as well as access to the resources and equipment of the center for professional development and project support.

The application deadline will be 5 p.m. CST Oct. 1. Notice of selection will be Nov. 2.

One to two pilot projects are anticipated to be funded, with a likely award start date of Feb. 1, 2021.

Relevant Areas of Research: This mechanism aims to support innovative, collaborative research that focuses on the cognitive neuroscience of lifespan development. Specifically, pilots focused on the below issues are of high interest to the CoNDA Center:

  • Novel neuroimaging studies of Alzheimer’s disease or other neurodegenerative diseases
  • Multidisciplinary studies of aging and factors that lead to pathological (vs healthy) aging
  • Systems-level investigations of neurodevelopmental disorders in youth or adults
  • Studies examining the impact of stress on brain structure and/or function in youth and/or adults
  • Neural mechanisms of psychiatric disease and/or psychiatric symptoms in other diseases
  • Neuroimaging studies of Down’s syndrome

  • Studies examining the impact of environmental contaminants on systems-level brain health
  • Impact of neuroinflammation on brain structure and function across the lifespan
  • Normative cognitive neuroscience and cognitive aging research
  • Neural bases of sensory processing and/or motor dysfunction in youth and/or older adults
  • Mechanisms and novel applications of brain stimulation
  • Studies on the neural dynamics of motor control in youth and/or adults

Priority will be given to NIH-defined early-stage and new investigators and to those projects that are most likely to lead to successful extramural funding. Applications not relevant to the center’s themes (i.e., cognitive neuroscience, neuroimaging, development, and/or aging) will be returned without review.

For questions pertaining to what research might qualify for center support, please contact Tony Wilson, PhD.

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