PAR-25-039
Schizophrenia and related disorders during mid- to late-life (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)
Summary
PAR-25-039: Schizophrenia and Related Disorders in Mid- to Late-Life
Research Focus
This funding opportunity targets translational research on schizophrenia spectrum disorders, delusional disorders, and bipolar disorder with psychosis in individuals aged 35 and older. The NIMH seeks to advance understanding of how these nonaffective psychotic disorders emerge, progress, and affect outcomes during mid- to late-life—a period when the majority of affected individuals reside but remains understudied. Research should identify neurobiological, behavioral, psychosocial, and environmental mechanisms underlying risk, trajectory, and outcomes, with the goal of developing prevention and treatment interventions or improving healthcare and community-based service delivery. Studies leveraging geroscience frameworks to examine accelerated aging, dementia risk, metabolic dysfunction, sleep/arousal disturbances, and neural plasticity are particularly encouraged. The NOFO welcomes dimensional (Research Domain Criteria) approaches assessing psychopathology across full ranges of symptom severity, multimodal neuroimaging (especially ≥7 Tesla MR with dynamic components), computational modeling, and novel recording/stimulation methods. Teams including neuroscientists, gerontologists, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and individuals with lived experience of psychosis are strongly encouraged.
At a Glance
- Who can apply: Research institutions and teams; no specific career-stage restrictions stated.
- Funding & project length: Not stated; R01 mechanism (standard NIH research grant).
- Award mechanism: R01 Clinical Trial Optional; companion R21 (Exploratory/Developmental) available for high-risk/high-reward projects with limited preliminary data.
- Key dates: Applications due February 5, 2025 (earliest); subsequent rounds June 5, 2025 and October 5, 2025. Scientific merit review July–November 2025; earliest start December 2025.
- Best fit for: Psychiatric neuroscience, gerontology, and clinical psychology researchers studying psychotic disorders in aging populations using mechanistic, neuroimaging, or implementation science approaches.
Key Facts
Deadline
Mon, September 7, 2026
Posted
Mon, November 18, 2024
Keywords
Research Areas
Gotchas (3)
RDoC approach is encouraged but with a critical caveat: if not using diagnostic criteria, the study design must ensure adequate representation of severely impaired individuals. This is a non-standard
90%
Source Text
“Under this NOFO, if study hypotheses and/or enrollment criteria are not based on existing diagnostic criteria (i.e., an RDoC or other dimensional construct is proposed to serve as the primary variable representing psychopathology), the study design and sampling plan must be designed in order to assure that an adequate number of individuals assessed as falling within the more severely impaired ranges of that dimension will be included in the study.”
NOFO explicitly states it does not support stand-alone development of novel technology, despite encouraging novel methods of neural/behavioral recording and stimulation. This could disqualify applicat
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Source Text
“Novel methods of neural or behavioral recording and stimulation are encouraged. This could include ultra-high field MR neuroimaging, novel electrodes, recording devices, passive sensing or digital phenotyping/dense behavioral trackers, and neurostimulation. However, this NOFO does not support the stand-alone development of novel technology.”
Mid- to late-life is defined as 35 years old and above for this NOFO, which is unusually young compared to standard gerontology definitions (typically 65+). This could affect study design, recruitment
85%
Source Text
“Since on average, persons with schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders have a shorter lifespan, the mid- to late-life life period is defined as 35 years old and above.”