Multidisciplinary Studies of HIV/AIDS and Aging (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | PAR 25 354

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 25 354

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is soliciting R01 grant applications under the notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) titled "Multidisciplinary Studies of HIV/AIDS and Aging (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" (Funding Opportunity Number PAR-25-354). This opportunity supports multidisciplinary research that sits directly at the intersection of HIV and aging, with the option to include a clinical trial if it is appropriate for the proposed aims. The overall idea is to use the realities of living with HIV, and the effects of HIV treatment over time, as a lens for understanding aging more broadly, while also using modern aging science to improve how HIV is prevented, diagnosed, treated, and managed across diverse populations and settings.

The NOFO highlights two core scientific objectives. First, it encourages projects that deepen understanding of the biological, clinical, and socio-behavioral dimensions of aging specifically as they relate to HIV infection and its treatment. This can include work on mechanisms of aging and age-related decline in people with HIV, the long-term impacts of antiretroviral therapy, and how HIV interacts with processes like inflammation, immune function, frailty, cognitive change, or other aging-related trajectories. Importantly, the NOFO is not limited to biology; it explicitly includes clinical outcomes and socio-behavioral factors, recognizing that aging with HIV is shaped by social determinants of health, stigma, health care access, mental health, substance use patterns, and other lived-environment factors that influence risk and long-term outcomes.

Second, the NOFO calls for research that improves approaches to HIV testing, prevention, and treatment, and strengthens the management of HIV-related comorbidities, co-infections, and complications by applying current aging science approaches. In practice, that means applicants are encouraged to take concepts and methods from geroscience and aging research and bring them to HIV-focused questions. This could involve refining prevention and testing approaches for older adults, improving treatment and care strategies for older people living with HIV, or developing better ways to prevent and manage conditions that commonly co-occur with HIV as people age (for example, cardiometabolic disease, neurocognitive issues, bone health problems, certain cancers, liver and kidney disease, and infectious co-morbidities). The NOFO also emphasizes relevance across different populations and cultural settings, signaling a clear interest in work that accounts for diversity in geography, culture, and health system context, including settings outside the United States when justified.

A key requirement is alignment with the NIH Office of AIDS Research (OAR) HIV/AIDS Research Priorities, referenced in NOT-OD-20-018. Applicants should treat that as a guiding framework for topic selection, significance, and how the proposed work advances NIH-wide HIV priorities. In other words, the strongest applications will not just be "HIV and aging" in a general sense; they will clearly connect to the OAR priority areas and explain how the project fills a gap that matters to the broader federal HIV research agenda.

From an administrative and eligibility standpoint, this is a discretionary grant using the R01 funding mechanism, and it is open to a wide range of applicant organizations. Eligible applicants include multiple levels of government (state, county, city or township, and special district governments), independent school districts, public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, and a broad set of nonprofit and for-profit entities (including small businesses and for-profit organizations other than small businesses). It also explicitly calls out additional eligible applicants 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 Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISI). Faith-based and community-based organizations are included as well, alongside eligible federal agencies, U.S. territories or possessions, regional organizations, and certain tribal governments and tribal organizations. Notably, non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities (foreign organizations) are listed as eligible, which supports international or cross-national work when it fits the scientific goals and NIH policy requirements.

The NOFO is associated with multiple CFDA (Assistance Listing) numbers spanning NIH institutes and centers that support HIV- and aging-relevant science, reflecting its cross-cutting nature (including 93.121, 93.233, 93.242, 93.279, 93.313, 93.393, 93.396, 93.399, 93.837, 93.838, 93.839, 93.840, 93.846, 93.847, 93.853, and 93.866). The opportunity was created on January 8, 2025, and lists an original closing date of January 7, 2027. The posted record does not specify an award ceiling or expected number of awards, which often means applicants should rely on the detailed NOFO text and standard NIH R01 budgeting conventions (including whether the application will use modular or detailed budgets) and plan budgets based on scientific need and NIH norms for the participating institutes.

Overall, PAR-25-354 is designed for teams that can bridge disciplines and methods to answer real-world questions about aging with HIV and to translate aging science into improved HIV prevention, care, and long-term health management. Competitive projects will typically make a clear case for significance to both HIV research and aging research, specify the target population(s) and setting(s), show how proposed measures and outcomes reflect modern aging concepts (biological, functional, clinical, and socio-behavioral), and demonstrate a credible pathway to improving health across the lifespan for people affected by HIV.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, food and nutrition, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Multidisciplinary Studies of HIV/AIDS and Aging (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.121, 93.233, 93.242, 93.279, 93.313, 93.393, 93.396, 93.399, 93.837, 93.838, 93.839, 93.840, 93.846, 93.847, 93.853, 93.866.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2025-01-08.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2027-01-07.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for PAR 25 354

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