Specialized Alcohol Research Centers (P50 Clinical trial Optional) | RFA AA 20 001

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA AA 20 001

The Specialized Alcohol Research Centers (P50 Clinical Trial Optional) opportunity, funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) within the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is designed to support large, interdisciplinary research centers focused on alcoholism, alcohol use disorder (AUD), and the broader effects of alcohol on health and disease. The core idea is to build or sustain a coordinated center that brings together multiple investigators and complementary areas of expertise to tackle alcohol-related research questions in a collaborative, programmatic way. These centers are expected to do more than fund a set of disconnected projects; they are meant to provide leadership in the field, strengthen research infrastructure, and accelerate progress through shared scientific goals, integrated methods, and team-based science.

Scientifically, the program is broad and can cover many points along the alcohol research spectrum. NIAAA highlights interests that include understanding the nature and causes of AUD, including etiology and genetics; improving how AUD is diagnosed; and developing, testing, or refining approaches for treatment and prevention. The scope also explicitly includes alcohol-related end organ diseases and the downstream biomedical, psychosocial, and economic consequences of alcohol use. Importantly, the opportunity emphasizes research across the lifespan, which generally means proposals can focus on prevention and risk in adolescence, patterns of use in adulthood, and health outcomes in aging populations, as long as the center’s overall theme is cohesive and aligned with NIAAA’s mission.

A major expectation of these specialized centers is that they contribute to innovation in research methodology, technology development, and new scientific approaches. In practice, that often means proposing shared resources, core services, or cross-cutting capabilities that enable multiple projects to do more rigorous or cutting-edge work than they could independently. The notice frames centers as contributors to the development of new methods and technologies that can sustain goal-directed research over time, which signals that reviewers are likely to value proposals that strengthen the field’s toolkit, improve reproducibility, support novel measurement or analytic strategies, or otherwise create value beyond the individual studies housed within the center.

From an administrative standpoint, this is a discretionary grant opportunity using the NIH P50 center grant mechanism, and the “Clinical Trial Optional” designation indicates that the center may include clinical trials but is not required to do so. The funding opportunity number is RFA-AA-20-001, and it is categorized under health (CFDA 93.273). The source information lists an award ceiling of $1,150,000. The original closing date shown is 2019-11-14, and the creation date is 2019-07-10. (If you are using this summary for planning a current submission, it would be important to confirm whether a newer reissue, renewal, or related active NIAAA center announcement has replaced this specific posting, since the listed deadline is in the past.)

Eligibility is broad and includes many common U.S.-based applicant types: state, county, city, or special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations other than federally recognized tribal governments; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education, which are listed separately); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The announcement also calls out additional eligible applicants such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, AANAPISIs, Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, and U.S. territories or possessions.

There are also clear restrictions around foreign participation. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are stated as not eligible to apply. At the same time, foreign components are allowed as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, which typically means a U.S. applicant organization can include certain well-justified international collaborations or performance sites under NIH rules, even though the primary applicant organization itself must be domestic and the structure cannot be a non-U.S. organization serving as the applicant.

Overall, this opportunity is aimed at organizations capable of running a coordinated research center that advances alcohol science through integrated, collaborative projects and shared infrastructure. Competitive applications typically need a clear, unifying scientific theme; strong interdisciplinary leadership; a set of projects that are mutually reinforcing; and center resources or cores that enable productivity and innovation across the program.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Specialized Alcohol Research Centers (P50 Clinical trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.273.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2019-07-10.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2019-11-14. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,150,000.00 in funding.
• 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 RFA AA 20 001

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