Funding News - Research on the Cognitive Sequelae of Parkinson’s Disease Sought

The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), the National Institute on Aging (NIA), the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), and the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) invite grant applications for basic and translational research on the cognitive sequelae of Parkinson’s disease (PD). *

PD is commonly known as a motor disorder. However, it also affects thinking, reasoning, learning, and other cognitive abilities. The cognitive deficits seen in PD patients are less understood and studied than the motor symptoms. This program announcement encourages research on all aspects of cognition in PD.

Areas of potential research interest include: development of relevant animal models for studying cognitive deficits in PD; pre-clinical studies of cognitive tests and paradigms in animal models of PD; studies of neuroprotective agents in animal models of PD with induced cognitive deficits; studies of neuroanatomical circuits and neurochemical processes mediating cognitive states and cognition-based individual differences; development of pathological markers in the basal ganglia that better define PD with motor changes alone as compared to PD with motor and cognitive impairments or motor changes and depression; studies that utilize novel imaging techniques for human neuroanatomy to examine the neural systems damaged in PD; studies that examine the potential correlation between neuropathology in PD and development of cognitive or language impairments; development and validation of specific assessment tools for PD patients with cognitive impairments or depression; investigations of the relationship between age of onset of PD and PD-related cognitive changes; and examination of the specific consequences of deep brain stimulation on the cognitive, linguistic, or mood aspects of PD.

For more information, potential applicants should contact Dr. Emmeline Edwards, Program Director, Systems and Cognitive Neuroscience Cluster, NINDS, Neuroscience Center, 6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 2109, Bethesda, MD 20892; telephone: 301-496-9964; fax: 301-402-2060; e-mail: ee48r@nih.gov; or Dr. Eugene Oliver, Program Director, Neurodegeneration Cluster, NINDS, Neuroscience Center, 6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 2203, Bethesda, MD 20892; telephone: 301-496-5680; fax: 301-480-1080; e-mail: eo11c@nih.gov.

*: For a more detailed description of this program announcement, please visit the NIH web site at: http://grants2.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAS-02-107.html.