Initiative Concepts Presented to the
October 2002 NHLBAC
Introduction
At several meetings each year of the National Heart,
Lung, and Blood Advisory Council (NHLBAC), NHLBI staff present proposals for
future NHLBI scientific initiatives. The proposals take the form of
Requests for Grant Applications (RFAs), Requests for Contract Proposals (RFPs),
Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs), Requests for Information (RFIs), Program
Announcements (PAs), and Notices. RFAs, RFPs, and BAAs include a specific
set-aside of funds for an initiative.
At the October 2002 NHLBAC meeting, 12 initiatives
were presented for the Council's concept review and approval. The
initiatives had been reviewed in September 2002 by a working group of the
Council, the Board of Extramural Advisors (BEA). The NHLBAC was
supportive of all of the proposals but made a number of specific
recommendations for consideration prior to their release.
The Director of the NHLBI will consider the
recommendations of the BEA and the Council and other budgetary and programmatic
issues in determining which of the proposed initiatives, if any, will be
implemented by the Institute.
Descriptions of the 12 initiative concepts presented
at the October 2002 NHLBAC Meeting are provided below in alphabetical order.
Initiatives
Initiative |
Purpose |
| Cardiovascular and Sleep-related Consequences in
Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) Disorders, RFA |
To conduct
epidemiological and clinical studies of sleep and cardiovascular outcomes in
TMJ Disorders (TMJD), to study factors associated with upper airway
collapsibility and impaired sleep in TMJD, and to elucidate the role of central
pathways involved in TMJD- associated autonomic and motor responses affecting
sleep and neuromuscular control of upper airway patency. |
| Cultural Competence Academic Award, RFA |
To sponsor the development of core
curricula and other educational resources that will enhance physicians' ability
to deliver culturally sensitive health care to multi-cultural U.S.
populations. |
| Diagnostic Screening Test for Salt Sensitivity,
PAR |
To fund Small Business Innovation
Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR) projects
which develop a non-invasive or minimally invasive, rapid, and practical
diagnostic test for salt sensitivity. Ideally, such a test will correlate with
long-term changes in blood pressure resulting from a high salt intake. |
| Hematologic Sequelae of Diabetes, RFA |
To stimulate basic and clinical
research on the hematologic changes occurring with diabetes that result in
diabetic related cardiovascular complications. |
| Improving Resuscitation Outcomes -- NHLBI Clinical Research
Consortium, RFA/RFP |
To establish a consortium to conduct
patient-oriented resuscitation research. The investigators, first responders,
and community leaders will function cooperatively under one organizational
structure in an effort to facilitate the efficient translation of promising
experimental strategies into clinical practice. |
| Long-term Control of Cardiovascular Function in Health and
Disease: An Integrated Approach, RFA |
To promote understanding of how
heart and vascular function is coordinated in intact organisms over long
periods of time and to identify changes in long-term control that predispose to
the onset or maintenance of cardiovascular (CV) diseases, such as hypertension,
arrhythmias, and sudden cardiac death. |
| Mechanisms of HIV-Related Cardiopulmonary and Hemostatic
Complications, RFA |
To encourage innovative research on
the roles of co-infections, immune factors, genetic predisposition,
metabolic/energetic mechanisms, and neural and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal
axis influences on HIV related-cardiopulmonary and hemostatic complications.
The ultimate goal is to provide a rational basis for prevention and therapy for
the cardiopulmonary and hemostatic complications caused by HIV and its
related-factors. |
| Overweight and Obesity Prevention and Control at the
Worksite, RFA |
To support controlled trials which
emphasize environmental approaches to obesity prevention at worksites that will
test the effectiveness of worksite interventions for preventing or controlling
overweight and obesity in adults. |
| Protein Processing and Degradation in Heart, Lung, and Blood
Diseases, RFA |
To explore the protein folding and
quality control pathways operative in cardiovascular, pulmonary, and blood
diseases, leading to a better understanding of how these mechanisms contribute
to the molecular pathogenesis of disease and development of novel therapeutic
interventions. |
| Recovery of Heart Function with Circulatory Assist,
RFA |
To understand how the use of a
circulatory assist device results in clinical recovery of heart function with
the hope of optimizing myocardial recovery and elucidating mechanisms that lead
to ventricular reverse remodeling and functional recovery during circulatory
assist. |
| Retrovirus Epidemiology Donor Study (REDS),
RFP |
To conduct epidemiological,
laboratory, and survey research on volunteer blood donors to ensure the safety
and availability of the Nation's blood supply. This includes monitoring known
blood-borne infectious agents, rapidly evaluating the impact of emerging
pathogens, assessing the safety implications of changes in laboratory and/or
blood donor screening protocols, and examining blood supply availability
issues. |
| Somatic Cell Therapy Processing Facilities,
RFP |
To establish centralized facilities
for the development of novel cellular therapies which would aid investigators
by providing support in areas ranging from basic science through animal studies
to proof-of-principle and eventually human trials. |
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