Basic Research in the Bladder and Lower Urinary Tract (R01)

-Purpose. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the National Institute on Aging (NIA), in cooperation with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH), invite applications under this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for research studies that focus on basic cellular, molecular, genetic, and developmental mechanisms of the normal and abnormal function of the bladder and lower urinary tract. An important goal of this FOA is to attract new and established investigators from a variety of basic science research areas to apply their knowledge, skills, and tools to studies of the bladder and lower urinary tract. This FOA is presented as part of the ongoing commitment of the NIDDK, NCI, NIA, and ORWH to biomedical research aimed at improving bladder and lower urinary tract health. -Areas of special interest include, but are not restricted to, basic cellular biology and of bladder epithelial and smooth muscle cells and connective tissues; organ innervation, vascularization, immunobiology, and physiology; genomics and proteomics, including studies of age-related changes in gene expression; development of animal models; pathogen-host interactions in infectious conditions of the bladder; developmental biology of the lower urinary tract including sex differences, and age-related changes in bladder and lower urinary tract biology that affect function; and studies addressing the role of the bladder microenvironment (stroma) in bladder carcinogenesis and progression. Studies proposing the development and application of novel tools and technologies including methods of in vivo functional assessment and imaging are encouraged. Also, basic science studies addressing sex/gender differences that may predispose women to bladder and lower urinary tract disorders are encouraged. Another important goal is to promote productive research collaborations for study of the lower urinary tract between clinicians and basic scientists. -Mechanism of Support. This FOA will utilize the NIH Research Project Grant (R01) award mechanism and runs in parallel with an FOA of identical scientific scope, PA-06-255, that solicits applications under the Developmental/Exploratory (R21) grant mechanism.