DoW Alzheimers Transforming Research Award

The Alzheimer’s Research Program Transforming Research Award is administered through the Defense Health Agency Contracting Activity under the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs as part of the fiscal year Alzheimer’s Research Program. The opportunity is designed to support transformative and non-incremental research focused on reducing risk and preventing the development of Alzheimer’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease related dementias. The program was originally established in 2011 and has received more than $213 million in appropriations through fiscal year 2025, with an additional $15 million appropriated for fiscal year 2026. The stated mission of the program is to fund impactful and solution-oriented research that improves quality of life for Service Members, Veterans, their families, and the broader public affected by Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. The program specifically emphasizes research relevant to traumatic brain injury, military health exposures, and diverse risk factors associated with dementia development. Applications submitted under this funding opportunity must address at least one designated focus area. The first focus area, Risk Factor Knowledge, supports research that advances understanding, identification, or validation of protective or risk factors associated with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Relevant topics may include environmental, genetic, occupational, lifestyle, epigenetic, or related risk factors. The second focus area, Risk Reduction Solutions, supports research focused on methods, technologies, and non-pharmacological strategies intended to reduce risk and prevent disease onset. Clinical research is permitted, but clinical trials and animal research are explicitly prohibited. Applications that focus primarily on basic mechanistic science, pharmacological treatment development, or disease-modifying therapies do not meet the intent of the program. The funding mechanism requires strong preliminary data demonstrating feasibility and scientific rationale. The opportunity also strongly encourages projects addressing health disparities in Alzheimer’s and dementia research. The program provides funding for either a single principal investigator application or a Career Initiation or Transition Partnership Option involving multiple principal investigators. Approximately four awards are anticipated, with an estimated total program funding allocation of $4 million. Individual awards are capped at $1 million in total costs over a maximum three-year performance period. For partnership applications, the combined total cost for both investigators cannot exceed $1 million. Separate awards are issued to each partnering institution under the collaborative option. Allowable costs include travel related to multi-institutional collaboration, attendance at one scientific or technical conference annually to disseminate project results, research resource sharing activities, community collaboration activities, and participant compensation or reimbursement related to study participation. Costs associated with clinical trials, animal research, or excessive travel are not allowable. Cost sharing is not required under this funding opportunity. Eligibility is broad and includes foreign and domestic organizations, nonprofit and for-profit entities, public and private organizations, academic institutions, federal agencies, and Department of War intramural organizations. Independent investigators affiliated with eligible organizations may serve as principal investigators regardless of nationality or citizenship. However, individuals in mentored training positions such as postdoctoral fellows or clinical fellows are not eligible to serve as independent investigators. The Career Initiation or Transition Partnership Option requires at least one investigator to meet specific career stage requirements related to early independent research development or transition into Alzheimer’s, traumatic brain injury, or military health research. A single investigator may participate in no more than four applications under this mechanism. The application process involves a mandatory two-step submission sequence. Applicants must first submit a pre-application through the Electronic Biomedical Research Application Portal. Pre-applications require a two-page narrative describing the focus area relevance, scientific rationale, preliminary data, specific aims, study design, impact, and collaborative qualifications where applicable. Supporting documentation includes references, a list of related submissions, abbreviations, and biographical sketches. Only invited applicants may proceed to full application submission. Full applications are submitted through Grants.gov for extramural applicants or eBRAP for intramural Department of War applicants. Required application components include a detailed project narrative, supporting documentation, technical and lay abstracts, statement of work, impact statement, post-award progression plan, community collaboration plan for human subject research, partnership statement for collaborative submissions, recruitment and safety plans for prospective human subjects research, budgets, biosketches, and supporting forms. Community collaboration is mandatory for studies prospectively enrolling human subjects, and applicants must demonstrate how community perspectives inform study design and dissemination. Applications undergo a two-tier review process consisting of peer review followed by programmatic review. Peer review evaluates impact, scientific rationale, feasibility, study design, recruitment and retention strategies, ethical considerations, statistical analysis plans, progression planning, research team qualifications, and collaborative structure where applicable. Programmatic review considers peer review evaluations, relevance to fiscal year priorities, portfolio balance, transferability between military and civilian populations, and overall impact potential. Pre-applications are screened for relevance to focus areas, scientific rationale, adherence to program intent, and projected impact. Awards are expected to be issued no later than September 30, 2027. The pre-application deadline is June 22, 2026, with invitations to submit full applications expected on August 10, 2026. Full applications are due September 24, 2026, followed by peer review in December 2026 and programmatic review in February 2027. Technical assistance is available through the eBRAP Help Desk at help@eBRAP.org and 301-682-5507, while Grants.gov support is available at support@grants.gov and 800-518-4726.

Emphasize non-incremental and transformative impact; provide strong preliminary data supporting feasibility; align clearly with one or more designated focus areas; demonstrate rigorous and reproducible methodology; incorporate meaningful community collaboration for prospective human subjects research; explain transferability between civilian and military populations; clearly articulate pathway to clinical applicability