09/22/2023 Edition 107
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Public Health Research on Cannabis

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is issuing this notice to encourage grant applications on the effects of changing cannabis laws and policies in the US and globally on public health.

Areas of programmatic interest to NIDA include:
  • Develop standards for measuring cannabis and cannabis constituents (including THC, CBD, other cannabinoids, and terpenes) dose, intoxication, and/or impairment.
  • Enhance existing epidemiology research to study trends for cannabis product use and cannabis use disorder (CUD); including new products (e.g. delta-8 THC products), patterns of use, and reasons for use in different populations.
  • Characterize the composition/potency, pattern of use, and methods of administration of cannabis products, including whole-plant cannabis, cannabis extracts/concentrates, and varying cannabis constituents (e.g. cannabinoids or terpenes), as well as how those factors impact physical and mental health.
  • Determine the physical and mental health antecedents of cannabis use, as well as outcomes of use.
  • Explore the impact of polysubstance use on health outcomes, including interactions (substitution/complementation) of cannabis product use with alcohol, tobacco, and prescription and nonprescription opioids;
  • Examine reasons for initiation and continued use of cannabis for therapeutic purposes.
  • Investigate the effects of different patterns of cannabis use on brain development, educational attainment, and transition to work and adult roles.
  • Identify the effects of maternal cannabis consumption during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
  • Develop effective roadside tests for cannabis impairment that can be practically deployed by law enforcement.
  • Investigate how cannabis industry practices, including research on marketing, taxes, and prices, impact use and health outcomes (e.g. how different price points impact consumption patterns across different levels of use).
  • Determine the impact of federal, state, and local cannabis policies and their implementation on use and health outcomes.
  • Explore the heterogeneity of regulatory schemes (e.g. models for retail distribution of cannabis products) to understand which combinations or components minimize harm to public health.

Submit applications for this initiative using one of the following funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) or any reissues of these announcement through the expiration date of this notice.

  • PA-20-185: NIH Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PA-20-183: NIH Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Required)
  • PA-20-200:NIH Small Research Grant Program (Parent R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PA-20-195: NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PA-20-194: NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Required)
  • PA-20-272: Administrative Supplements to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Parent Admin Supp - Clinical Trial Optional)
  • PA-20-184: NIH Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required) 
  • PA-20-196: NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required)

Impacts of Psychedelic and Dissociative Drug Policy Changes

The purpose of this notice of special interest (NOSI) is to inform potential applicants to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) of special interest in grant applications that examine the impact of changing state and local psychedelic and dissociative drug policies.

This NOSI encourages, but is not limited to, applications that examine:
  • The relation between decriminalization or legalization of psychedelic and dissociative drugs and rates of use among different populations.
  • The relation between the use of psychedelic and dissociative drugs and public health outcomes, harms, and abuse potential.
  • The impact of different regulatory frameworks (e.g., taxation, labeling, retail sales, pricing, marketing, etc.) on different health and incarceration outcomes, particularly among vulnerable populations (e.g., youth, people with substance use disorders, as well as other minority or disenfranchised groups).
  • The placement of retailers and centers to use psychedelic and dissociative drugs and the impact on the surrounding communities.
  • How this differs compared to retailers and on-premises locations for the purchase and use of alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis.
  • The similarities and differences between psychedelic and dissociative drug use and abuse potential compared to other products such as alcohol, tobacco or cannabis.
  • The prevention of psychedelic misuse (i.e., use outside the purposes outlined by the centers) or diversion of psychedelic or dissociative drugs for use by people who are not at the centers.
  • The long-term impacts of supervised psychedelic or dissociative drug use within centers on seeking and misusing other substances (e.g., alcohol, cannabis, illicit substances, unregulated psychedelic or dissociative drugs, etc.).
  • The perceptions of harm of psychedelic or dissociative drugs following policy enactments and implementation.

Submit applications for this initiative using one of the following notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) or any reissues of these announcements through the expiration date of this notice.
  • PA-20-183 - Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Required) 
  • PA-20-185 - NIH Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PA-20-194 - NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Required)
  • PA-20-195 - NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PA-20-200 - NIH Small Research Grant Program (Parent R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PAR-21-154 - Academic Research Enhancement Award for Undergraduate-Focused Institutions (R15 Clinical Trial Required)
  • PAR-21-155 - Academic Research Enhancement Award for Undergraduate-Focused Institutions (R15 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PAR-21-357 - Research Enhancement Award Program (REAP) for Health Professional Schools and Graduate Schools (R15 Clinical Trial Required)
  • PAR-22-060 - Research Enhancement Award Program (REAP) for Health Professional Schools and Graduate Schools (R15 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PA-23-044 - Urgent Competitive Revision to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Urgent Supplement -  Clinical Trial Optional)  

Public Policy Effects on Alcohol, Cannabis, etc.

This announcement encourages applications to conduct research on the effects of public policies on health-related behaviors and outcomes associated with alcohol, cannabis, tobacco, prescription drugs, and other substances. The purpose of the Notice is to advance understanding of how public policy may serve as a tool for improving public health and welfare through its effects on behaviors and outcomes pertaining to alcohol and other drugs. This Notice is intended to support innovative research to examine policy effects that have the potential to lead to meaningful changes in public health. Research projects that may be supported include, but are not necessarily limited to: causal analyses of the effects of one or multiple public policies; evaluations of the effectiveness of specific public policies as tools for improving public health through their effects on alcohol-, cannabis-, tobacco-, and other substance-related behaviors and outcomes; studies of disparities in policy effects and the role of policy in exacerbating or potentially reducing health disparities; and research to advance methods and measurement used in studying relationships between public policies and alcohol-, cannabis-, tobacco-, and other substance-related behaviors and outcomes.

Submit applications for this initiative using one of the following funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) or any reissues of these announcement through the expiration date of this notice.
  • PA-20-185 - NIH Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PA-20-183 Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Required)
  • PA-20-200 NIH Small Research Grant Program (Parent R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PA-20-195 NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • PA-20-194 NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Required)

Althea Sheets, Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activities Development Manager, Office of Sponsored Programs, althea.sheets@unlv.edu, 702-895-1880

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