Description

This opportunity, offered by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) at NIH, funds pilot research (R34 mechanism) to inform the design and planning of future clinical trials focused on HIV prevention among populations affected by alcohol use. The goal is to expand the HIV/AIDS prevention toolkit by integrating effective interventions and addressing behavioral and biological risks associated with alcohol consumption.

Projects must be both necessary and sufficient to inform a subsequent clinical trial (Phase II, III, or IV) that will test the efficacy, safety, clinical management, or implementation of HIV prevention interventions. The R34 is intended to answer key scientific or operational questions that will directly inform the final development of a larger clinical trial.

Research areas of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Development and testing of interventions to improve PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) adherence among individuals who drink alcohol.
• Strategies to enhance ART (antiretroviral therapy) adherence and viral suppression in people living with HIV who use alcohol.
• Combination prevention activities tailored to specific high-risk subpopulations (e.g., MSM, pregnant women, individuals in low-resource settings).
• Cross-cutting research translating behavioral, cognitive, and social science findings into HIV prevention strategies for alcohol-using populations.
• Implementation and operations research to improve the long-term effectiveness of HIV preventive interventions among alcohol-using populations.
• Addressing health disparities and syndemic conditions (e.g., violence, trauma, comorbidities) in the context of HIV and alcohol use.

Applications must describe the planned future clinical trial and justify the necessity of the proposed pilot work. Projects that focus solely on patients in HIV care (not "treatment as prevention"), use vertebrate animals, or are basic studies without translational relevance are not responsive.