Basic and Translational Research on Adducts in Cancer Risk Identification and Prevention (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) | PAR 19 252

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 19 252

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding opportunity PAR 19-252, titled "Basic and Translational Research on Adducts in Cancer Risk Identification and Prevention (R21 Clinical Trial Optional)," supports early-stage, innovative research aimed at improving how cancer risk is identified and ultimately reduced. The central scientific theme is the study of "adducts," which are chemical modifications formed when reactive compounds bind to cellular macromolecules such as DNA, RNA, proteins, and lipids. Because many carcinogenic processes begin with or leave behind these kinds of molecular footprints, adducts can serve as measurable indicators of exposure to cancer-related risk factors, including both exogenous sources (like tobacco smoke constituents, air pollutants, occupational chemicals, dietary contaminants, or UV-related byproducts) and endogenous sources (like inflammation-driven reactive species or byproducts of normal metabolism). The FOA is looking for research that uses these molecular signatures to better understand exposure patterns in human populations and to develop indicators that could be useful for cancer detection, prevention strategies, or assessing cancer risk.

A major priority of the announcement is "adductomics," meaning approaches that move beyond measuring one or a small handful of known adducts and instead attempt to capture a broader picture of the totality of adducts (or a substantial subset of them) within a biological system. In practice, this often implies high-throughput, discovery-oriented measurement platforms and analytical pipelines, such as advanced mass spectrometry-based workflows, improved sample preparation methods, computational approaches for feature detection and annotation, and strategies to interpret complex profiles of adducts as exposure indicators. The underlying goal is not simply cataloging adducts, but discovering and characterizing which adductomic patterns or specific adduct signals are informative, reproducible, and meaningful for linking exposures to cancer-related outcomes in ways that could eventually support prevention and risk assessment.

The opportunity emphasizes translational relevance, even when the work is fundamentally methodological or mechanistic. Proposed projects can focus on identifying exposure indicators that could be used to flag elevated cancer risk, to monitor the effectiveness of prevention efforts (for example, reductions in exposure after an intervention or policy change), or to improve understanding of exposure-related mechanisms that contribute to cancer development. The FOA also notes that, when well justified, studies using adductomic approaches in cancer etiology research and/or gene-environment interaction research may be appropriate. This opens the door to projects that integrate adductomic data with genetic or genomic information to explain why certain individuals or populations show different susceptibility to the same exposures, or why specific exposure signatures correlate with particular cancer-relevant biological pathways.

The award mechanism is an R21, which typically supports exploratory and developmental projects that test new ideas, generate preliminary data, or build and validate innovative approaches that could later be expanded under larger mechanisms. The listed award ceiling is $200,000, reflecting the smaller, proof-of-concept nature of R21 projects. The FOA is also marked "Clinical Trial Optional," meaning applicants may propose studies that meet the NIH definition of a clinical trial, but they are not required to do so. That flexibility allows applicants to focus either on human observational research (such as biospecimen-based exposure profiling in cohorts), translational laboratory methods development, or other designs that best fit the proposed question.

For projects intended for support by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), the FOA highlights an emphasis on innovative technology and method development. That typically aligns with efforts to improve sensitivity, specificity, throughput, standardization, quality control, and interpretability of adductomic measurements, as well as methods that better connect measured adduct profiles to environmental exposures and biological effects. This technology-forward angle is important because adductomics can be analytically challenging: many adducts exist at low abundance, can be chemically diverse, may be unstable, and can be difficult to confidently identify without rigorous analytical confirmation and reference standards.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based and international organizations. Eligible applicants include state, county, and local governments; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; independent school districts; special district governments; federally recognized Native American tribal governments, as well as other tribal organizations; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) status; for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); and small businesses. The FOA also explicitly names additional eligible applicant categories such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities (foreign organizations), and U.S. territories or possessions. This inclusive eligibility structure is consistent with the population-focused nature of exposure science and cancer prevention research, where partnerships with communities, diverse institutions, and international collaborators can be essential.

Administratively, the opportunity is categorized as a discretionary NIH grant program, with activity areas spanning education, environment, and health, and it lists CFDA numbers 93.113, 93.393, 93.394, and 93.395. The original closing date provided in the source data is November 8, 2021, and the opportunity was created on April 11, 2019. Overall, the FOA is designed to push the field toward more comprehensive, modern exposure biomarker science by encouraging researchers to develop and apply adductomic tools that can more accurately reflect real-world exposure mixtures and biological responses, with the long-term aim of improving cancer risk identification and prevention.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, environment, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Basic and Translational Research on Adducts in Cancer Risk Identification and Prevention (R21 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.113, 93.393, 93.394, 93.395.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2019-04-11.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2021-11-08. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $200,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for PAR 19 252

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