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Pilot Studies

The Center for Women's Health Research funds 2-3 pilot/feasibility studies per year. The funds are generally awarded to new investigators or to established investigators exploring a new area of research. *

Goals & Priorities

In accordance with NINR regulations CWHGR pilot study funds must be used to:

  1. Support a NEW investigator who has not been a Principal Investigator in the past, or who is not currently funded with an NIH research project grant.

  2. Support research by an established investigator in the scientific area of inquiry with a proposal for testing the feasibility of a NEW or INNOVATIVE idea that is conceptually related but represents a clear and distinct departure from the investigator's on-going research interest.

  3. Support an established, supported investigator with no previous work in the scientific area of inquiry that is willing to test the applicability of his/her expertise on a conceptually related problem.

Funding in the amount of $15,000 for one pilot study. Please note: The PI, in accordance with NINR policy, must be paid a small percentage on the grant.
Research Priorities for the Biobehavioral Laboratory Core The Biocore supports biobehavioral research that addresses gender disparities in women's health. The Biocore's priorities are to understand the biological basis of health problems that occur more frequently in women, women's unique responses to stress, and gender-based differences across the lifespan. The resources of the Biocore enable Center investigators to integrate biological indicators with behavioral and experiential responses to address questions unique to women's health (e.g., ovarian hormone influences on symptom profiles across the menstrual cycle, premenstrual syndrome, menopause transition), conditions that disproportionately affect women compared to men (e.g., fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome), and studies focused on sex differences and gender disparities in health outcomes. To support these areas of research the Biocore has the following resources: the Biochemical and Immune Function Laboratory with the capacity to assay neuroendocrine and immune biomarkers; the Exercise and Cardiovascular Monitoring Laboratory; the Sleep Research Laboratory; the Molecular Genetics Laboratory and the ANS Psychophysiological Laboratory. The ANS Psychophysiological Laboratory utilizes impedance cardiography, electrocardiogram, and skin conductance measure of autonomic regulation in response to research stimuli. The psychophysiology laboratory has a set of standard protocols that can be used to assess gender-sensitive laboratory stressors (e.g., public speaking task, arithmetic stress test, heat, conflict interaction), which can be used at baseline and post-intervention for various individual studies including in field settings. Priorities for the remainder of the grant period include

  • Studies which use our psychophysiological measures of ANS regulation & balance during sleep and in response to interventions or standard gender-sensitive laboratory stressors (e.g., public speaking task, arithmetic stress test, cold pressor, heat, conflict interaction).
  • Studies of gene expression resulting from various experimental manipulations, clinical conditions or interventions.
  • Studies of neurocognitive testing to explore changes in selected brain areas (e.g., prefrontal cortex, hippocampus) before and after interventions designed to reduce symptoms.
  • Studies to differentiate free and bound plasma cortisol, to measure oxytocin and corticotropin releasing hormone or the feasibility of using chemiluminescence to measure hormones from urine samples.

Research Priorities for the Gender Disparities Core As the state of the science of women's health continues to advance with greater understanding of the different ways that men and women respond to therapeutic interventions, the need for gender-tailored interventions increases. To be effective and acceptable, these interventions must be sensitive to the specific values of the ethnic, cultural, racial or social group to which the women belong. Women's experiences of health is not only gendered, but also intertwined with class, ethnicity, sexual orientation, residence, occupation, and other determinants, none of which can be understood in isolation. Grounding the intervention in communities is one way to assure its relevance to the population and to enhance its sustainability. Particular interests of the Gender Disparities Core include (but are not limited to):

  • The development of innovative prevention, intervention and outcome research in women's health and gender disparities
  • The identification of strategies to facilitate long-term relationships, including within longitudinal studies, with diverse communities
  • The development of new or modification of existing survey instruments that have been used to measure psychosocial and health-related concepts relevant to gender differences or gender disparities in diverse communities
  • The application of community based participatory approaches in women's health and gender disparities research.

*Please note: Due to NINR policy, pilot/feasibility study funds cannot be released until IRB approval has been obtained.

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