# Pilot/Exploratory Studies Core

> **NIH NIH P30** · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $165,992

## Abstract

Pilot / Exploratory Studies Core (PESC): Project Summary
The overall goal of the Pilot / Exploratory Studies Core (PESC) is to cultivate and support cutting edge pilot
and exploratory studies that will advance the development of effective prevention and/or therapies for frailty
and hence facilitate independence in older adults. The PESC Core leader, in close collaboration with other
core leaders, set scientific goals for the next stages of frailty research, and then work to identify
investigators whose expertise and career goals would be applicable to furthering our knowledge in the
targeted areas. These leaders search for pilot and exploratory studies that can collect data required in order
to select or design the future large-scale or confirmatory studies needed to establish frailty mechanisms,
determine etiologies, or develop novel treatment and screening approaches. Studies selected for funding in
the first year of this cycle include a study that pilots a behavioral intervention to concurrently address pain
and frailty in older African American women, a metabolomic study that seeks to identify frailty-related
metabolite signatures of energy dysregulation through a C 13 labeled glucose tolerance test, and study that
seeks to further understanding of the connection between sleep disturbance and frailty by identifying
specific polysomnographic signatures implicated, using functional data analysis, and exploring a potential
cyclical relationship. The specific aims of the PESC are to 1) advance the science and translation of frailty
research by providing intellectual leadership necessary to identify targeted areas of research and
investigators that can best accomplish the translational goals of this OAIC, 2) to support the development of
well-designed and informative pilot studies, 3) to provide and conduct longitudinal mentorship to supported
investigators through completion of the pilot award and pursuit of funding for the next stage of research, 4)
to further guide the translation of any pilot study results, and 5) to expand the research environment and
network of frailty-focused investigators needed to accomplish the overall OAIC goals. These aims will be
carried out in close collaboration with biostatistics, biological mechanisms, and clinical translational and
recruitment core leaders to ensure optimal design and access to core resources needed for study success.
Important findings from this core can be broadly disseminated through the new Information Dissemination
Core (IDC) proposed in this application. This core will guide the translation of pilot work into a deeper
understanding of the basic biology and population implications of frailty and into interventions that will
prevent or treat frailty hence help maintain independence.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10201469
- **Project number:** 5P30AG021334-19
- **Recipient organization:** JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** NEAL S FEDARKO
- **Activity code:** P30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $165,992
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2003-06-01 → 2023-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10201469

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10201469, Pilot/Exploratory Studies Core (5P30AG021334-19). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10201469. Licensed CC0.

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