# Pilot and Exploratory Studies Core

> **NIH NIH P30** · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · 2024 · $138,774

## Abstract

7. Project Summary- PESC
The overall goal of the UM-OAIC Pilot and Exploratory Studies Core (PESC) is to provide critical initial funding
for pilot and exploratory studies that are consistent with the Center’s overall goal, which is to build on the
scientific and therapeutic applications of exercise and rehabilitation by: 1) advancing our understanding of the
mechanisms by which exercise, activity-based, and rehabilitation interventions directed at specific impairments
affect multiple body systems underlying functional performance; and 2) developing and testing interventions to
restore function and minimize disability from acute and chronic serious diseases in older adults. To
accomplish these goals, we propose: 1) To solicit and select high-quality innovative pilot and exploratory
studies (PES) that are consistent with the overall UM-OAIC goal; and 2) support the implementation of these
innovative and promising PES through the utilization of PESC and UM-OAIC resources. These resources are
structured to support the successful design and implementation of PES and include: Research Design Studios
to provide specific methodological expertise; Project Implementation Support Groups to ensure prompt and
efficient initiation of research projects; and multidisciplinary Research Working Groups to provide mentoring
and guide and assist investigators in conducting their projects, reporting results, and developing future
investigations. Pilot study awardees will further leverage the resources from the UM-OAIC Resource Cores
along with allied programs and centers at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, the larger University System of
Maryland, and nationally through collaboration with other OAICs. PES will be selected through a rigorous
peer review process led by the Research Education Advisory Panel, with reviewers selected from the External
Advisory Board, leaders from other OAICs, and a member of the Core Leadership Executive Committee. Input
will also be solicited from the Community Advisory Board to ensure that projects are relevant in older adults
and their caregivers from diverse communities in Baltimore and the State of Maryland. Three innovative
projects will be selected for funding in the first year of this competitive renewal, led by PIs from the
Departments of Epidemiology and Public Health, Orthopedics, and Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine.
These projects will investigate: 1) The intersection of depression and pain on functional outcomes in knee
osteoarthritis, utilizing data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative; 2) cell mechanics as a mechanism of biological
age, using translational methods to examine microtubular structure and cystokeletal stiffness as markers of
biological age in pre-clinical and human models; and 3) a pilot-level randomized controlled trial of telemedicine
and telerehabilitation in older Intensive Care Unit survivors on functional outcomes, rehospitalization, and
ambulatory clinic retention. The results obtained from thes...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10894028
- **Project number:** 5P30AG028747-19
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE
- **Principal Investigator:** Stephen L. Seliger
- **Activity code:** P30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $138,774
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2006-09-15 → 2026-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10894028

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10894028, Pilot and Exploratory Studies Core (5P30AG028747-19). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10894028. Licensed CC0.

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