The Tobacco Regulatory Science Program (TRSP) is an interagency partnership between the NIH and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Center for Tobacco Products.
About the Tobacco Regulatory Science Program
With the passage of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (often called the Tobacco Control Act) in 2009, the FDA acquired the authority to regulate the manufacture, marketing, and distribution of tobacco products in order to protect public health and established a new Center for Tobacco Products (CTP). Within the framework of the Tobacco Control Act, the NIH and FDA/CTP formed an interagency partnership to foster research that informs FDA/CTP tobacco regulatory activities. This partnership leverages the NIH’s infrastructure to solicit, review, and manage research, the long-standing support for tobacco-related research at several NIH Institutes and Centers, and the FDA’s expertise and authority in tobacco regulatory science. The National Cancer Institute is a participating Institute in the Tobacco Regulatory Science Program and holds a diverse portfolio of tobacco regulatory science grants.
Funded Research
Tobacco Centers of Regulatory Science (TCORS)
The Tobacco Centers of Regulatory Science (TCORS) generate critical research to inform the FDA’s regulation of tobacco products. The TCORS are made up of investigators with a broad range of expertise (including epidemiology, economics, toxicology, addictions, and marketing) who conduct research projects around an integrative theme. A total of 14 Centers (TCORS 1.0) were funded in 2013, nine Centers (TCORS 2.0) received funding in 2018, and seven Centers (TCORS 3.0) received funding in 2023. NCI programmatically manages three of the TCORS 3.0 Centers.
Featured Grantees
TCORS 3.0: Center for the Assessment of the Public Health Impact of Tobacco Regulations (CAsToR)
CAsToR aims to provide evidence-based and expert-informed modeling of the behavioral and public health impacts of FDA tobacco rules or other regulatory actions.
TCORS 3.0: The Ohio State University Tobacco Center of Regulatory Science (OSU-TCORS)
The OSU-TCORS seeks to understand how the manipulations of nicotine in e-cigarettes, oral nicotine pouches and the marketing of these products impact their appeal, addictiveness, use patterns, and toxicity.
TCORS 3.0: USC Tobacco Center of Regulatory Science
The University of Southern California TCORS conducts research that will identify how adolescents and young adults are impacted by novel oral nicotine products, e-cigarettes, and other tobacco products.
TCORS 2.0: Examining the Effects of Advertising, Packaging and Labeling on Perceptions, Use and Exposure of Combustible Tobacco Products
The University of Pennsylvania – Rutgers University TCORS focuses on the effects of tobacco advertising, marketing, packaging, and labeling on risk perceptions, use, behavior, and exposure for combustible tobacco products.
Watch an interview with Dr. Strasser and learn more about the Center’s work.
TCORS 2.0: WNY Center for Research on Flavored Tobacco Products (CRoFT)
The Western New York (WNY) Center for Research on Flavored Tobacco Products (CRoFT) focuses on assessing the impact of tobacco product flavors and flavorings on consumer behavior, exposures, and health.
Rutgers Center of Excellence in Rapid Surveillance of Tobacco (CRST)
Through rapid surveillance and reporting of information, CRST will enhance FDA/CTP’s and the research community’s ability to understand, document, and quantify changes in the tobacco product marketplace and tobacco use patterns.
Other Funded Research
View a list of NCI grants funded through TRSP in current and prior fiscal years.
Funding Opportunities
| Title | Announcement # | Expiration Date | Resources |
|---|---|---|---|
| R01 | |||
| Tobacco Regulatory Science (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | RFA-OD-23-017 | May 5, 2025 | |
| K01 | |||
| Mentored Research Scientist Career Development Award in Tobacco Regulatory Research (K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA-OD-22-023 | March 13, 2025 | |
| Mentored Research Scientist Career Development Award in Tobacco Regulatory Research (K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Required) | RFA-OD-22-024 | March 13, 2025 | |
| K99/R00 | |||
| Pathway to Independence Award in Tobacco Regulatory Research (K99/R00 - Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA-OD-22-025 | March 13, 2025 | |
| Pathway to Independence Award in Tobacco Regulatory Research (K99/R00 - Independent Clinical Trial Required) | RFA-OD-22-026 | March 13, 2025 | |
Resources
Resources for Interested Applicants
- TRSP Research Priorities – TRSP encourages research in eight scientific domains.
- TRSP Application Review Criteria – TRSP review criteria for Significance and Innovation are different from standard NIH review criteria.
- Frequently Asked Questions – These FAQs attempt to clarify what research is, or is not, within scope of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) regulatory authority.
- CTP Database of Tobacco Regulatory Research Projects – Use this search tool to find abstracts and more information about funded projects, including but not limited to those funded by the NIH-FDA Tobacco Regulatory Science partnership.
Selected Tobacco Regulatory Science Research and Reports
- Chemistry, Toxicology, and Addiction Research on Waterpipe Tobacco (Special Issue – Tobacco Control, February 2020)
- E-cigarettes and Non-combustible Tobacco Products (Special Issue – Addictive Behaviors, April 2019)
- Patterns and Correlates of Multiple Tobacco Product Use in the United States (Special Issue – Nicotine & Tobacco Research, September 2018)
- Patterns of Tobacco Product Use in the United States: Transitions across Three Waves of the PATH Study (2013-2016) (Special Issue – Tobacco Control, May 2020)
- Standard Measures for Tobacco Regulatory Research: The PhenX Toolkit Collections (Special Issue – Tobacco Control, January 2020)
- Standards to Reduce Nicotine in Combusted Tobacco in United States (Special Issue – Nicotine & Tobacco Research, December 2019)
- Tobacco Regulatory Science Research Program at FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products: Summary and Highlights (FDA CTP)
Contacts
