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Project CHROMA: A Randomized Trial of a Scalable Music Creativity Intervention for Mild Cognitive Impairment-Neural Moderators and Cellular Mechanisms

Award Number: R01AG098667
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON AGING
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 09/01/2026
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 08/31/2031

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Project CHROMA: A Randomized Trial of a Scalable Music Creativity Intervention for Mild Cognitive Impairment-Neural Moderators and Cellular Mechanisms - Project Summary/Abstract Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), affecting roughly 20% of adults aged 65 and older, is a leading risk state for Alzheimer’s Disease and Alzheimer’s Disease–Related Dementias (AD/ADRD). Because medicines offer limited benefit for slowing decline or improving day-to-day well-being, there is urgent need for scalable, rigorous non-pharmacological interventions that strengthen cognitive resilience and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). This Stage II randomized clinical trial (N=210; 70/arm) will compare a six-week active music creativity program (structured composition, improvisation, collaborative performance) with an active music appreciation course and a passive personalized listening program. Randomization will be centralized and concealed; delivery will be manualized with fidelity monitoring aligned to the NIH Music-Based Intervention Toolkit. Eligibility will be confirmed via telehealth using either physician-documented MCI within 12 months or Telephone MoCA ≤17 (education-adjusted) with preserved instrumental activities of daily living. Assessments will occur at baseline, post-intervention (primary clinical time point), three months (mechanistic and clinical durability), and six months (distal clinical durability for cognition and emotional well-being only). To connect clinical change to mechanisms relevant to AD/ADRD, we will obtain resting-state functional neuroimaging and morning blood samples at baseline, post, and three months. Neural flexibility will index brain network adaptability that supports learning, executive control, and transfer to daily function; blood assays will quantify inflammatory signaling (e.g., interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha) and cellular energy metabolism in circulating immune cells as markers of bioenergetic resilience. Aim 1 will test whether active music creativity improves global cognition and HRQoL versus both controls. Aim 2 will test baseline neural flexibility as a moderator of clinical benefit to enable precision targeting. Aim 3 (exploratory) will identify neural, inflammatory, and bioenergetic pathways that accompany—and partially account for—clinical improvement and durability. This project addresses critical gaps by isolating the added value of creative production, identifying who benefits, and defining how benefits occur through coordinated brain–immune–metabolic change. The work directly advances NIA priorities for rigorous non-pharmacological interventions in AD/ADRD and aims to deliver a scale-ready, cost-effective, and accessible program that promotes healthy cognitive aging and extends cognitive healthspan.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2026 ( Subtotal = $826,582 )
2026	2026	WILLIAM MARSH RICE UNIVERSITY	6100 MAIN ST	HOUSTON	TX	77005	HARRIS	USA	Aging Research	000	1	8/25/2026	NEW	$826,582
														Subtotal = $826,582

Grand Total All Awards = $826,582

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Project CHROMA: A Randomized Trial of a Scalable Music Creativity Intervention for Mild Cognitive Impairment-Neural Moderators and Cellular Mechanisms

Award Number: R01AG098667

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON AGING

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 09/01/2026

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 08/31/2031

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