JOFOC synopsis.pdf

Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition as a new requirement to the Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene, inc. contract entitled: “Mechanisms of Behavior Change initiation (MOBCI) for Drinking Behavior.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) intends to negotiate on a sole source basis with Dr. Hans Breither, of Massachusetts General Hospital, The General Hospital Corporation. Dr. Breiter will facilitate design and revision of experiments, data collection, data analysis and interpretation/write-up of behavioral and neuroimaging data. Dr. Breiter is the one responsible source that can satisfy the Agency’s requirement because: (1) he is the main architect of relative preference theory (RPT), a quantitative general theory of reward/aversion; (2) he has also recently published work connecting RPT to reward/aversion circuitry and to polymorphisms in CREB1 and BDNF. This work represents an extension of neuroeconomics to genetics.

(3) Dr. Breiter’s addition to this contract will address the neuroscience approach which was characterized by control theory in addition to approaches such as neuroeconomics.

The proposed research program is aimed at stimulating research that will lead to the development of evidence-based strategies that encourage regular heavy drinkers to initiate and sustain a change from a maladaptive to a healthier lifestyle. A key innovative concept to be applied is the modeling of the drinking behavior “control system”, which integrates relevant variables and processes to produce specific drinking behaviors and trajectories and the interdisciplinary approach to understanding how and why behavioral change initiation for alcohol drinking occurs. The proposed research program is interested in three levels of analyses: (1) Neurophysiologic factors, (2) Intrapersonal factors and (3) Interpersonal factors. The anticipated result of this research program is the development of new models to be used to design behavioral interventions in alcohol abuse.

Dr. Breiter is one of a handful of neuroscientists with a specialization in reward/aversion behavior and imaging, and in addiction research with humans. He has consistently contributed some of the most cited papers in the reward imaging field, with more than 5,000 citations to date from only 44 papers. Of this work, one paper with D. Kahneman (Breiter et al., Neuron, 2001) showed that Kahneman’s prospect theory accurately modeled brain reward responses to monetary expectancy, gains, and losses, and was published 1½ years before Kahneman received a Nobel in Economics (2002). This work is considered one of the finest imaging studies in the new field of neuroeconomics.

Dr. Breiter’s experience is also unique because he has been involved in the MOBCI effort for several years. He was among a very small group of neuroscientists who participated in the NIAAA planning meetings that led to the BAA and was Co-I along with Drs. Morgenstern and Bates on a highly successful U13 conference grant on MOBCI in AUD. Dr. Breiter has training cross several fields that are highly relevant to the MOBCI objective including neuroimaging and neuroscience (training through Steve Hyman), as well as strong training in experimental psychology (via Steve Kosslyn and Danny Kahneman), anatomy (via Verne Caviness), quantitative analysis (via Bruce Rosen), and mathematics (via Crispin Wright, St. Andrews University & the Honors Program in Medical Education, Northwestern University).

Pursusant to 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(1) as set forth in the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) at 6.302-1, Dr. Hans Breiter is the only source capable of performing this requirement due to his expertise in this field. As part of the expert review of this proposal, reviewers identified the work of Dr. Breiter and his colleagues (e.g., Makris et al, 2008) on alcohol and dual process approaches as highly relevant to the aims of this project. NIAAA technical staff have determined the potential significance of extending their work using our functional neuroimaging paradigms. It would be highly advantageous to have input from Dr. Breiter because of his unique and detailed knowledge of that work. In addition, Dr. Breiter could facilitate connection across the two groups and accelerate the pace of discovery in this area.

To attempt to use a different source would result in a substantial duplication of costs to the Government that would not be recovered through competition, as well as unacceptable delays in obtaining the required expertise which is currently available nowhere else.

Interested parties may identify capability to respond to the requirements as described above. A determination not to compete the proposed work based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Contracting Officer. This notice of intent is not an announcement of the availability of a Request for Proposal, nor is an RFP available.