Alpha Channel of Particle Color Not Affected by Curve in Emitter

I am trying to make a particle that fades in opacity over time. I thought simply using the alpha channel of the Particle Color node would be enough, but whenever I try to modify that alpha value via a Float from Curve, nothing happens. It seems to be only taking the initial alpha value of my curve, as whenever I set the curve to start at a value other than 1, it maintains that opacity. I have looked everywhere online and in the engine I can think of, does anyone have experience with this issue that can offer some guidance?