Grants>Novel Therapies

Shwachman-Diamond Syndrome Foundation Grants

Shwachman-Diamond Syndrome (SDS) is a multi-system autosomal-recessive disorder characterized by exocrine pancreatic dysfunction, and varying degrees of marrow dysfunction with cytopenias. Many associated clinical problems have also been described, including skeletal anomalies, metaphyseal dysostosis, rib abnormalities, cleft palate, dental abnormalities and others. Shwachman-Diamond Syndrome Foundation (SDSF) is a nonprofit support organization actively helping the victims of this disease. SDSF is accepting grant requests for research relevant to this disease. Any high quality, innovative research proposal deemed relevant to SDS will be considered. The following are areas of particular interest:

Investigate or evaluate potential novel therapies or potential novel therapeutic strategies- preferred applications

Evaluate predictors of bone marrow abnormalities to determine their correlation with the disease

Determine the causes of and investiagte treatments for bone marrow failure and leukemia

Evaluate protocols and regimens for bone marrow transplants

Evaluate causes and investigate treatments for graft vs host disease and other infections of post bone marrow transplants

Investigations related to adult patient presentation, management, and care including transition from pediatric-centered to adult care

Eligibility

Persons applying for these grants must be in a faculty position with authority to hold an independent research grant (not a training position).

Letter of Intent

The potential applicant should write a one-page letter of intent to the SDSF, indicating the applicant’s position and affiliation, describing their planned project, and explaining its relevance to Shwachman-Diamond Syndrome. These letters are reviewed by SDSF’s Medical and Scientific Advisory Board (MSAB) grant review process.

Purpose

This letter will be used to identify applicants who will be asked to provide a full application.

Dates

The letter is due no later than March 12th. All those who have submitted a letter of intent will receive a reply by April 5th. All Grant Applications must be submitted by May 15th. The final grant decision will be announced by July 31st with a November 1st start date.

Terms of Support

Support may be provided for up to two (2) years in an amount not to exceed $35,000 per year, including expenses. The second year funding will not be released until a Progress Report has been reviewed and approved by the MSAB. The date for the Progress Report is October 1st. Applicants may submit only one grant application at a time, and may hold only one grant at a time.

If you would like us to send you a grant application, have any questions regarding the grant process or have an interest in the disease, please contact SDSF at the address indicated on the home page of our website, call toll free 1-888-825-SDSF (7373) or via email at info@shwachman-diamond.org.

Call for Applications: Meso Foundation Research Grants

The Meso Foundation (formerly known as MARF) is the non-profit dedicated to ending the suffering caused by mesothelioma. We are the international collaboration of patients and families, physicians, advocates, and researchers dedicated to eradicating the life-ending and vicious effects of mesothelioma. We believe in a cure for meso. Given the human toll of suffering the disease causes, the compassion and energy of the meso community, the moral, legal and economic aspects of asbestos, and the benefits of meso research to cancer research generally, we believe that the resources to accomplish this cure are available and must be mobilized. We seek to marshal and utilize these resources responsibly, as effectively as possible, with financial transparency and by adhering to health policy guidelines that foster ethical clinical and administrative practices, and ethical decision making to:

·  Offer hope and support to patients and families by educating them on the disease, helping them to obtain the most up-to-date information on treatment options and to connect with meso treatment specialists, and providing them assistance, emotional support and community with others;

·  Raise awareness of meso, and advocate that the public and private sectors partner in the effort to cure it by directing the resources needed to stop this global tragedy; and

·  Fund the highest quality and most promising meso research projects from around the world through rigorous peer-review. To date we have funded 86 projects, from six different countries, totaling over 8.2 million dollars.

The Meso Foundation offers research grants for two years up to $50,000 per year. Eligible projects may relate to benchwork, translational or clinical research that is not presently funded or pending review and may be conducted through any not-for-profit academic, medical or research institution. The Foundation will review and monitor the project's progress and results, requiring semi-annual disposition of funds reports, a ten month progress report, a presentation at the Foundation’s Symposium and a full progress report at the close of the project. The Foundation seeks exceptional projects for which the Foundation's funding is demonstrated to be essential and not duplicative. Please be advised that the Foundation does not pay institutional indirect costs.

Funded researchers will also be entitled to facilitated access to the National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank (NMVB),www.mesotissue.org.They will receive expedited review of requests to use the NMVB, and they will have direct, no-cost access to materials in the bank, as well as enhanced collections from the main sites of materials.

Encouraged projects include, but are not limited to, investigations of:

1. Strategies for early detection of new or progressive disease;

2. Definition of targetable differences between normal and transformed mesothelium and development of novel strategies for treatment;

3. Therapeutic intervention, including but not limited to;

a. Immune Response Targeted Therapy

b. Novel chemotherapeutic compounds

c. Novel radiation or surgical techniques

4. Determination of clinical/molecular determinants for prognosis

Applications will be considered for funding by the Meso Foundation’s Science Advisory Board comprised of doctors and researchers who work around the world within the mesothelioma field. These members will review and score the research proposals based on the following criteria. The applications will be ranked numerically and the highest scoring projects will be recommended to the Foundation’s Board of Directors for funding. Based on the funding available, awards will be granted.

Applications will be evaluated on the following criteria:

Significance - Does the project address an important problem or a critical barrier to progress in the field? If the aims of the project are achieved, how will scientific knowledge, technical capability, and/or clinical practice be improved? How will successful completion of the aims change the concepts, methods, technologies, treatments, services, or preventative interventions that drive this field?

Investigator(s)- Are the PD/PIs, collaborators, and other researchers well suited to the project? If Early Stage Investigators or New Investigators, or in the early stages of independent careers, do they have appropriate experience and training? If established, have they demonstrated an ongoing record of accomplishments that have advanced their field(s)? If the project is collaborative or multi-PD/PI, do the investigators have complementary and integrated expertise; are their leadership approach, governance and organizational structure appropriate for the project?

Innovation - Does the application challenge and seek to shift current research or clinical practice paradigms by utilizing novel theoretical concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions? Are the concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions novel to one field of research or novel in a broad sense? Is a refinement, improvement, or new application of theoretical concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions proposed?

Approach - Are the overall strategy, methodology, and analyses well-reasoned and appropriate to accomplish the specific aims of the project? Are potential problems, alternative strategies, and benchmarks for success presented? If the project is in the early stages of development, will the strategy establish feasibility and will particularly risky aspects be managed? If the project involves clinical research, are the plans for 1) protection of human subjects from research risks, and 2) inclusion of minorities and members of both sexes/genders, justified in terms of the scientific goals and research strategy proposed?

Environment - Will the scientific environment in which the work will be done contribute to the probability of success? Are the institutional support, equipment and other physical resources available to the investigators adequate for the project proposed? Will the project benefit from unique features of the scientific environment, subject populations, or collaborative arrangements?

Applications should be submittedthrough proposalCENTRAL.You will find the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation listed with the instructions and the application required. Applications are limited to 10 pages (not including biographies) and are due no later than August 2, 2013. Final award decisions will be made in December 2013 and all applicants will be notified of the outcome.

Call for Applications: International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders Research Grant Program

The International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders (IFFGD) is seeking applications for research grants.

Grant awards of $40,000 in direct costs each are available to three (3) investigators for innovative research related to idiopathic gastroparesis.

Basis

We are seeking proposals for research in humans that will ultimately lead to improvements in the understanding of idiopathic gastroparesis, its pathophysiology, and the care of patients.

The mission of IFFGD is patient-oriented. Our goal is to fund high-quality research. A preference will be given to clinical research, as well as basic research that is translational in nature.

Eligibility

Applicants must have completed an MD, PhD, or equivalent degree. Successful applicants must agree to acknowledge IFFGD support in any publications that result from the research, and to submit a final report to IFFGD within 18 months of initial receipt of funding (NIH form PHS 2590 or equivalent format).

Review Process

A Selection Committee, independent of IFFGD staff, will review applications and designate the grants. In evaluating the merits of an application, the Selection Committee will consider its scientific merit, its significance to the field, and its feasibility (including availability of adequate resources, personnel and facilities).

Program emphasis will include, but not be limited to, issues relating to:

symptom management

integrative physiological processes

therapeutic targets

new technology to help explain gastric function and relationship to human disease

neurobiology

quality of life

patient-physician relationships that improve outcomes and satisfaction with treatment

multi-disciplinary approaches, and

novel approaches to patient care.

Allowable Budget Expenses

Only direct costs are allowed. Indirect costs are not allowed in these grants. Within direct costs, there are no unallowable expenses.

Application Process

The deadline for submitting applications is midnight, Monday September 3, 2013.

The application must be sent either via email to IFFGD at awards@iffgd.org or uploaded via our online submission form here. An original signed face page will be required prior to award disbursement, but is not required to be sent with the application submission.

The awards will be announced December 15, 2013 and the award period will begin January 1, 2014. Grants are in pre-tax U.S. dollars.

Direct questions as follows:

Via email about the grants or online submission instructions – Susan Schneck at sschneck@iffgd.org

By phone at 1-414-964-1799.

Call for Nominations: Dr. Alan M. Gewirtz Memorial Scholarship

Supported by the Oligonucleotide Therapeutics Society

The Dr. Alan M. Gewirtz Memorial Scholarship supports outstanding new scientists and recognizes their contributions in the field of oligonucleotide therapeutics.

OTS created the Dr. Alan M. Gewirtz Memorial Scholarship in 2011 as a tribute to his life and work. Dr. Gewirtz was very influential in the field of oligonucleotides as well as in the establishment of the OTS. His passing in November 2010 inspired the society to create this scholarship in his honor.

Eligibility Requirements

Nominees must:

Be active in research at the time the award is given.

Be a graduate student, post doctorate, or post-doctoral fellow, currently or within two years.

Prior winners are not eligible.

Award Information

The recipient receives:

$2,000 award

Complimentary registration to the OTS Annual Meeting

The OTS President presents the prize at the OTS annual meeting

Nomination Criteria

Nominees do not need to be OTS members.

Self-nomination is not permitted.

No person may nominate more than one candidate.

Current OTS officers are ineligible for nomination.

Nomination Materials

All materials must be submitted via email by July 1, 2013 to awards@eventinnovations.com.

Required materials include:

One nomination letter from the nominee’s current (or former) Institution

One letter of recommendation from a current or previous supervisor

Current CV

Publication list

If you have questions, please e-mail awards@eventinnovations.com.

Call for Nominations: Oligonucleotide Therapeutics Society Young Investigator Award

Supported by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. publishers

The Young Investigator Award recognizes the outstanding achievements and contributions by a young scientist in the field of oligonucleotide therapeutics who has recently received his or her advanced professional degree.

Eligibility Requirements

Nominees must:

Be active in research at the time the award is given.

Have received a PhD or MD (or equivalent) within the past 10 years.

Prior winners are not eligible.

Award Information

The recipient receives:

$1,000 award

Complimentary registration to the OTS Annual Meeting

The OTS President presents the prize at the OTS annual meeting

Nomination Criteria

Nominees do not need to be OTS members.

Self-nomination is not permitted.

No person may nominate more than one candidate.

Current OTS officers are ineligible for nomination.

Nomination Materials

All materials must be submitted via email by July 1, 2013 to awards@eventinnovations.com.

Required materials include:

One nomination letter from the nominee’s Institution

Current CV – date on which the advanced degree was awarded must be provided.

Up to three of the nominee’s most important published papers.

Maximum two page summary of nominee’s contributions to the field.

Optional materials:

A letter of recommendation, preferably from the nominee’s previous mentor(s).

If you have questions, please e-mail awards@eventinnovations.com.

International Rett Syndrome Foundation Translational Research Program

Cycle 2 Letter of Intent due:  July 1, 2013

IRSF announces the availability of HeART (Help Accelerate RTT Therapeutics) and ANGEL (Advanced Neurotherapeutic Grant of Excellence) grant awards to promote the development and testing of therapeutics to treat and reverse Rett syndrome (RTT) and its symptoms. These award mechanisms seek to facilitate the development and testing of novel therapeutics targeting the underlying pathology of the disorder, thereby leading to an amelioration of symptoms or ultimately a pharmacological reversal of RTT. Through these awards, IRSF seeks to foster academic and public-private partnerships and further facilitate drug discovery, development and testing.

IRSF encourages novel research programs that broadly encompass the following areas of unmet need:

Design, synthesis and testing of potential disease modifying therapeutics to treat or reverse RTT

Testing of existing therapeutics both in vitro and in vivo to repurpose their use in RTT

Development and/or validation of in vitro and in vivo models of RTT for therapeutic testing

Development and/or validation of novel biomarkers for objective clinical trials outcome measures

Testing of IND-ready therapeutics in pilot clinical trials

IRSF encourages investigators to utilize the newly available IRSF SMART Library of compounds in their proposed studies.

HeART (Help Accelerate RTT Therapeutics) Grant Award

Goal: To provide seed funding for early stage drug discovery and development efforts.

Funding: The maximum funding level for HeART grant awards is $150,000 for two years.

HeART grant awards are provided for cell-based assay development, early-stage drug discovery and development, early stage medicinal chemistry efforts on high value candidate therapeutics, cell-based screening of candidate therapeutics and follow-on early-stage in vivo testing. Grant applications for exploratory studies towards development of biomarkers or objective clinical outcome measures will also be considered.

ANGEL (Advanced Neurotherapeutic Grant of Excellence) Grant Award

Goal: To provide funding for the later stages of translational research.

Funding: The maximum funding level for ANGEL grant awards is $300,000 per year for up to two years.

Proposals must be comprised of very specific programs focused on pre-clinical drug discovery and development or clinical testing of therapeutic candidates. This mechanism requires development of a milestone based research plan, interim reporting on milestones and interaction with IRSF staff prior to and during the award period. The budget and duration of funding are variable and continued funding will be based on satisfactory progress on milestones. Applications are usually solicited, however, unsolicited proposals will be considered. Preliminary inquiries are required to determine IRSF’s level of interest prior to submission of an Expression of Interest (EOI).

Frequency:

Awards will be made in two cycles in 2013.

Please Note: IRSF requires all applicants to use our online submission process.

For application submission inquiries, please contact:

Janice Ascano, Ph.D. Manager of Grants and Research - jascano@rettsyndrome.org | 917-267-4504

For program related inquiries, please contact:

Steve Kaminsky, Ph.D., Chief Science Officer - skaminsky@rettsyndrome.org | 301-961-1559

Broad Medical Research Program Inflammatory Bowel Disease Grants

Recognizing that some of the most promising research in this area of medicine is at the very early stages of development, the Broad Medical Research Program funds studies and investigation of new ideas in their initial exploratory stage that do not yet qualify for funding from more traditional sources like the National Institutes of Health. By supporting innovative and promising ideas, we hope to advance the research so it is likely to receive continuation funding from other sources.

The Broad Medical Research Program awards one- and two-year grants for basic or clinical IBD research projects to qualified investigators from around the world who work in a nonprofit academic organization.

Grant applications submitted to the Broad Medical Research Program are not reviewed by a committee. Instead, leading investigators in each research area review proposals and provide suggestions for improvement. Over 1,900 reviewers from 41 countries have participated in the review process. Proposals are selected for funding based on their scientific strength, innovation and relevance to IBD diagnosis, therapy or prevention. To expedite the research, we accept applications year-round and fund approved applications in about three months.

Because we believe that great ideas could come from non-traditional sources, we encourage basic and clinical investigators and scientists not currently working in IBD and interdisciplinary teams to apply.

Application Process

There is a two-step process for requesting funds from the Broad Medical Research Program:

1. The first step is to submit a Letter of Interest. Decisions on Letters of Interest are based on external expert review of the proposal and usually are made within four to six weeks. Instructions for Letters of Interest can be found at www.broadmedical.org.

2. If we are interested in pursuing a project, an invitation is extended to submit a full grant application. At that time, the grant application instructions and forms are sent to the Principal Investigator. Decisions on grant applications are made based on external review by subject experts and usually take eight to 10 weeks.

There are no deadlines or specific dates for applications. Proposals are accepted and reviewed year-round.

Proposal Review

• Most Letters of Interest and all grant applications will be evaluated by active investigators in the specific research area.
• Reviewers are located throughout the world and are chosen carefully not to have conflicts of interest with the applicants.
• Grant proposals will be selected for funding based on their scientific strength, innovative value and relevance to IBD diagnosis, therapy or prevention.
• Decisions on Letters of Interest will usually be made within 4-6 weeks.
• Decisions on grant applications will usually be made within 8-10 weeks.

Funding Guidelines

• Preference is given to proposals with strong potential of clinical benefit to IBD patients in the foreseeable future.
• Funding can be requested for up to two years.
• Funding of a second year will be based on an evaluation of the progress and the perceived value of the findings from the first year of funding.

Letter of Interest Submission

1. Direct Letters of Interest to:
Daniel Hollander, M.D.
Director
Broad Medical Research Program
The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, Scientific | Medical Research
10900 Wilshire Boulevard, Twelfth Floor
Los Angeles, California 90024-6532
U.S.A.
2. If possible, please send your Letter of Interest and all attachments electronically to: info@broadmedical.org. If you send it electronically, please do not send a printed copy.
3. Receipt of your Letter of Interest will be acknowledged by e-mail within a few days. If you do not hear from us in a timely manner, please contact us at info@broadmedical.org to make sure that your letter has been received.
4. You may include suggestions for potential reviewers and also indicate individuals with potential conflicts of interest.
Unless required by your institution, Letters of Interest may be submitted directly to the BMRP by the Principal Investigator and do not require institutional approval or signature.
5. Letters of Interest are accepted and reviewed throughout the year; there are no deadlines.