Call for Applications: New Investigator Awards in Alzheimer's Disease
Funded by The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation and The Diane and Guilford Glazer Foundation, the major goal of this partnership program is to support important research in areas in which more scientific investigation is needed to improve the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of Alzheimer's disease. The program also serves to encourage junior investigators in the United States and Israel to pursue research and academic careers in the neurosciences, and Alzheimer's disease in particular. Up to four one- to two-year awards of $100,000 each will be awarded.
Application Deadline is December 17, 2012.
Projects in basic and translational research related to Alzheimer's disease (AD) that are clinically relevant, will be considered. Projects that focus on healthy brain aging are also considered. For one of the awards, priority may be given to an investigator with a research interest related to healthy brain aging. Areas of research could for example include learning and memory, nutrition, exercise, cardiovascular risk factors, as they relate to the brain and the aging process.
Examples of promising areas of research include, but are not limited to:
Basic mechanisms of aging in the central nervous system
Learning and memory
Genetics of AD
Neuroimaging and precursors of AD
Cellular and Molecular pathways of AD
Biological Markers of AD
Exercise, nutrition and dietary factors
Neurogenesis and AD
Impact of environmental agents in CNS aging and early AD
Inflammation
Cardiovascular and cerebrovascular factors
Drug discovery
It is anticipated that up to 4 grants of $100,000 each will be awarded in 2013. Applicants may propose to use the award over the course of one or two years as justified by the proposed research. Up to 8% of funds may be budgeted for overhead or indirect costs (not to exceed $7,407). Funding will begin July 1, 2013.
Eligibility
The applicant must be an independent investigator with independent research space as described in a form completed by the Dean or Department Chair, and must be no more than 10 years beyond start of postdoctoral research training as of July 1, 2013. Exceptions to the ten year rule may be requested for unusual circumstances by emailing an NIH-style biosketch to AFAR at grants@afar.org. The proposed research must be conducted at any type of not-for-profit setting in the United States or Israel.
The New Investigator Awards in Alzheimer's Disease do not provide support for:
Postdoctoral fellows in the laboratory of a senior investigator
Investigators who have already received major extramural funding (such as an R01 or NSF equivalent grant)
Senior faculty, i.e. at the rank of Associate Professor level or higher
NIH Intramural program employees
Applicants cannot apply for the 2013 AFAR Research Grant Program or Glenn/AFAR BIG Program. Applications for this program will be considered for the AFAR Research Grant if deemed competitive.
Application Guidelines
Five criteria are used to determine the merit of an application:
Qualifications of the applicant;
Quality of the proposed research;
Relevance of the proposal to how mechanisms of aging may lead to AD or encourage healthy brain aging;
Excellence of the research environment;
Likelihood that the project will advance the applicant's career in basic research on the mechanisms of aging and AD
For one of the awards, priority may be given to an investigator with a research interest related to healthy brain aging provided the application is deemed to meet the highest standards set by AFAR's Research Committee.
Application Procedures
All candidates must submit applications endorsed by their institution. The deadline for receipt of applications and supporting materials is December 17, 2012 at 5:00 p.m
