CAF is Accepting 2012-2013 Research Grant and Fellowship Applications
October 25, 2011 – The Cooley’s Anemia Foundation is accepting applications for the following:
SUPPORT FOR ONGOING CLINICAL RESEARCH IN THALASSEMIA
The Cooley’s Anemia Foundation invites national and international applicants to apply for grants to support ongoing clinical research projects in thalassemia. The goal of this initiative is to support investigators from all disciplines and backgrounds (MD, RN, PhD, MPH, MSW or other disciplines) with their ongoing clinical projects to address one or more of the following areas impacting patients with thalassemia, including but not limited to: fertility, pregnancy and family planning; quality of life/psychosocial; burden of disease including cardiac issues and iron overload. The stipends will be $40,000 annually with possibility of one year renewal upon submission of a renewal application and approval by the Foundation’s Scientific Review Committee and Board of Directors. Approval will be based upon determination of satisfactory progress and availability of funds. Funds may be used for either salaried or non-salaried purposes, but the administrative cost is limited to 10% of the total amount granted. This level of funding would be appropriate for support of innovative small-scale pilot studies, observational trials, or ancillary support for ongoing interventional studies (for example, support of a trainee joining an existing trial, or new biological endpoint analyses for an existing trial). In the case of ancillary studies, investigators should clearly document the support for the parent trial in their “other support” declarations. Junior and senior faculty are eligible; fellows and trainees are not eligible. Investigators must interact directly with patients or patient-related data. Awards will be announced in June 2012. <p >Letters of intent are due January 16, 2012. The completed application is due February 6, 2012. Application forms and instructions for this grant can be downloaded by clicking here.
GENE RESEARCH IN THALASSEMIA TRANSLATIONAL GRANT AWARD
The Cooley’s Anemia Foundation recognizes that there are many key areas worthy of support in the search for a cure for thalassemia with cell therapy and gene therapy. The purpose of this initiative is to speed the application of recent translational advances in gene therapy to clinical trials. Both phase I (safety) and phase II (efficacy) trials are eligible for support. Total funding of up to $60,000 per year will be available (including indirect costs of 8%). With satisfactory evidence of progress the grant may be renewed for a second year. Because the purpose of the support is to facilitate launch of clinical trials, eligible studies proposed for this RFA must be accompanied by a realistic timeline of progress to human trials. The Foundation recognizes that this timeline can be long. Applicants should state explicitly the status of their proposed trials; for example, whether the trial has been approved by the recombinant DNA Advisory Committee (RAC), or Food and Drug Administration (or equivalent processes at non-US sites), or whether review meetings at regulatory agencies have been scheduled. While the funds may be used toward any aspect of launching a human gene therapy trial, the Foundation will request careful documentation of other support of the investigator(s) and the project, and a thorough justification of the allocation of costs to various support mechanisms. This will best enable reviewers to assess feasibility of the proposed project. Examples of expenses allowed will include: clinical-grade vector production and quality control; research subject assessments; late-preclinical studies and ex vivo studies on research subjects required for safety and efficacy assessments (including, but not limited to, evaluation of vector genome integration events, studies of transduction efficiency, studies of globin production by transduced hematopoietic stem cells from subjects); patient care costs directly related to the study; and research assistant or research nursing support. Awards will be announced in June 2012.
The completed application is due February 6, 2012. Application forms and instructions for this grant can be downloaded by clicking here.
RESEARCH FELLOWSHIPS
The Cooley’s Anemia Foundation offers Research Fellowships to clinical and basic science investigators (post doctorial or junior faculty) interested in research focused on the understanding or treatment of thalassemia or a complication that is related to thalassemia. Preference will be given to applicants who have not yet achieved R-01 funding from the NIH. Fellowships are awarded to the medical institutions where the research is to be undertaken; thus, each application must be approved by and administered through the appropriate administrative representative at the institution. Assurance must be given that adequate laboratory facilities exist and are available to conduct the research project and, in case of investigations involving human subjects, that the project has been reviewed and approved by the appropriate committee or governing body on human research. The research may not be conducted at a for-profit laboratory. The areas of interest for funding emphasize, but are not limited to, studies of globin gene regulation, globin gene transfer and expression, fetal hemoglobin production, hematopoietic stem cell research, bone marrow transplantation, iron chelation and iron overload, endocrine and cardiac disorders in thalassemia, and transfusion therapy and its complications. Again, all studies must have as their goals information that is applicable in a clearly defined way to the understanding or treatment of thalassemia or a complication that is related to thalassemia. Post-doctoral applicants must have adequate preceptorship and guidance by an experienced investigator. The sponsor of a post-doctoral fellow should be an investigator with adequate experience and a staff member of an institution with adequate research facilities. The application is expected to be the original work of the candidate but should reflect the close advice of the interested and involved sponsor. Post-doctoral applicants must have an M.D., Ph.D., or equivalent degree, and must not hold a faculty position. Junior faculty members do not require sponsors. Junior faculty applicants must have an M.D., Ph.D., or equivalent degree, and must have completed less than five years at the assistant professor level at the time the applications are due. Fellowship awards are limited to a maximum of $32,500/year and may be renewable for a second year upon reapplication. Awards will be announced in June 2012.
The completed application is due February 6, 2012 Application forms and instructions for fellowships can be downloaded by clicking here.
For further information about any of the above, please contact:
Cooley’s Anemia Foundation
330 Seventh Avenue #200
New York, NY 10001
(800) 522 7222
info@cooleysanemia.org