Parkinson's Disease Foundation Seeks Grant Applications to Help Solve, Treat and End Parkinson's Disease

NEW YORK, Oct. 8, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Parkinson's Disease Foundation^® (PDF^®) invites scientific applications for eight grant programs that provide critical research funding to solve, treat and end Parkinson's disease.  PDF is committed to using its scientific investments to support the work of established leaders in Parkinson's, while allocating a significant portion to address a crisis in which early career scientists are leaving the field due to a lack of federal research dollars.  PDF invites scientists to submit applications that can help to improve the lives and futures of people touched by Parkinson's disease by visiting grants.pdf.org.

"PDF takes seriously its responsibility to stem the loss of early career scientists who are forced to abandon promising research ideas and careers far too soon," said James Beck, Ph.D., Vice President, Scientific Affairs, PDF.  "There are seven to 10 million people worldwide living with Parkinson's who count on us to move science forward and come closer to ending the disease.  We owe it to them to make it happen by ensuring that no good idea goes unstudied and no talented scientist is turned away from the fight."

This year, PDF launches the Stanley Fahn Junior Faculty Award to encourage junior investigators facing the "valley of death" — the point at which scientists are most at risk of leaving the field — to stay in Parkinson's research.  The three-year awards, named after PDF's Scientific Director and world-renowned clinician Stanley Fahn, M.D., provide junior investigators with the freedom to pursue cutting-edge scientific ideas, secure independent funding and ultimately, commit their careers to ending Parkinson's disease.  PDF grant programs also include five separate fellowship opportunities, such as the PDF-HHMI Medical Fellows Award funded in partnership with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, to encourage career development and innovation among students and early career scientists and clinicians.

"As a person living with Parkinson's, it is exciting to know that as PDF chooses its research investments, it takes into account not only the quality of the research, but also the priorities and urgency of those of us living with the disease," said Anthony Geraci, M.D., of Canandaigua, NY, who is both a member of the PDF People with Parkinson's Advisory Council and a member of the PDF grant review committee.  "PDF's aggressive investment in early career scientists is a clear reflection of our community — one that is clamoring for more effective treatments today, but is also in need of talented scientists who can find the cure tomorrow."

The following is a listing of all currently open PDF grant opportunities:

Stanley Fahn Junior Faculty Award
Awards of $300,000 available (over three years) for junior faculty members.  Letter of intent due Wednesday, November 11, 2015.

Postdoctoral Fellowships for Basic Scientists
Awards of $100,000 available (over two years) for young scientists, within five years of their Ph.D. training, to study promising ideas in Parkinson's disease at major research institutions.  Letter of intent due Wednesday, November 11, 2015.

Postdoctoral Fellowships for Clinical Neurologists
Awards of $110,000 available (over two years) for young clinicians who have completed their neurology residency within the past three years, to pursue clinical research projects in Parkinson's disease.  Letter of intent due Wednesday, November 11, 2015.

PDF-APDA Summer Student Fellowships
(Jointly sponsored with the American Parkinson Disease Association)
$4,000 available (for 10 weeks) for advanced undergraduates and medical students to pursue Parkinson's-related research projects and gain the tools they need to transition into future leaders.  Each awardee is eligible to apply for up to $1,000 for travel to present Parkinson's project data at a related conference.  Applications due Tuesday, January 26, 2016.

PDF-HHMI Medical Fellows Initiative
(In collaboration with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute)
$41,000 available (for one year) for one medical student to immerse him or herself in full-time basic, translational or applied biomedical Parkinson's disease research under the mentorship of an experienced investigator in the field.  Applications due Monday, January 11, 2016.

PDF-PSG Mentored Clinical Research Award
(In collaboration with the Parkinson Study Group)
$50,000 available (for one year) for one investigator with potential to become an independent investigator to conduct a project in patient-oriented research in Parkinson's under the mentorship of an experienced investigator in the field.  Applications due Monday, January 4, 2016.

Conference Awards
$10,000 to $15,000 available to independent investigators looking to explore unsolved clinical or basic science problems in Parkinson's disease through collaboration with research, health and patient leaders, in and outside of the Parkinson's disease field.  Applications are rolling and are accepted year-round. 

PAIR Leadership Awards 
$5,000 to $10,000 available to support teams of scientists and patient advocates (people with Parkinson's and care partners) who are leading the field in developing collaborative models for conducting Parkinson's disease research.  Applications are opened bi-annually — letters of intent are due Wednesday, November 4, 2015, and Wednesday, April 6, 2016.

PDF grant programs open today, October 8.  For more information or to apply online, contact PDF at (212) 923-4700 or [email protected] or visit grants.pdf.org.  All grant applications will be peer-reviewed by PDF's Scientific Advisory Board, leading clinical and basic scientists in Parkinson's and, in line with PDF's commitment to patient engagement in research, by people who are living with Parkinson's disease.

About Parkinson's Disease
Parkinson's disease is a progressive neurological disorder that affects nearly one million people in the US and an estimated seven to 10 million people worldwide.  Although promising research is being conducted, there is currently no cure for Parkinson's disease.

About PDF Research Programs
The Parkinson's Disease Foundation^® (PDF^®) is focused on funding scientific research to solve, treat and end Parkinson's disease.  Since 1957, PDF has dedicated nearly $110 million to research, which has contributed to major advances in science such as the discovery of genes linked to Parkinson's disease and development of levodopa.  PDF research investments support the development and mobilization of research leaders to work collaboratively toward the cure.  PDF invests in research leaders throughout the full cycle of their careers with a special focus on early career scientists — recruiting new scientists to the field early on, helping them to kickstart their innovative ideas and offering bridge funding to help them become independent researchers who can help to find the cure.  PDF also invests in opportunities for research leaders to work in collaboration with outside experts, health care leaders and patient leaders through support of research centers, interdisciplinary projects and conferences.  View 2015 research investments at www.pdf.org/results_funded.

About the Parkinson's Disease Foundation
The Parkinson's Disease Foundation^® (PDF^®) is a leading national presence in Parkinson's disease research, education and public advocacy.  We are working for the nearly one million people in the US who live with Parkinson's disease by funding promising scientific research while supporting people living with Parkinson's disease through educational programs and services. Since its founding in 1957, PDF has dedicated nearly $110 million to fund the work of leading scientists throughout the world and nearly $47 million to support national education and advocacy programs.

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SOURCE Parkinson's Disease Foundation

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