Michael J. Fox Foundation

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinsons Research has announced a total commitment of up to $5 million for research to successfully translate neurotrophic factor advances from pre-clinical and early-phase clinical work into a practical, patient-relevant treatment for Parkinson's disease.

The funding will be awarded under a new Directed LEAPS (Linked Efforts to Accelerate Parkinson's Solutions) initiative. The funding program is designed to identify and drive ambitious projects with a clear plan for accelerating trophic factor therapy through the stages of preclinical and clinical development up to and including Phase Two clinical studies. Also of interest are therapeutic approaches that include evidence that the trophic factor being studied holds potential for neuroregeneration (helping the brain rejuvenate sick cells) and not merely neuroprotection (protecting existing neurons from death).

The program is open to both academic and industry researchers. Applicants may seek up to three years of funding for projects focused on accelerating the development of neurotrophic factor therapies.

The full Request for Applications is available at the Michael J. Fox Foundation