Cure One, Cure Many Award in Lewy Body Dementia

Eligibility

Applications may be submitted by basic, translational, or clinical investigators from: 

• U.S. and international public and private non-profit entities, such as universities, colleges, hospitals, laboratories, units of state and local governments, and eligible agencies of the federal government; and 
• U.S. and international biotechnology/pharmaceutical companies, or other publicly or privately held for-profit entities. 

Past awardees are eligible to apply for this funding. 

The American Brain Foundation provides equal opportunities to all applicants for funding without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, pregnancy, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic disposition, neurodiversity, disability, veteran status, or any other protected category under federal, state, and local law.

Summary

Lewy Body Dementia (LBD) is the second most common progressive dementia after Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and affects millions of individuals worldwide. When an individual presents with cognitive impairment, however, there are virtually no tools available to enable a clinician to make an accurate diagnosis of LBD. Particularly for AD, molecular biomarkers as identified with positron emission tomography imaging agents, and potentially assays of Alzheimer proteins in the cerebrospinal fluid and blood may provide helpful evidence to support or refute the clinical diagnosis of the illness. However, biomarkers to aid in the clinical detection of dementia attributable to LBD are currently lacking. The lack of validated biomarkers for LBD contributes to delayed diagnosis and misdiagnosis, and thus potentially exposes individuals affected by LBD to inappropriate medication use and results in the failure to treat LBD-specific manifestations. The absence of biomarkers also impedes pertinent clinical and translational research, including drug and biomarker discovery efforts.

The ABF intends to award a single grant of up to US $2 million for a budget period of up to 2 years. The Review Committee, however, reserves the right to award a lesser amount to an application if the full $2 million is deemed to be unjustified and/or to fund an additional application should funds allow. Final budgets will be determined based on a review of proposed work. Applicants are encouraged to leverage additional sources of funding and resources.

Overhead

Academic and nonprofit institutions are allowed to allocate up to 15% of the total award amount to indirect costs. No additional indirect costs will be allowed. 

Pre-application deadlines

RSO internal deadline

Pre-application program deadline

Application deadlines

RSO detailed review deadline

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

To Apply 

Applications will be managed by the American Academy of Neurology (AAN). All applications must be submitted online via SmartSimple. Visit https://aan.smartsimple.com/ and follow the instructions for the Cure One, Cure Many Awards

Additional Resources

Using RMS:

RMS: Creating a Pre-Award LOI

RMS: Creating a Pre-Award Application

Support for projects involving Indigenous Research:

Support with the development of your grant application is available internally through the Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST). Applicants can reach out by email to IRST at IRST@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information about IRST, please visit the IRST webpage.

Support for Knowledge Engagement:

Support for knowledge mobilization/engagement/translation is available internally through the Knowledge to Impact Team. Applicants can reach out by email to the KTI team at knowledge.impact@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information, please visit the KTI team webpage.

Support for Research Data Management:

For information on research data management plans, processes, or best practices for your research program, please contact research.data@libanswers.ucalgary.com and/or visit https://libguides.ucalgary.ca/researchdatamanagement.

Support for EDI in Research:

RSO can provide resources and support to research teams on the integration of equitable and inclusive practices in research design and research practice. Contact Erin.OToole@ucalgary.ca for more information.