NBDF-Sanofi Career Development Award

The NBDF-Sanofi Career Development Award (CDA) is generously sponsored by Sanofi. NBDF seeks research grant applications from established investigators, preferably at the assistant professor level or above, who have demonstrated a commitment to bleeding disorders research. We especially encourage innovative projects that promote the development of novel technologies and/or therapies to advance the field of bleeding disorders research.
 

Explore research projects funded by this award
 

Eligibility Requirements

Career Development Award (CDA) candidates must hold a MD, PhD, or equivalent degree, with no more than six years of postdoctoral years of experience in hematology, nor more than six years since completion of medical training. United States citizenship is not required, but applicants must be affiliated with or be faculty members of a U.S.-based organization such as - universities, colleges, hospitals or laboratories. Only non-commercial institutions and investigators associated with a non-commercial institution are eligible to apply for this award.

The CDA award recipient will be expected to spend at least 75% of their working time on the funded research project. The CDA recipient and his/her mentor are also expected to remain at their institution for the duration of the project. For the application, letters of support from appropriate institutional officials (department chair and financial grants officer) indicating the institution’s commitment to allow the candidate to focus his/her efforts on the stated research project will be required.

Funding

NBDF will award up to $70,000 annually for a maximum of three years.

Scope of Research

NBDF is interested in funding innovative research studies in bleeding disorders to be carried out at the sub cellular, cellular, animal or human/patient levels.

While gene therapy has been an approach which has shown much promise in hemophilia, no one method has been demonstrated to be superior. Multiple experimental strategies may be undertaken to help find a “cure” for bleeding disorders. NBDF is seeking research proposals on the nature, propagation, and use of hematopoietic, liver, or stem cells as an approach for gene transfer in hemophilia or for other novel approaches for treating bleeding disorders.

Studies to evaluate the genetic and immunologic bases for inhibitor development may lead to strategies to circumvent this potential complication of clotting factor replacement and/or gene transfer. This research could provide the opportunity to determine the prognostic indicators that place patients at risk of inhibitor development. Inhibitor research may also lead to the development of synthetic replacement factor and gene therapy products with decreased immunogenicity. This includes research on genotype/phenotype relationships and susceptibility to inhibitors.

Structural studies of clotting factor proteins are needed in order to design more efficacious, longer-lived clotting factor proteins. Development of both small, biologically active, orally delivered molecules and improved protein delivery systems represent strategies that could lead to advances in our understanding of bleeding disorders. Better functional assays for clotting factor proteins are also needed. Reproducible, low-volume measure of factor VIII and factor IX activity in different animal models would greatly facilitate validation of in vivo gene therapy studies as well as innovative alternative treatment strategies.

All CDA research proposals are subjected to a rigorous peer review process. Applications will be reviewed on scientific merit and scored in terms of project significance, scientific approach, innovation, investigator qualifications and institutional environment.

Deadlines

All interested candidates need to request a ‘Letter of Intent’ (LOI) by the deadline. Late LOIs will not be accepted.

LOIs need to be submitted on institutional letterhead and will not be considered for review unless signed by the candidate. LOIs should be addressed to “Members of NBDF’s Research Review Committee,” be 1 to 1.5 pages in length, include a brief introduction of the candidate/researcher and ability to meet eligibility criteria, information about his/her mentor, and a brief description of the proposed research project. Letters must be accompanied by a CV (NIH-style biosketch preferred) for both the candidate and his/her mentor and submitted as a single PDF.

LOIs will be evaluated by members of NBDF’s Research Review Committee based on the candidate’s eligibility and relevance of the proposed research to the field of bleeding disorders. The committee will then collectively decide which candidates will be invited to submit a full application. The selected candidates will have until noted deadlines above to submit their full CDA application to NBDF. Applications that do not arrive by the deadline will not be accepted.

CDA applications are subjected to a rigorous peer review process. Proposals are to be reviewed on scientific merit and scored in the areas of project significance, scientific approach, innovation, investigator qualifications and research environment.

Inquiries

Inquiries for this year's application cycle, please contact Halli Benasautti, PhD, Director of Research Grants at hbenasautti@bleeding.org.