The Raynor Cerebellum Project is a new initiative that invites applications from collaborative teams in order to bring together research teams and clinicians with the goal of treating individuals with cerebellar disorders. Our aim is to advance our understanding of the basis for cerebellar disorders and identify novel therapeutic strategies. The RFA Topic Areas outlined below aim to advance the understanding of the pathophysiology and mechanistic underpinnings of circuit level changes in cerebellar disorders and identify novel therapy.
Together, these RFA topics seek to support patient-centered, foundational, science-focused projects that seek to characterize the impact of cerebellar impairment on brain function in humans and treat the resulting network impairment in cerebellar disorders --- with the ultimate goal of finding the shortest path to improving the lives of people suffering from cerebellar disorders. We want to invent new ways of thinking. In the words of Robert Kennedy, we want to dream things that never were and say “why not?”
For cerebellar disorders, even when there is a diagnosis, the lack of understanding of how this impacts overall brain function is a critical bottleneck for developing treatments. Each of these funding opportunities recognizes clinicians studying human disease as central to connecting researchers and the patient community, defining research questions and priorities, contributing to study design and execution, supporting outreach, disseminating study results and more.
Letters of Interest (LOIs) for each RFA will be due by June 23, 2023 and should be submitted to submissions@raynorcerebellumproject.org.
RFA Topic Areas
A) Cerebellar circuit-targeted interventions. Proposed projects will be centered around boosting cerebellar function for intervention and/or understanding how proposed interventions (behavioral, pharmacological, modulation, etc) impact cerebellar function and regulated circuits in humans.
Time Frame: 3-year study, $1,000,000 USD award
B) Understanding longitudinal anatomical changes in developmental cerebellar disorders. Proposed studies will be centered around developing/utilizing anatomical imaging to better characterize typical cerebellar development throughout childhood and to investigate alterations in that development in individuals with developmental cerebellar processes – including but not limited to injury, genetic/metabolic, oncologic processes. Time Frame: 3-year pilot study, $1,000,000 USD award
C) Cerebellar “Prosthesis”. Proposed projects will seek to develop an initial framework for pilot studies centered around development of a cerebellar prosthetic device that augments/replaces lost cerebellar function in disease. Time Frame: 2-year study, $500,000 USD award.
D) Circuit network changes in cerebellar disorders. Proposed projects will be centered around characterization/development of pre-clinical models of human cerebellar disease. Time Frame: 3-year study, $500,000 USD award
Proposals must involve a multi-disciplinary team spread across at least two different centers of research, in addition to inclusion of a clinician/clinical team member who may be at one of the sites or outside. Broad collaboration across institutions is a cornerstone of all RCP initiatives. Please clearly identify all members of your team and their roles in your LOI. A NIH-style biosketch for all key investigators should be included.