The Glenn Foundation for Medical Research (GFMR) and AFAR provide up to $125,000 for a one- to two-year award to junior faculty (MDs and PhDs) to conduct research that will serve as the basis for longer term research efforts on the biology of aging. These investigators study a broad range of biomedical and clinical topics related to aging. The Letter of Intent deadline for the 2022 program is December 15, 2021.
The major goal of this program is to assist in the development of the careers of junior investigators committed to pursuing careers in the field of aging research. GFMR and AFAR support research projects concerned with understanding the basic mechanisms of aging rather than disease-specific research. Projects investigating age-related diseases are supported if approached from the point of view of how basic aging processes may lead to these outcomes. Projects concerning mechanisms underlying common geriatric functional disorders are also encouraged, as long as these include connections to fundamental problems in the biology of aging. Projects that deal strictly with clinical problems such as the diagnosis and treatment of disease, health outcomes, or the social context of aging are not eligible.
Examples of potentially fundable areas of research include, but are not limited to:
The applicant must be an independent investigator with independent research space as described in a form completed by the Dean or Department Chair, and must be no more than 10 years beyond the start of postdoctoral research training as of July 1, 2022. Exceptions to the ten year rule may be requested by emailing an NIH-style biosketch to AFAR at grants@afar.org at least one week prior to the deadline date. Due to challenges related to the COVID pandemic, we will allow one additional year - 11 years total - for the 2022 award cycle.
It is anticipated that approximately 10 grants of up to $125,000 each will be awarded in 2022. Applicants may propose to use the award over the course of one or two years as justified by the proposed research. Up to 8% of funds may be budgeted for overhead or indirect costs (not to exceed $9,259). Funding will begin July 1, 2022.
