PF Foundation Invites Young Scientists to Apply for 2021 PFF Scholars Program

The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation (PFF), which supports research that advance understanding and better ways of treating pulmonary fibrosis (PF), is calling for submissions for next year’s PFF Scholars program for emerging scientists.

Program winners will receive up to $50,000 over two years for PF research that may ultimately lead to independent funding from federal agencies, private foundations, or other sources.  The deadline for submitting a letter of intent is Nov. 30. Full proposals must be submitted by March 15, 2021.

The program’s overall goal is to support promising studies into treatments and aspects of PF that could lead to improved patient care and life quality, while giving young scientists opportunities to advance in their careers.

“The PFF Scholars are talented and promising early stage researchers conducting mentored research that will ultimately lead to independent funding,” the foundation states on a program webpage.

The grant program is available to post-doctoral trainees, instructors, or assistant professors who are medical doctors, doctors of osteopathic medicine, registered nurses, or those who have a doctoral level or other professional degree. Those who have held a faculty appointment for more than seven years are not eligible for this grant.

Applicants must  submit a letter of intent, which will be evaluated by a PFF research review committee of international experts. Successful candidates will then be asked to complete a full application, which must include research and career development plans, as well as letters of recommendation from a mentor and applicable institution. Applications will be assessed and scored in part for scientific merit and innovation.

Grant awards also cover a percentage of costs for additional scholarly activities throughout the year, including supplementary mentorship by a PFF Scholar Sponsor.

Grant winners will be notified in May 2021.

This year’s PFF Scholars program recipients are studying areas such as lung cell differentiation and fibrotic tissue remodeling in idiopathic PF, abnormal cell signaling, the role of air pollution in the development and progression of interstitial lung diseases, the relationship between patients and caregivers, precision medicine approaches for diagnosis and treatment, and gene regulatory networks in key cells in fibrosis called fibroblasts.

Idiopathic PF, a disease form whose root cause cannot be identified, is the most common type of interstitial lung disease.

The PFF Scholars program is part of the PFF Research Fund To Cure Pulmonary Fibrosis, which supports its own grant awards in addition to partnership grants with other organizations. Research Fund grants support projects that offer a high likelihood of improving the understanding of PF through basic science, translational research, clinical study, epidemiological research, or health services investigations.

“We are developing this environment by directly funding research, promoting advocacy efforts, encouraging collaborative relations between industry and academic researchers, delivering key communications to patients, and developing solutions to bridge existing gaps in PF research,” the PFF states on a Research Fund webpage.

Go here for complete eligibility guidelines for the PFF Scholars program, which replaces the I.M. Rosenzweig Junior Investigator and the Albert Rose Established Investigator awards. For further questions, contact Zoe Bubany at 888-733-6741 or by writing her at [email protected].

Check out the PFF Research Fund guidelines for more research funding opportunities.