Welcome to the researcher noticeboard. Here you can find information on the latest MND-related news, grant deadlines, awards and meetings. To receive updates on current grants, awards and events relating to MND straight into your inbox, you can subscribe to our quarterly e-newsletter 'The Researcher'.
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If you would like to list a news piece, event, grant deadline or job posting in the newsletter, please contact us.
Grant deadlines, awards and job postings
See MND Association grant page or view other grants and awards available to MND/ALS researchers below.
The Healey & AMG Center prizes for innovation in ALS
The Healey & AMG Center offers four prizes for innovation in ALS as global awards celebrating advances in research and care: the Sean M. Healey International Prize for Innovation in ALS, the Gupta Family Endowed Prize for Innovation in ALS Care, the Drs. Ayeez and Shelena Lalji & Family ALS Endowed Award for Innovative Healing, and the Drs. Ayeez and Shelena Lalji & Family Student Scholar Award for Repair and Regenerative Mechanisms in ALS.
The Sean M. Healey International Prize for Innovation in ALS Research recognizes an individual or a team of investigators who catalyze exceptional discoveries leading to a transformative advance in therapy development in ALS.
Gupta Family Endowed Prize for Innovation in ALS Care is a global prize to honor ground-breaking new approaches that lead to exceptional care for individuals living with ALS.
Drs. Shelena and Ayeez Lalji established the Endowed Award for Innovative Healing to recognize an individual or team of investigators for excellence in their transformative scientific discoveries focused on repair of neurological function in ALS.
Drs. Shelena and Ayeez Lalji established the Student Scholar Award for Repair and Regenerative Mechanisms in ALS to recognize bright young scientists in the field of ALS research facilitating meaningful projects to understand the mechanisms underlying axonal and neuronal repair and regeneration.
MND Scotland and LifeArc PhD Studentship
MND Scotland have joined with LifeArc to offer a PhD Studentship which focuses on increasing research into improving diagnosis or identifying biomarkers for use in MND research or care.
As part of the joint studentship, the PhD Student will complete a 6 week placement within LifeArc laboratories in Stevenage or Edinburgh.
The partnership will offer funding for one PhD studentship to begin in autumn 2025. Up to £100,000 will be available for a project up to three years in duration.
Application deadline: 31 October 2024
My Name'5 Doddie Foundation Clinical Research Infrastructure Awards
My Name'5 Doddie Foundation have launched a new award called the Clinical Research Infrastructure Awards to ensure more people with MND can access clinical trials.
The awards aim to support clinical trial staff specialising in the delivery of MND trials. They will enable centres to either begin recruiting to MND trials for the first time, or provide additional capacity at sites that already recruit to MND trials that have the potential to expand their portfolio and increase recruitment numbers.
Applicants must be based in an NHS centre that either wishes to start recruiting to MND trials, or to expand its existing portfolio of MND trials.
Application deadline: 22 November 2024
NIHR Development and Skills Enhancement (DSE) Award
The development and skills enhancement award is a post-doctoral level funding opportunity aimed at supporting early to mid-career researchers in gaining specific skills and experience to underpin the next phase of their career in applied health or care research. It provides funding for:
- Salary of the award holder for up to 2 years
- Training and development costs up to £5,000 per year
- Conference costs up to £1,000 per year
- Mentorship costs up to £3,000
Application Deadline: 22 November 2024
My Name'5 Doddie Foundation Catalyst Awards
The catalyst awards are designed to fund bold, innovative, early-stage ideas that need funding to get off the ground. They aim to fund exciting research that could open up new treatment avenues, offer new ways to diagnose MND earlier or have the potential to transform translational research in MND.
Projects must be looking to validate new therapeutic targets for MND or improve the translation of new MND treatments from lab to clinic. Improving translational research can also include stratification approaches, identification and characterisation of novel biomarkers or research to enable earlier detection of MND, such as identification of high-risk groups or screening tools.
Applicants in the UK could be awarded a maximum of £100k for up to 1 year to create a new dataset on an early-stage idea or hypothesis that could open up a new research avenue.
Application deadline: 22 November 2024
NIHR Academy Funding Committee Members
The NIHR are looking to expand the membership of committees across the schemes at the NIHR Academy.
They are particularly looking for researchers working in MND to help review applications to the Doctoral and Advanced Fellowship Schemes as well as other research programmes.
If you are interested in joining any of the committees please either complete an Expression of Interest or get in touch via email ([email protected]).
Target ALS: Consortia Developing New Modalities as Therapeutics
Target ALS is seeking to facilitate discovery and development of the next generation of molecules targeting DNA/RNA in ALS.
They are accepting proposals from collaborative groups focused on technological innovation of novel modalities in sporadic and familial forms of ALS.
Target ALS is particularly interested in supporting projects that propose the study of:
- New antisense oligonucleotide chemistry/design, siRNA/disiRNA, CRiSPR, Zinc Finger, and similar technological approaches targeting genetic mutations associated with ALS
- Enhanced brain delivery using conjugation strategies, lipid nanoparticles, novel capsids, BBB-penetrant AAV, or similar platforms
- Molecules having demonstrated cell-based activity but needing additional in vivo validation of effective delivery to brain and spinal cord, pharmacodynamic activity on the target of interest, and tolerability
- The novel modality must be applied to a genetic target associated with ALS
Grantees will receive up to a maximum of $400,000 per year for an initial period of two years.
Application Deadline: 18 November.
NIHR Doctoral Fellowships
The NIHR Doctoral Fellowship is a three year full-time award that supports individuals to undertake a PhD in health, public health, or social care. The NIHR have partnered with the Motor Neurone Disease Association to offer joint fellowships for this application round.
The Fellowship may also be taken up on a part-time basis. Clinicians or practitioners are able to include up to 20% clinical or practice time as part of the Fellowship.
It will cover funding for:
- the salary of the award holder for the entire duration of the fellowship
- costs for the approved research project
- costs for a suitable training and development plan
- associated conference fees
- Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) costs
Application deadline: 16 January.
Events and meetings
See below for information on events that might be relevant to you.
If you would like us to help you promote funding deadlines, meetings, awards or any job opportunities, please email us at [email protected]
The Annual Stephen Hawking MND Lecture 2024
This year's lecture focuses on the importance of psychological care for MND and looks at Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) – a proven intervention that supports quality of life.
It will:
- cover importance of psychological support for people living with MND
- provide a brief overview of psychological therapies for people living with MND
- outline the results of the groundbreaking COMMEND research study into Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- discuss what ACT is and how it might be used in practice
The lecture will be held online on the 12 November from 6 to 8pm.
St Christopher's Annual Motor Neurone Disease Conference
St Christopher's Hospice and King's College London are hosting their annual MND Conference for healthcare professionals, researchers, and caregivers. The conference is being held on 15th November (9:30- 16:30 GMT) at St Christopher's CARE in London or people can join online.
The full programme is yet to be released but will include talks on genetics, nutrition and ethical issues.
35th International Symposium on ALS/MND
The key to defeating MND lies in fostering strong collaboration between leading researchers around the world, and sharing new understanding of the disease as rapidly as possible. This was the MND Association’s rationale behind the creation of the International Symposium on ALS/MND.
Each year, the Symposium attracts over 1,000 delegates, representing the energy and dynamism of the global MND research community. It is the largest medical and scientific conference specific to MND/ALS and is the premier event in the MND research calendar for discussion on the latest advances in research and clinical management.
The 35th Symposium will be held in Montreal, Canada from 6-8 December 2024.
There is an option for virtual registration which includes access to a select number of predetermined live-streamed sessions, the virtual poster hall and on-demand access to all sessions after the event.