APFED Invites Scientific Community to Apply for Research Grant Funding

Community Donations to APFED Will Fund New Research of Eosinophil-associated Diseases

 (Atlanta, GA)— The American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders (APFED), a non-profit advocacy organization established in 2001, is inviting scientific investigators to submit research proposals for funding consideration.

The 2020 APFED HOPE Grant was established to foster the development of new projects relevant to eosinophil-associated diseases. Investigators from a variety of disciplines are encouraged to apply. Successful applicants will focus on the development of new ideas which are likely to lead to future external funding.

Eosinophils (pronounced “ee-oh-sin-oh-fills”) are a type of white blood cell that helps our immune systems fight off infections and parasites. They also play a role in allergic reactions and inflammatory processes.

When a person has symptoms and an elevated numbers of eosinophils in their tissues, organs, and/or bloodstream, without a known cause, he or she may have an eosinophil-associated disease.

These conditions are further characterized by the areas of the body in which the eosinophils have accumulated. A few examples include the esophagus (eosinophilic esophagitis), stomach (eosinophilic gastritis), or the lungs (eosinophilic asthma).

Symptoms of eosinophil disease may vary depending on the area of the body affected, and by age. Patients often embark on a long, frustrating journey seeing many different specialists before a diagnosis is made. Although not commonly life-threatening, these chronic diseases require lifelong treatment and can cause debilitating symptoms. Most subsets of eosinophil-associated disease do not yet have an FDA-approved pharmaceutical indicated for treatment.

“APFED’s HOPE on the Horizon Research Program is funded entirely by community donations,” said APFED Executive Director Mary Jo Strobel. “We are appreciative of the generous gifts that have enabled us fund research grants. To ensure donations have as much impact as possible, APFED employs a peer-review process that is both rigorous and fair. This process guides the selection of the proposal that is likely to have the biggest impact for patients who suffer from eosinophil-associated diseases.”

APFED’s HOPE Grant will award up to $50,000 over a two-year grant term. The deadline to submit a Letter of Intent to APFED is October 24, 2019, and applications are due November 21, 2019. The awards will be made in the spring.

For complete details, terms, application requirements, and to submit a proposal, please visit https://apfed.org/research/grant-application-for-researchers/.

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About American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders (APFED)

The American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders (APFED) is a non-profit organization dedicated to patients and their families coping with eosinophilic disorders. APFED’s mission is to embrace, support, and improve the lives of patients and families affected by eosinophil-associated diseases through education and awareness, research, support, and advocacy. www.apfed.org