Since 2013, IDF Walk for Primary Immunodeficiency has raised more than $3 million. Because of the dollars raised by IDF walk teams and their supporters, IDF has established the IDF Research Grant Program, awarding grants to medical and scientific researchers to help improve the diagnosis, treatment, and quality of life of people living with PI.

Scope

The intent of the grant program is to support well-defined research projects that have a specified benefit for improving the treatment, health, disease management, or diagnosis of people with primary immunodeficiencies (PI). Consideration will also be given to studies that contribute to the body of medical knowledge in PI. See the "Previous Awardees" section for examples of projects that have been funded in the past.

Awards consist of one-year grants from $25,000 - $50,000 (a somewhat higher level of support is available for a few exceptional proposals).

Eligibility

The program is open to medical and scientific researchers currently based in the U.S.*

*These grants are not open to individuals employed by federal government agencies or departments.

Deadline and Application Process

The application period for 2023 has ended. Awardees have been announced. If you have any questions or concerns, contact IDFGrant@primaryimmune.org.

Evaluation of Applications

Each research proposal is reviewed by IDF’s Research Committee, which is composed of immunologists who have a history of success obtaining and completing research grants. The Committee may also include prior IDF grant awardees.

The grant review process is based on the peer review system utilized by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Scoring of grants is done individually by each member of the Research Committee and scores are added together to determine the final ranking of each proposal. The Committee recommends funding for the highest-scored proposals. Any reviewer with a conflict of interest is excused from voting on a specific proposal. The grant selection process is unbiased and independent; awards are based solely on scientific merit.

Previous awardees

Starting in 2022, the top-ranked grant in each cycle has been awarded the Michael Blaese Research Grant Award, named in honor of IDF’s long-time medical advisor and noted PI researcher, Dr. Michael Blaese.

Blaese awardees

• 2023: Dr. Donald Kohn, University of California, Los Angeles. Read about Kohn's work.
• 2022: Dr. Joud Hajjar, Baylor College of Medicine. Read about Hajjar's work.

All awardees

• 2023 grants awarded.
  • Dr. Benjamin Solomon, Stanford University.
  • Dr. Xiao Peng, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
  • Dr. Brynn O'Laughlin, Children's National Hospital.
  • Dr. Junghee Jenny Shin, Yale University.
• 2022 grants awarded.
  • Dr. Brenna LaBere, Boston Children’s Hospital.
  • Dr. Beth Thielen, University of Minnesota.
  • Dr. Artemio Jongco, Feinstein Institutes of Medical Research.

• 2020:

2018-2019:

2016-2017:

IDF Research Grant Program is provided with support from Kedrion Biopharma.