Nadace Aging Biology Foundation EU[1] and Aging Biology Foundation US[2], together with its co-investors, supports research aimed at advancing the biological foundations of healthy human aging by prioritizing the study of fundamental molecular mechanisms of epigenetic regulation, not necessarily in the aging context.
While the long-term goal of the Foundation is to better understand aging, our funding strategy reflects the view that meaningful progress in this area first requires elucidating core epigenetic mechanisms in well-controlled and interpretable systems.
Epigenetics, the study of how gene expression is regulated without changes to the DNA sequence, underlies a wide range of biological processes, including cellular differentiation, cell-type specialization, the establishment and maintenance of cellular identity, and age-related changes across the lifespan. Despite major advances in the field, many fundamental principles of epigenetic regulation remain poorly understood.
ABF therefore currently focuses on hypothesis-driven projects that investigate fundamental epigenetic mechanisms, such as interactions among regulatory elements, transcription factors, chromatin remodelers, histone modifications, DNA methylation, nuclear lamina-associated regulation, and related processes. We are particularly interested in mechanisms that guide site-specific de novo epigenetic modifications and determine how such modifications are established, maintained, interpreted, or reversed.
The Foundation prioritizes research in well-defined and interpretable mammalian systems, including mouse models. Relevant biological contexts include the maintenance, stability, and plasticity of differentiated cell states, the long-term preservation of cellular identity and function in postmitotic cells, lineage commitment of postnatal stem and progenitor cells, mechanisms controlling transitions among defined differentiated or progenitor cell states, epigenetic memory in immune cells, and signal- or activity-dependent control of enhancer and other regulatory element activity.
Individual and collaborative proposals are both welcome.
We invite applicants to submit an initial 1–2 page concept note outlining the research idea, key methods, estimated timeline, and project budget to grants@agingbiology.org. The concept note should also include a short list of relevant publications, both key papers from the field and the team’s related work (references do not count toward the page limit). Selected applicants will be invited to submit a full proposal.
Who can apply:
A necessary condition is access to the infrastructure required for the successful implementation of the project.
The grant amount is a subject of the proposed scope of work and can vary from $50.000 up to $4.000.000
The grant period: from 6 months up to 5 years.
How to apply:
Please, send us your grant application at grants@agingbiology.org
You are welcome to submit your grant proposal at any time; there are no deadlines. We also don’t have any specific requirements for the length or formatting of the grant proposal. Each application is reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Because proposals vary widely in scope and complexity, we do not operate with fixed timelines for review and decisions. Applicants will be contacted directly once the evaluation process has progressed.
The grant application should consist of a research proposal, and commitment letters from the primary applicant’s organization and from each collaborator’s or subcontractor’s organization acknowledging and accepting the Foundation Grant Application and Indirect Cost Guidance
After approval:
If the grant is approved, donees also have the opportunity to receive free consultation support in computational methods from our collaborators: JetBrains Research BioLabs
The grant proposal should include:
[1] Nadace Aging Biology Foundation EU, a non-profit legal entity incorporated under the laws of the Czech Republic, with its registered address at Na hřebenech II 1718/8, 140 00 Praha 4 – Nusle, Czech Republic, ID: 108 65 951, registered in the Foundation Register, Section N, Insert 1945.
[2] Aging Biology Foundation, Inc., a non-profit corporation organized and existing under the laws of Massachusetts (USA), having its registered address at 221 Crescent Street, Suite 401 Waltham, MA 02453, USA, ID: 001179742.