For Researchers
If you are a researcher, clinician, or team member within Nationwide Children's Hospital with a vision for what’s possible in precision medicine, we invite you to apply for funding. Together, we can turn discovery into hope – and hope into lasting change.
The Reisenauer Precision Gene Therapy Fund is available to all Nationwide Children's researchers. Once reviewed and awarded, funding will be provided under one of three mechanisms:
- Small-scale proof-of-concept grants to Nationwide Children's researchers, in the amount of $50,000-$75,000. Examples of their use might be:
- To establish new animal models of rare disease, or specific mutations
- To develop vectors necessary to begin a program and develop a lead candidate vector (often comparing capsids, promoters, or variations of transgenes)
- Cost-matching funds for small foundations that have limited funds, generally in the amount of $75,000-$100,000. This will encourage engagement with disease foundations and magnify the impact of the funds donated to Nationwide Children’s.
- Direct provision of gene therapy dosing to selected patients. This would specifically be used for delivery of rare disease vectors that exist within Nationwide Children's freezers, and generally have already been in human trials.
The Reisenauer Precision Gene Therapy Fund runs an annual competitive application cycle to support high-potential research projects led by investigators within our institution. We invite proposals that align with our mission to advance precision medicine with a focus on rare disease, gene therapy and patient-centered innovation.
Who Should Apply?
Internal faculty from all AWRI centers and Nationwide Children's divisions with a clear focus on ultrarare disorders.
Key Dates
- Call for Proposals
- Application Deadline
- Funding Decisions Announced
Selection Process
Funding requests with be reviewed in a two-step process.
- The Reisenauer Fund Proposal Review Committee (RFPRC) (step 1) will be chaired by Dr. Flanigan and consist of scientific and clinical specialists to assess scientific merit, unmet clinical need, and feasibility.
- Proposals that are of acceptable scientific merit, address an unmet need, and are feasible will be forwarded to the Precision Medicine Committee (step 2) for an additional review.
- Any issues raised by these reviews will be provided to the applicant for response. These responses will be returned to the RFPRC, which will vote on which projects to fund.
- Ad hoc/off-cycle reviews: If an investigator is approached by a patient or family foundation about starting a project that the investigator is capable of and interested in pursuing, that investigator may approach the committee at any time for an off-cycle review.
Where Should Application Materials be Sent?
Application materials can be submitted to Veronica Weber (Veronica.Weber@NationwideChildrens.org)
