The Solve ME/CFS Initiative (SMCI) is now accepting applications for the Ramsay Award Program in basic, preclinical, clinical, and epidemiology research. This competitive grant award is open to scientists and researchers at any career stage who are interested in studying myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME)/chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). The program is named for ME pioneer Dr. A. Melvin Ramsay, who remained a staunch advocate for the plight of ME/CFS patients until his passing in 1990.
It is anticipated that Ramsay Award Program grants will be made annually. Individual awards are expected to range between $35,000 and $55,000 for a one-year period, with the possibility of renewal for projects yielding promising results.
In short, the program has three main objectives:

• Invest in original ideas that could clarify the onset, progression, root causes, and natural history of ME/CFS
• Create open environments to attract, support, and retain scientific talent in the ME/CFS community and help awardees generate data to compete for long-term ME/CFS federal funding
• Facilitate collaboration among dedicated researchers through the sharing of resources and access to additional programming

For researchers, this investment in seed grants through an open competition reflects SMCI’s commitment to participatory research and inclusivity toward advancing the field and amplifying the impact of good science.
SMCI is specifically encouraging applications that address key gaps in current scientific knowledge, such as energy system defects, biochemical processing of ATP-bound substrates, nutrient sensing and signaling mechanisms, neuroinflammation, endocrine biology, cellular and systemic immunity, host/pathogen interaction, gut/brain axis, microbiome research, post-exertional malaise (PEM), orthostatic intolerance (OI), and sleep abnormalities.
“The Ramsay Award Program is part of our organization’s overall research strategy to encourage participatory investigations, accelerate new discoveries, and reduce barriers for entry into the challenging yet rewarding field of ME/CFS,” said Dr. Zaher Nahle, SMCI’s vice president for research and scientific programs.
Submitted proposals will be subject to a rigorous peer review process in order to ensure that only applications of the highest merit are funded. Proposals are due on Friday, July 29, 2016. Please consult http://solvecfs.org/ramsay-award-program-rfa to learn more and download the application.