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Translational Research Grant

Our Translational Research Grants aim to support and accelerate the translation of research discoveries into potential new treatments to protect and restore hearing and/or silence tinnitus. It funds projects at both academic institutions and small/medium enterprises in any country.

We request translational research proposals that will advance the development of novel therapeutics (excluding medical devices) for the treatment of hearing disorders, including tinnitus.

We want to support:

  • Research focused on the development of a specific novel therapeutic for the treatment of hearing loss and/or tinnitus.
  • Clearly defined experimental plans supported by relevant preliminary and/or proof-of-concept data.
  • Proposals that clearly outline the commercial potential of the therapeutic and describe how work undertaken during the Translational Research Grant will enable the innovation to attract follow-on funding for subsequent developmental steps.

Summary of grant

Deadline for expression of interest

Monday 7 April 2025

Full application

By invitation only

Duration

Up to three years

Eligibility

Applicants may be from any university or research institute or small/medium enterprise based anywhere in the world.

Value

Up to £300K in total, funding will not exceed £100K in any one year.

In the 2023 funding round, we received six preliminary applications. Five applicants were invited to submit a full application and one grant was awarded.

Co-funding opportunity

This year, we are partnering with the Dunhill Medical Trust to co-fund research focused on advancing therapeutics for the treatment of age-related hearing disorders that have the potential to benefit older people in the UK.

We particularly encourage applications that will address this large unmet clinical need.

Projects in this area with lead applicants based at UK organisations will be considered for joint funding with the Dunhill Medical Trust.

Application criteria

Applications can include:

  • Studies which will enable lead optimisation and/or candidate selection.
  • Pharmacokinetics/Pharmacodynamics (PKPD) studies
  • Safety/toxicology studies
  • Drug repositioning/repurposing
  • Validation of therapeutic targets for the treatment of hearing loss or tinnitus
  • Studies to strengthen confidence that a target or therapeutic approach will be applicable to human hearing loss or tinnitus

All applications need to be supported by and contain clear descriptions of the preliminary data supporting the proposed approach.

Applications will not be accepted in the following areas:

  • Basic research into the causes and underpinning biology of hearing loss and tinnitus
  • The development of devices or software
  • The optimisation of current clinical protocols
  • Health service studies
  • Identification/validation of methods or outcomes not aligned to a specific therapeutic

Application process

Please note that the application procedure for the Translational Research Grant has two stages: an open preliminary application stage, followed by an invitation-only full application stage.

All applications should be submitted via our online grants management system, Flexi-Grant. There is further guidance on Flexi-Grant about how to complete your application.

The call and guidelines for 2025, a sample copy of the preliminary and full application forms, our standard terms and conditions (subject to review), and a guide to using Flexi-Grant can be downloaded below:

If you are unsure as to whether your research is at the appropriate stage of development or have any questions regarding the eligibility of your proposal we strongly encourage you to contact the research team, ahead of the deadline, who will be able to provide specific advice.

Selection procedure

Preliminary applications are assessed by our Translational Research Grant review panel; they will identify the best proposals to take forward to the full application stage. They are asked to rate the proposals on the following criteria:

  • Clarity of the research proposal and relevance to the aims of the scheme
  • Scientific quality of the planned experimental approach
  • Feasibility and design of the project – its likelihood of success in answering the research question
  • Translational and/or commercial potential of the proposal
  • Potential benefit and relevance of the research outcomes to people with hearing loss and/or tinnitus

Full applications are sent to at least two (ideally three) external referees in the field, who are asked to evaluate the scientific approach and translational/commercial potential of the project. They are asked to assess the proposal against the following criteria: 

  • Relevance to people with hearing loss or tinnitus
  • Novelty and originality
  • Appropriate project design, methodology, analysis and ethical considerations (for research involving people or animals)
  • Quality of supporting background or preliminary data provided
  • Feasibility of timescale and budget (adequate justification of costs)
  • Likelihood of the project advancing the development of a novel therapeutic for hearing loss or tinnitus
  • Likelihood of the project attracting follow-on funding post award

All external peer reviewers must agree to abide by our code of conduct for conflicts of interest and confidentiality for peer-reviewers. Applicants will be given the opportunity to respond to the external peer reviews.  

The reviews, rebuttals and original full proposals are then considered and rated by members of our Translational Research Grant review panel. All members of the panel must agree to abide by our code of conduct for conflicts of interest and confidentiality for panel members, at all stages of the assessment process.

Translational Research Grant review panel

  • Dr Adam Babbs – Medical Research Council
  • Dr Paramita Baruah – University of Birmingham 
  • Prof Lawrence Lustig – Columbia University
  • Dr Lavinia Sheets – Washington University in St Louis
  • Dr Alan Foster – Jorbal Consulting 
  • Dr Charles Large – Autifony Therapeutics
  • Prof Mike Bowl – University College London
  • Dr John Lee Allen – RYSE Asset Management

Europe PubMed Central (Europe PMC) and open access publications

RNID is a member of the Europe PMC Funders’ Group. We support open access publications and require RNID grant holders to make their publications open access.

Read our open access publication policy for more information and visit the Europe PMC website.

For more information

If you would like more information about the Translational Research grant, get in touch: [email protected]


Contact us

If you are deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus and need free confidential and impartial information and support, contact RNID.

We’re open 8:30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

Page last updated: 6 February 2025

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