BD² Releases Five RFAs to Support Bipolar Research

Washington, D.C. – September 22, 2022 – BD²: Breakthrough Discoveries for thriving with Bipolar Disorder announced five Requests for Applications (RFAs) to advance bipolar research and support people living with bipolar disorder. BD² will fund multidisciplinary teams and organizations to access and expand upon new findings, accelerating the process of discovery across the entire bipolar research landscape.

“BD²’s commitment to open science invites researchers to access and expand upon new findings, accelerating the process of discovery across the entire bipolar research landscape,” said Cara Altimus, PhD, BD²’s managing director and senior director at the Milken Institute. “Together, researchers, clinicians, and organizations will collaboratively address knowledge gaps in the basic disease mechanisms of bipolar disorder as well as factors influencing clinical approaches and outcomes.”

BD²’s comprehensive, hypothesis-driven approach is designed to break down barriers between innovation, scientific findings, and clinical care and welcomes applicants for the following opportunities:

• The Brain Omics Platform seeks applicants from institutions or consortiums of partners that have access to a large and diverse collection of human brain tissue from people with bipolar disorder and carefully matched control subjects and can perform a variety of molecular, subcellular, cellular, and structural analyses, which may include morphological analyses, on these tissues. BD² will award one grant up to $5 million for up to three years. Applications are due November 11, 2022.
• The BD² Genetics Platform seeks multidisciplinary teams of scientists and clinicians to collect and genotype a large number of samples from individuals with diverse backgrounds who experience bipolar disorder. BD² intends to fund one application up to $10 million for up to two years. Applications are due November 11, 2022.
• The BD² Discovery Grants will fund multidisciplinary teams of scientists and clinicians to examine the genetic, molecular, cellular, circuit, or behavioral mechanisms of bipolar disorder. BD² will award teams of three-to-five scientists with up to $1.5 million per year for three years (totalling $4.5 million per award). Applications are due December 12, 2022.

In addition to the above programs, the BD² Integrated Network is a collaborative longitudinal study with an initial focus on people living with bipolar I. The study design and infrastructure prioritize rapid implementation of research findings to improve treatment for all those living with bipolar disorder. Currently, BD² is looking for applicants to support critical infrastructure for the network:

• BD² seeks an organization to act as the Clinical Coordinating Center (CCC) to provide clinical research support, including diagnostic assessment of all participants, clinician training, and study oversight across all sites. BD² intends to make a single award of up to $5.4 million over five years. Applications are due November 17, 2022.
• BD² seeks an organization to act as the Data Coordinating Center (DCC) to provide technical and logistical support to sites participating in the Integrated Network, and to build and maintain a custom resource to facilitate clinical and research data sharing as well as rapid insights for improved care. BD² intends to make a single award of up to $5 million over five years. Applications are due November 17, 2022.

BD² brings together researchers, clinicians, philanthropists, and people with lived experience to approach the study and treatment of bipolar disorder in a new way. The Baszucki, Dauten, and Brin families united with the Milken Institute to commit $150 million to launch BD² to advance discoveries for families like theirs. As the largest private investment focused on the study of bipolar disorder, BD² provides an unprecedented opportunity to identify breakthroughs in scientific understanding that create new interventions so that everyone with bipolar disorder can thrive.

 

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