American Society of Transplantation

Grants will be awarded to early-career investigators with the potential to expand understanding of transplant science/immunobiology and/or treatment of transplant recipients. The program supports basic, clinical, or translational science research on any research topic related to solid organ transplant. The following research priorities apply:

• Basic Science: Develop and validate biomarkers of graft dysfunction and immune activation; validate animal modeling; identify and study novel immune modifiers; pursue systems biology approaches to study the impact of therapeutics on molecular pathways that reveal new mechanistic insights; develop new tools to study and/or visualize the human alloimmune response; and develop regenerative medicine approaches for generating transplantable tissues.
• Translational Science: Studies to identify and validate surrogate markers for long-term outcomes; studies to determine the effects of cell therapies on protective immunity; studies to define predictors and/or mechanisms of disease after transplant; identify specific molecules and/or molecular mechanisms that explain the roles of the microbiome in immunity and transplant outcomes; and the role of epigenetics in determining transplant outcomes.
• Clinical Science: Reducing post-transplant complications; optimizing organ utilization; preventing or attenuating late graft failure; improving the patient experience and addressing the challenges of therapy adherence; research on transplant outcomes that test the value of transplantation for patients, transplant centers, payers and/or healthcare policy and costs; and research on racial disparities in access and outcomes.

Eligible applicants must hold an MD, PhD, PharmD, or equivalent degree and be within the first two years of their postdoctoral training (not including clinical training) by the grant application deadline.