Description

The McKnight Brain Research Foundation (MBRF), in partnership with the American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR), supports emerging scientific leaders studying cognitive aging and age-related memory loss. The program prioritizes high-risk, high-gain projects that could produce transformative discoveries and may be less suitable for conventional funding. It supports both innovative clinical translational research and investigations of underlying basic biological mechanisms.

Supported work includes pilot clinical trials, proof-of-concept interventions for age-associated cognitive impairment, preclinical studies that accelerate intervention testing, and mechanistic studies identifying novel treatment targets. Basic research must explain how findings could translate into clinically relevant strategies or treatments. Studies connecting age-associated cognitive changes with disease-related impairment may qualify when their relevance to cognitive aging is clear. Research primarily focused on neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, is not supported.