Apply for a Research Grant
BrightFocus provides research funds for U.S. domestic as well as international researchers pursuing pioneering research leading to greater understanding, prevention, and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, macular degeneration, and glaucoma.
Alzheimer’s Disease Research Request for Proposals →
Macular Degeneration Research Request for Proposals→
National Glaucoma Research Request for Proposals→
To start a new application and upload attachments, you must use our ProposalCentral application portal to apply online. Note: Your organization must be registered with ProposalCentral to apply.
Our Funding Philosophy
It is our firm belief that having the courage to invest in innovative ideas will lead to revolutionary therapies. BrightFocus provides initial funding for highly innovative experimental ideas, including interdisciplinary investigations that may apply to two or three of the BrightFocus disease interests. Most of the awardees use the BrightFocus award funds to demonstrate key findings that lead to later interest and additional funding from industrial or governmental funding agencies.
Grant Application Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
Get answers to applicants’ frequently asked questions, from eligibility to the review process, categorized by each disease program.
Guidelines
Terms & Conditions
News
Recent News & Breakthroughs
Home-Based Alzheimer’s Treatment Brings Care Closer to Families
A team of BrightFocus Alzheimer’s Disease Research-funded scientists is exploring how home-based brain stimulation could improve memory, mood, and daily life for people living with Alzheimer’s disease.
How Some Eye Cells Survive Glaucoma
BrightFocus National Glaucoma Research-funded scientist Mengya Zhao, PhD, uses a unique combination of techniques to understand why certain retinal cells stay strong in glaucoma while others don’t.
How Targeting a Molecular ‘Switch’ Could Inspire New Macular Degeneration Treatments
A researcher funded by BrightFocus’ Macular Degeneration Research is zeroing in on a protein that damages eye cells in the early stages of dry age-related macular degeneration, offering insights that could lead to new treatments.
Breaking News Dispatch: New Discoveries in Alzheimer’s Prevention, Diagnosis, and Treatment
From lifestyle changes that protect memory and cutting‑edge blood tests to promising long‑term treatment results, promising new developments in Alzheimer’s research were unveiled at the 2025 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) in Toronto.
Inside the First International Biobank Studying Down Syndrome and Alzheimer’s
BrightFocus Alzheimer’s Disease Research-funded scientists have spent the last decade building a first-in-class initiative to study the brains of people with Down syndrome and Alzheimer’s disease.
BrightFocus Foundation and Dementia Alliance North Carolina Partner to Advance Alzheimer’s Innovation
The partnership supports an outstanding researcher at UNC Chapel Hill who is advancing novel gene therapy strategies for Alzheimer’s disease.
A Key Model to Study Cellular Functions to Better Treat Glaucoma
BrightFocus National Glaucoma Research-funded scientist Samuel Herberg, PhD, is using a 3D model of the fluid drainage tissue that could improve our ability to understand and treat glaucoma.
Standing Together to Protect Progress: BrightFocus Statement on 2026 National Institutes of Health and National Eye Institute Appropriations
The proposed 2026 federal budget released by the Trump administration would deliver crippling cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). These cuts would threaten essential progress in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease, macular degeneration, and glaucoma—diseases of mind and sight impacting 1 in 7 Americans over age 40.
The Early Alzheimer’s Signals We’ve Been Missing (Until Now)
Using advanced genetic sequencing, BrightFocus Alzheimer’s Disease Research-funded scientist Dr. Mark Ebbert is identifying overlooked changes in the brain that could finally unlock a way to diagnose Alzheimer’s before it begins.