The Michael J. Fox Foundation has committed up to $12 million in 2011 funding for prioritized research toward transformative treatments and a cure for Parkinson's disease.

Funding is open to academic and industry researchers through the Foundation's Pipeline Programs, which consist of three annually recurring initiatives, known collectively as The Edmond J. Safra Core Programs for PD Research, as well as the industry-exclusive Therapeutics Development Initiative. The Foundation seeks investigator-initiated proposals focused on the following critical points along the translational pathway to new therapies for Parkinson's disease:

Testing Novel Hypotheses: Quick support for high-risk, high-reward projects with little to no existing preliminary data, but potential to significantly impact our understanding or treatment of PD.

Validating Novel Targets: Support for work demonstrating whether modulation of a novel biological target has impact in a PD-relevant pre-clinical model — an essential step to the development of potential targeted therapies.

Catalyzing and Expanding Preclinical Development: Industry-exclusive support for preclinical development of Parkinson's disease therapies with potential to fundamentally alter disease course and/or improve treatment of symptoms above and beyond current standards of care.

Clinically Testing Novel Therapies: Support for clinical testing of promising PD therapies that may significantly and fundamentally improve treatment of PD.

"The Pipeline Programs are a core element of our Foundation's efforts to drive research that will speed therapeutic development at historically under-funded points on the pipeline," said Todd Sherer, the Foundation's acting CEO. "The programs are part of MJFF's progressive work to keep the most promising and significant projects moving forward toward notably improving quality of life for patients now and in the future."