Research Grants - Dermatology Foundation

Expand Your Work with a Research Grant

The Foundation’s Research Grants provide an annual award of $25,000 in financial support for research projects in dermatology and cutaneous biology that benefit the dermatology community at large.

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Know Before You Apply

All Foundation-funded research must be conducted in the U.S. under the sponsorship of a department/division of dermatology that is ACGME-approved for training in dermatology. Applicants must meet the DF’s general eligibility requirements, in addition to award-specific requirements presented on or before the time of funding. Applicants from minority populations are encouraged to apply.

The DF encourages applications concerning health issues impacting applicants from minority populations, including, but not limited to, racial minorities, sexual ¬ gender/LGBTQ minorities, and underserved/disadvantaged populations.

Research Grants FAQs

Am I eligible?

If you meet all of the requirements below, you may be eligible to apply for the Research Grants.

Applicant Eligibility for the Research Grants

If you meet the requirements below, you may be eligible to apply for a Research Grant.

MD; MD, PhD; PhD; or DO degree
Investigator in the early stages of academic career
Project not funded from other sources
NOT available to residents unless in a research year of a 4-year program defined by no more than 20% of time devoted to clinical responsibilities

Eligibility Criteria for All DF Awards

All DF-funded research must be conducted in the U.S. under the sponsorship of a department/division of dermatology that is ACGME-approved for training in dermatology. A project to be performed as a part of the U.S. government research program (except Veterans Administration), or to be performed at a private foundation without an academic affiliation to dermatology, is not eligible for funding. A project involving human subjects must have IRB approval at the time funding commences, i.e., July 1, and throughout the term of the award.

An individual who is a prior or current principal investigator (PI) on a federal grant is not eligible to receive a DF career development award, fellowship or grant. The following two exceptions apply:

1) CDA awardees may have effort on an NIH grant as long as he/she is not the senior PI who initiated the application and he/she does not have direct reporting responsibilities for this or prior federal awards. Total support from all federal grants must be less than 20% of their total effort during the term of the DF award.

2) The individual is the recipient of an NIH training grant or an equivalent grant from another granting agency.

Upon receipt as the PI of a federal grant, a DF CDA or grant will be withdrawn. Note, an individual who receives a federal grant that eliminates their status as a "new investigator" is not eligible to maintain/receive a DF CDA.

Fellowship recipients may receive NIH training grants or an equivalent grant from another granting agency.

Important Note: The Foundation utilizes the NIH definitions of “principal investigator” and “coinvestigator” to administer this policy, as found in the Glossary of NIH Terms.

How do I apply for grant funding?

Starting in July 2024, the DF will be accepting new applications for career development awards, fellowships and research grants via our CDAFG Research Award Application Portal. The Applicant Instructions provided below include essential information potential applicants need to know to evaluate the various award opportunities and develop a successful application and research proposal. Interested individuals are strongly encouraged to read sections II and III before assembling their application. Updated application instructions for the 2025 cycle will be available in the coming weeks.

The DF has also prepared a Quick Reference Guide to enable users to quickly acclimate to the online application system.

Application deadline: October 15, 2024

CDAFG Portal Quick Reference [PDF]

CDAFG Applicant Instructions [PDF]

Takeshi Yamauchi, PhD

University of Colorado

Research Grant

Featured Award Recipient

The Role of Ethanol and Acetaldehyde in Melanocytes

Although alcohol consumption correlates with an increased risk of cancers, including melanoma, direct evidence of alcohol-induced melanoma development is lacking. Alcohol is broken down into carcinogenic acetaldehyde, and then detoxified into acetic acid by aldehyde dehydrogenase family 3 member mitochondrial (ALDH2). Here we seek to investigate whether ethanol (alcohol) and acetaldehyde induce relevant mitochondrial dysfunction and DNA damage in melanocytes.

Award Recipients | Research Grants

2024 Award Recipients | Research Grant

Nathan Balukoff, MD, PhD
University of Miami
Tunnels of Hidradenitis Suppurativa: the Role of Activated Cellular Phenotype in the Disease Pathoph

Heather Dingwall, PhD
University of Pennsylvania
Uncovering Extrinsic Drivers of Ectodermal Appendage Development

Cheri Frey, MD
Howard University
Spatial Evaluation of Immune-stromal Crosstalk in Discoid Lupus Erythematosus in Skin of Color

Nazgol Sadat Haddadi, MD, MPH
University of Massachusetts
Keratinocytes' Innate Immune Response to Ultraviolet Light B in Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus

Tomonori Oka, MD, PhD
Harvard University, Massachusetts General Hospital
Exploring How T Helper 2 cell Immunity Eliminates Pre-cancerous Skin Lesions

2023 Award Recipients | Research Grant

2022 Award Recipients | Research Grant

Matthew G. Brewer, PhD
University of Rochester Medical Center
Epidermal Spatial Gene Expression in AD Patients with Eczema Herpeticum

Brian Simmons, MD
Dartmouth University
Development of CRISPER Point of Care Test for Identification of Dermatophytes
in Onychomycosis

Laura Walsh, MD, PhD
Northwestern University
Follicularly Delivered Melanin Particles to Ameliorate Chemotherapy Induced
Alopecia

Tianchi Xin, PhD
Yale University School of Medicine
Dissecting the Niche-dependent Mechanisms of Oncogenic Ras-induced Tissue
Architecture Disruption

2021 Award Recipients | Research Grant

Stephanie R. Gillespie, PhD
Columbia University
Investigating the Role of Ctsk in CD200-stimulated Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma Metastasis

Matthew L. Hedberg, MD, PhD
University of Pennsylvania
Immunoediting in Cutaneous Squamous Carcinogenesis

Naiem T. Issa, MD, PhD
University of Miami
Computational Drug Discovery of Novel Small Molecule Inhibitor Chemotypes of GNAQ (Gq) Signaling

Nan Ring, MD
Yale University
Characterizing the Role of the Cutaneous Microbiota in Darier Disease

Mariana Silva, PhD
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Cell Type-dependent PD-1 Inhibitor Affinity and Its Significance in Melanoma Immunotherapy

Takeshi Yamauchi, PhD
University of Colorado, Denver
The Role of Ethanol and Acetaldehyde in Melanocytes

2020 Award Recipients | Research Grant

2019 Award Recipients | Research Grant