Washington D.C., (October 24, 2022) The Misophonia Research Fund today committed nearly $2.2 million in new grants to scientific investigators who seek to characterize misophonia and develop new therapeutic strategies for those living with the disorder. This funding is being announced alongside a new request for proposal (RFP) for independent or postdoctoral investigators working on research projects focused on misophonia.
The latest RFP represents the fifth grant cycle since the Fund was founded in 2019. Letters of Intent can be submitted through December 9, 2022. Interdisciplinary scientific teams led by independent principal investigators can apply for funding up to $500,000 over a two-year period, with a $200,000 award track specifically designed to support two-year postdoctoral research projects focused on misophonia. Additional information on how to apply is available on the Fund’s website.
Since 2019, the Fund has committed nearly $10 million into a field that once had no dedicated research funding and scant scientific or therapeutic progress to show for it.
In the past four years, the misophonia research field has experienced remarkable growth. Within the last two years alone, more research has been published on misophonia than in all preceding years combined.
This progress has been catalyzed by a partnership between The REAM Foundation and the Milken Institute Center for Strategic Philanthropy (CSP). CSP has provided strategic guidance to identify gaps in the field and recommend where investments of philanthropic capital could make a transformative difference. This partnership resulted in the launch of the Misophonia Research Fund, which has supported 26 research grants to investigators in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. The scientific advancements made possible through the grant program are complemented by critical field- and community-building initiatives such as the development and publication of a consensus definition of the disorder, annual convenings of funded investigators and trainees who are supported by the Fund, and the compilation of a scientific collection dedicated to misophonia research, released in Frontiers in Neuroscience.
Misophonia is a disorder of decreased tolerance to specific sounds or stimuli associated with such sounds. These stimuli, known as “triggers,” are experienced as unpleasant or distressing and tend to evoke strong negative emotional, physiological, and behavioral responses that are not seen in most other people. Between 15 and 20 percent of people are believed to experience clinical symptoms of misophonia, although awareness of the disorder by the general public and clinical specialists remains low.
The misophonia field sits at the intersection of psychology, neuroscience, and audiology. In its fifth year of funding, the program hopes to attract novel proposals across these fields to continue driving toward a breakthrough for those suffering from misophonia. For more information and to respond to the RFP, please visit misophoniaresearchfund.org.
About the Misophonia Research Fund
The Misophonia Research Fund (MRF) is focused on advancing scientific breakthroughs and ending suffering from misophonia. MRF was launched in 2019 with an inaugural round of funding for medical research grants that seek to better understand misophonia, diagnose people who have the condition, and assess treatment strategies. MRF is an initiative of The REAM Foundation, a private family foundation. Through a competitive grants program, MRF seeks to foster innovative science and new treatments for misophonia. For more information, visit misophoniaresearchfund.org.
About the Milken Institute Center for Strategic Philanthropy
The Milken Institute Center for Strategic Philanthropy (CSP) advises individuals and foundations seeking to develop and implement transformational giving strategies and offers leadership to make the philanthropic landscape more effective. We conduct deep due diligence across a range of issue areas and identify the areas where philanthropic capital can make the biggest impact and create a better world. For more information, visit philanthropy.milkeninstitute.org.
About the Milken Institute
The Milken Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank focused on accelerating measurable progress on the path to a meaningful life. With a focus on financial, physical, mental, and environmental health, we bring together the best ideas and innovative resourcing to develop blueprints for tackling some of our most critical global issues through the lens of what’s pressing now and what’s coming next. For more information, visit milkeninstitute.org.
Contact
Mala Persaud
[email protected]
Milken Institute Center for Strategic Philanthropy