In order to encourage the submission of highly innovative proposals, applications for AAF Awards are intended to be brief and require no preliminary data.

Review the Award Policies carefully to ensure that your application will meet the Program requirements.

Budget. No budget is required at the time of application (see Award Policies, items 5-7, for budgetary policies and restrictions, including restrictions on indirect costs).

Deadline. The deadline for receipt of applications is Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 5:00 PM, Pacific Standard Time. This deadline applies to the paper copies and electronic submission. Applications that arrive at the Research Program office after the deadline, or without the required institutional signature, will not be reviewed. Late applications will be accepted if the delay is soley due to an error by the courier or if the courier is unable to conduct business because of weather conditions or other limiting events.

Format Requirements. The font size and margins must conform to the following specifications. Failure to conform to type specifications and page limitations will be grounds for downgrading or rejecting the application. Page numbering should begin with the Research Narrative section (i.e., page 1).

• Use Arial, Helvetica, Palatino Linotype or Georgia typeface and a font size of 11 points or larger. (A Symbol font may be used to insert Greek letters or special characters; the font size requirement still applies.)
• Type density, including characters and spaces, must be no more than 15 characters per inch.
• Type may be no more than 6 lines per inch.
• Use black ink that can be clearly copied.
• Print must be clear and legible.

• For Letter-size paper (8.5 inch x 11 inch), use at least .5 inch margins (top, bottom, left, and right) throughout.
• For A4 paper (210 mm x 297 mm), use at least 15 mm margins (top, bottom, left, and right) throughout.

The application should consist of the following items, in order:

1. Application Cover Sheet. Complete the Application Cover Sheet for 2012 Award, including the required signatures. Do not use an earlier version of this form page. List under Co-Investigators, all investigators who will receive salary or project support from the proposed project, excluding postdoctoral fellows and research assistants and technicians. List under Collaborators, all investigators on the project who will not receive support from the Award.

2. Abstract of 250 words or less. The abstract should include the specific aims of the proposal.

3. Biographical Sketch in the NIH format (PHS 398/2590 Rev. 06/09) for the Principal Investigator and each Co-Investigator named on the Application Cover Sheet. Do not include a Biographical Sketch for those named as Collaborators. Applicants who are approved for funding will be asked to update their research support prior to funding. Publications should list all authors. Use 11 point font.

   1. For the Principal Investigator, follow the NIH format, but also include pending support (applications submitted or pending funding) in Section D. If there is no pending support, state "Pending Support: None". Limit four (4) pages.

   2. For each Co-Investigator named on the Application Cover Sheet, follow the NIH format. Limit four (4) pages for each investigator.

4. Research Narrative prepared in English, limited to seven (7) pages, not including references cited. There is no required format, but the Narrative should include Hypotheses and Specific Aims. A possible format would be: Rationale, Hypotheses and Specific Aims, Background, Preliminary Results (if any), Research Plan, and Relevance to Asthma. Since the application is brief, a detailed description of Methods is not required. A reference will suffice if the methods have been published in the literature. If the methods are new, the applicant should include a brief description. Applicants in the field of asthma should explain in the Narrative how the proposed work represents a departure from their previously funded work.
   
   Note to applicants from outside the United States: In some countries, scientific applications must detail the accomplishments of the investigator. This is not so for applications to the AAF. The application is brief and should be devoted to the project itself. Description of previous work by the applicant should be limited to science that is important to the proposal.

5. References Cited should include all authors.

6. Optional Appendix, limited to four (4) pages, may include illustrations, figures, and tables, but not methods or other details required for evaluation of the application. Figure legends should be kept to a few words. Explanation of figures should be in the Narrative section.

7. Other Attachments.

   Co-Investigator Letters: A brief letter from each Co-Investigator named on the Application Cover Sheet should be included with the original application and with each of the 5 application copies. Letters should affirm the Co-Investigator's willingness to perform the duties ascribed to him or her in the proposal. Letters from Collaborators are suggested but not required. Letters will not count toward the four page limit for the Appendix.

   Human Studies Approval: Studies involving human materials must be approved and governed by the sponsoring institution and funding will not be released until this is obtained. We therefore encourage applicants to obtain approval from their Institutional Review Board (IRB) or Committee on Human Research (CHR) in advance, but this approval is not required at the time of application nor is it required for review. If the approval is available at the time of application, include a copy with the application.

Assemble the application in the following order:

1. Application Cover Sheet for 2012 Award (form page), with required signatures
2. Abstract
3. Biographical Sketch (for P.I. and for each Co-Investigator named on the Application Cover Sheet)
4. Research Narrative (limit 7 pages, excluding references cited)
5. References Cited
6. Appendix (optional), limit 4 pages
7. Co-Investigator letters (required if Co-investigators are named on Application Cover Sheet)
8. Collaborator letters (optional)
9. Committee on Human Research (IRB) approval, if applicable and available (this may be submitted later, but not after July 1, 2012)

Do not send: reprints, pre-prints of manuscripts, IRB approvals of animal care protocols, Biosketches for Collaborators, or a proposed budget. (A budget is required only from successful applicants.)

No supplementary material or updates, including additional preliminary data and new publications, will be accepted after the application deadline. The only exceptions are Committee on Human Research approvals and missing documentation requested by the Research Program staff.

Copies and Submission.

The application must be submitted both in paper copy and uploaded as a PDF on this website. Both the electronic copy and the paper copies must be received by the AAF Research Program office before the deadline. Applications will not be accepted by fax or email.

Paper Copy Submission

Submit the original plus 5 single-sided copies (total 6) of the required materials (items a.–i. above). Secure the original with a binder clip or paper clip. The 5 copies should be stapled as individual packets (do not use binder clips or paper clips for the copies).

Send to:

Courier or Express Mail Address:	AAF Research Program Attn: Valerie Dougherty 4 Koret Way, LR-216 UCSF San Francisco, CA 94143-2218 USA tel: 415 514 0730
Postal Address:	AAF Research Program Attn: Valerie Dougherty Box 0509, UCSF San Francisco, CA 94143-0509 USA

Electronic Submission of PDF

The application submitted electronically must be identical to the paper version, with the exception of the signatures on the Application Cover Sheet. Signatures are required only on the original paper application, and not on the electronic version.

Combine all sections of the application (items a.-i. above) into a single PDF file. Name your file using the following convention:

Lastname_Firstname_Middle.pdf (e.g.,Dougherty_Valerie_J.pdf)

When you are ready to submit, use the button below to upload your file.





Notification of Receipt. Approximately two weeks following the deadline, the Research Program staff will notify the Principal Investigator by email that the application was received. If you want to confirm delivery of your application sooner, we suggest that you use a courier service that allows you to track package delivery.

Further information is available from the Research Program Manager, Valerie Dougherty at:

Email: vdougherty@americanasthma.org
Telephone: 415 514 0730
Fax: 415 514 0734




Updated 9/23/2011.