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IBD Ventures

Crohn's & Colitis Foundation

The Crohn's & Colitis Foundation seeks to accelerate the development of products that aim to improve the quality of life of patients with inflammatory bowel diseases. Toward that end, the Foundation has launched IBD Ventures, a dedicated funding mechanism to support product-oriented research and development. Companies and academic investigators can apply. Funding up to $500,000 per project per year will be considered. In addition, funded programs will be offered accelerator resources and advising.

Even if your organization is not interested in IBD Ventures at this time, we'd still like to stay in touch—please subscribe to our email list, join us at our conference, or send your questions to IBDVentures@crohnscolitisfoundation.org

How to apply

For eligibility, policies, and application instructions, click here. Program information, LOI and other application forms can also be accessed and must be submitted through proposalCENTRAL.

Navigate to the "Grant Opportunities" tab (top right)
Filter by grant maker (select "Crohn's & Colitis Foundation") to find the application link for IBD Ventures

Letter of Intent deadline: September 18, 2026

AI Based Application Success Predictor

1. Direct relevance to Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis (highest predictor)

This is the most important success predictor.

The Foundation states that its funded research must be relevant to IBD, Crohn’s disease, and/or ulcerative colitis. Competitive projects typically address:

Disease causes and pathogenesis
Intestinal inflammation and immune dysregulation
Microbiome–host interactions
Genetics and environmental triggers
Fibrosis and stricturing disease
Biomarkers and precision medicine
New therapeutics
Disease monitoring
Clinical outcomes
Quality of life

A scientifically excellent project with only indirect relevance to IBD will generally be less competitive than one that clearly addresses a major IBD problem.

2. Alignment with the Foundation’s research priorities (very high predictor)

The Foundation states that, regardless of funding mechanism, it funds according to its identified research priorities and the major challenges facing the IBD field.

Strong applications clearly explain how the project addresses an important unresolved problem such as:

Disease prevention
Prediction of disease course
Precision treatment selection
Durable remission
Treatment resistance
Fibrosis and complications
Microbiome mechanisms
Pediatric IBD
Better patient outcomes

The proposal should explicitly connect its aims to a recognized gap in current IBD knowledge or care.

3. Scientific significance and potential impact (very high predictor)

Competitive proposals address a problem that matters to both the IBD research field and, ultimately, patients.

Strong applications demonstrate potential to:

Change understanding of IBD biology
Identify a new disease mechanism
Improve diagnosis or disease prediction
Develop better treatments
Prevent complications
Improve quality of life
Change clinical practice

The Foundation’s mission is to cure Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis and improve the quality of life of people living with these diseases, so the strongest proposals make the pathway to meaningful impact clear.

4. Innovation and originality (very high predictor)

Innovation is particularly important for programs such as Litwin IBD Pioneers, which support innovative early-stage research.

Strong proposals may involve:

Novel hypotheses
New therapeutic targets
Emerging technologies
Innovative disease models
New biomarkers
High-risk/high-reward approaches
Unconventional interdisciplinary ideas

The strongest applications do more than repeat established approaches; they explain how the proposed work could open a new direction in IBD research.

5. Rigorous and feasible research design (very high predictor)

Scientific ambition must be matched by execution.

Competitive applications generally include:

Clear hypotheses or objectives
Focused specific aims
Appropriate experimental design
Strong statistical analysis
Realistic recruitment plans
Relevant controls
Clearly defined milestones
Plans for potential problems and alternatives

For pilot and early-stage mechanisms, a focused project that can produce decisive evidence is generally stronger than an overly ambitious proposal with uncertain feasibility.

6. Strong investigator qualifications and relevant expertise (high predictor)

The Foundation supports researchers across career stages, from students and postdoctoral fellows to established investigators.

Competitive applicants generally demonstrate:

Expertise relevant to the proposed IBD question
Appropriate research training
Scientific productivity
Relevant publications
Ability to complete the proposed work
Access to needed resources

For established investigators, track record and research independence are particularly important. For trainees and junior investigators, potential, training quality, and career trajectory become more influential.

7. Strong mentorship and career-development environment (very high for training awards)

The Foundation explicitly supports a strong pipeline of junior investigators pursuing careers in IBD research.

For fellowship and career-development applications, competitive candidates typically demonstrate:

An experienced IBD research mentor
A strong training environment
Acquisition of new research skills
Institutional support
Clear career objectives
Progress toward research independence

The Research Fellowship Award specifically supports postdoctoral investigators developing basic research skills in IBD, while other career-development mechanisms support promising researchers building sustained careers in the field.

8. Strong preliminary rationale and potential for future funding (high predictor)

Many Foundation awards can function as stepping stones toward larger research programs.

Strong projects often aim to generate:

Preliminary data
Proof-of-concept evidence
Biomarker validation
Therapeutic feasibility results
Data for NIH or other major grant applications

For pilot and innovative awards, the strongest proposal explains what decisive evidence the Foundation’s investment will generate and how that evidence will enable the next stage of research.

9. Translational and patient relevance (high predictor)

The Foundation funds research across the full continuum from basic science to clinical investigation, but applications become especially compelling when they clearly explain how discoveries could eventually benefit people with IBD.

Strong translational pathways may include:

Target validation
Drug development
Biomarker development
Patient stratification
Clinical trial readiness
Improved disease monitoring
Better therapeutic decision-making

The exact importance of translation depends on the grant mechanism; fundamental mechanistic research remains eligible when its relevance to IBD is strong.

10. Precise fit with the selected funding mechanism (high and actionable predictor)

The Foundation’s programs are not interchangeable.

For example:

Senior Research Awards: independent investigator-led IBD research
Research Fellowship Awards: postdoctoral training and skill development
Career Development Awards: progression toward research independence
Litwin IBD Pioneers: innovative early-stage ideas
Clinical Research Investigator-Initiated Awards: clinical research
IBD Ventures: development and commercialization of promising IBD products or technologies

A strong application matches the project’s maturity, investigator career stage, budget, and expected outputs precisely to the selected mechanism.

Specialties

Immunology

Eligibility Requirements

The following types of organizations are eligible to apply for this funding if the following criteria are met. Applicants not meeting the specified criteria based on the Letter of Intent (LOI) submitted will not be considered for funding.

• Company. The majority of applicants in this category will be small for-profit biotechnology companies; non-profit organizations meeting the criteria may also apply. This category does not include organizations whose primary mission is education, clinical care and/or basic research (e.g. universities, academic medical centers or basic research institutes). In order to qualify as a company applicant, an organization must meet the following criteria at the time of LOI submission:

- Independent organization with a primary focus on and demonstrated commitment to product development.

- Business plan in place specifying organization’s mission and projected milestones.

- The proposed project must be consistent with the organization's business plan.

- Funds must be available for essential company operation during the project period

- Full-time personnel are employed by organization.

- Necessary infrastructure is accessible for proposed research activities.

- Principal investigator & key personnel with appropriate expertise

Sponsor Details

Sponsor Institute/Organizations: Crohn's & Colitis Foundation

Sponsor Type: Corporate/Non-Profit

Address: 733 THIRD AVENUE, SUITE 510, NEW YORK, NY 10017

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