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Pinnacle Research Award in Liver Diseases

American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases

Application Deadline

December 8, 2025

Award Amount

$300,000 ($100,000/year)

Award Term

Three years

Award Type

Project-Based

Basic Science Research

Career Level

Junior Faculty

Overview

The Pinnacle Research Award in Liver Diseases is a three-year basic science award that provides early career scientists with support for their research to bridge the gap between completion of research training and attainment of status as an independent research scientist. The additional research experience provided by this award is intended to enable early career scientists to successfully compete for research awards from national sources, particularly the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Well-trained investigators who hold MD, PhD or MD/PhD degrees and are pursuing a career in liver disease research are encouraged to apply.

The Pinnacle Research Award in Liver Diseases is intended to develop the potential of outstanding, young scientists and encourage research in liver physiology and disease. Individuals who are already well-established in the field are not eligible for this award.

Award Period: July 1, 2026 – June 30, 2029
Total Award Amount: $300,000

Award funds of $300,000 will be provided in quarterly installments of $25,000 over three (3) years ($100,000 per year).
Annual continuation of funding is contingent on the receipt and approval of annual progress and financial reports and continued adherence to Award eligibility and effort requirements. Continuation of annual funding is not contingent on specific research outcomes/results.
Funds may only be used for PI salary support, technical support, laboratory supplies (excluding capital equipment), and limited travel support for the recipient.
PI salary support or salary for technical support may include fringe.
Capital equipment is defined as items that cost $5,000 or greater, have a useful life of more than one year, and will not be expended or consumed in research.
PIs will receive complimentary registration for The Liver Meeting for the duration of their three-year grant term. Up to $2,000 of Award funding may be used for travel support only in the third/final year of the grant term to offset the PI’s costs to attend The Liver Meeting and present an in-person progress update on their funded project to AASLD Foundation leadership.
No additional or indirect costs, registration fees, or travel expenses other than described above are allowed.

The AASLD Foundation does not require, nor does it approve, a detailed project budget for this award category. Budget proposals submitted by PIs to their institution’s sponsored projects office that allocate Award funds to unallowable costs should not be considered approved by AASLD Foundation. The sponsoring institution is responsible for ensuring that Award funds are only used for allowable costs.

How Award funds are allocated to allowable costs is at the discretion of the sponsoring institution. For example, while this award requires a minimum of 50% effort toward the funded research project, it is not required that PI salary must be directly supported by Foundation Award funds. It is expected that additional institutional funds will be available to the investigator in order to carry out the proposed research.

Unexpended funds at the end of the award term must be returned to AASLD Foundation.

AI Based Application Success Predictor

Based on RFPs, awardee lists, and eligibility criteria, here are strong predictors of success for AASLD Foundation grants:

Predictor	Why It Matters	Notes / Evidence
Clear relevance to liver disease (hepatology)	All awards demand work specifically in liver disease – generic biomedical topics without hepatology focus are unlikely to be competitive.	Funding opportunities list “in liver diseases” in title and description. aasldfoundation.org+1
Appropriate career stage and eligibility compliance	Many awards specify eligibility (e.g., junior faculty, early career, below Associate Professor rank) so matching career stage is vital.	Example: Pilot Research Award: “Faculty 3 years post appointment at or below Associate Professor level”. aasldfoundation.org+1
Innovative and high-impact research design	Reviewers favour novelty, mechanistic insight, translational relevance, and strong hypothesis-driven work.	Recent award titles show CRISPR screens, AI prognostic modeling etc. aasldfoundation.org
Feasibility and well-scoped aims aligned with funding term & amount	With defined award durations (1–3 years) and amounts ($20k–$300k), projects must show that they can deliver within that scope.	Example Pilot Award requires “1-2 aims that can be completed within the one-year award term”. aasldfoundation.org
Strong mentorship or institutional support (especially for early career)	Provides confidence to reviewers that the PI can deliver, especially if less experienced.	Emerging Scholar program emphasises mentor and institutional backing. aasldfoundation.org
Track record or proof of concept/preliminary data	Even for pilot awards, demonstration of viability or earlier work tends to make the proposal more credible.	Many awardees are junior faculty with prior work in hepatology; RFPs emphasise hypothesis‐based research. aasldfoundation.org+1
Alignment with Foundation strategic priorities or special interest topics	Some cycles emphasise specific disease areas (e.g., autoimmune liver disease, PSC). Addressing those areas may increase competitiveness.	Notice of special interest: “Additional dedicated funding to advance research activities in autoimmune hepatitis …” aasldfoundation.org
Membership and institutional affiliation	Many awards require AASLD membership and applicants from eligible countries/institutions; these administrative criteria must be met.	Eligibility page: “Be a member of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD)…” aasldfoundation.org+1
Clear plan for impact or translation	Especially for clinical/translational/outcomes research awards, demonstrating how the findings will change practice or lead to further funding is important.	Award titles include “Outcomes Research”, “Clinical/Translational” etc. aasldfoundation.org
Well-prepared application adhering to guidelines	Attention to formatting, required documents, fully assembled PDF, correct fonts, margins, etc. matters and is explicitly required.	RFP instructions include formatting: margins, font size, page header with applicant’s name. aasldfoundation.org

⚠️ Common Weaknesses / Pitfalls

Applications that lack specific focus on liver disease (e.g., generic metabolic disease without clear hepatic component).

Overly broad or ambitious goals not achievable in the award period.

Weak or absent preliminary data or pilot evidence for higher‐tier awards.

Ineligible applicant (wrong career stage, not AASLD member).

Poor methodological detail — unclear aims, missing statistical or design rigor.

Lack of institutional/mentor support or vague letters.

Budget or project scope misaligned with funding amount/duration.

Not aligning to special interest topics or disease focus when these are highlighted.

📊 Summary: Most Critical Predictors

In summary, the strongest predictors for successful AASLD Foundation awards are:

A strong, novel research question specifically in liver disease/hepatology.

Feasible aims with appropriate scope for the award’s term and funding.

Matching applicant’s career stage and eligibility criteria.

Institution and mentorship support.

Preliminary data or credible feasibility indicators.

Alignment with strategic themes or special disease focus (if indicated).

High-quality, compliant application format and budget.

Specialties

Cardiovascular Diseases

Physiology

Eligibility Requirements

In order to be eligible for this award, the applicant must adhere to the following guidelines:

The applicant must:
- Be within the first five years of their first faculty appointment (including prior appointments in universities outside of North America) at the start of the award (faculty appointment starting no earlier than July 1, 2021).
  - If the applicant does not have a faculty appointment at the time of application, the letter of commitment from their department chair must explicitly confirm that the applicant will have a faculty appointment (i) no later than the Award start date and (ii) for the full award cycle.
- Be a member of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) at the time of award application and maintain active membership for the duration of the award period.
- Be able to devote at least 50% effort to the research project on which this application is based.
- Be sponsored by a public or private non-profit institution accredited in the United States, Canada or Mexico engaged in health care and health-related research. Individuals employed at the NIH, FDA, and CDC are not eligible to apply.
- Have a research mentor or co-mentor who is an AASLD member in good standing at the time of application and for the duration of the award period.
- Not hold/have held any other similar award that is intended to primarily support the salary of early career investigators (including but not limited to NIH R, P or most K level grants, or similar career development awards from federal or non-federal sources See eligibility list for more common programs).
The proposed project must:
- Be a basic science research project.
- Be conducted at the sponsoring institution within the United States, Canada or Mexico.
Application limits:
- There is no restriction on the number of applicants an institution can sponsor each cycle, but only one applicant may be funded per distinct department within each institution in this award category.
- Applicants may only apply for one AASLD Foundation award per calendar year.

Sponsor Details

Sponsor Institute/Organizations: American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases

Sponsor Type: Corporate/Non-Profit

Address: 1001 North Fairfax Street, 4th Fl, Alexandria, VA 22314

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