(MENAFN- EIN Presswire) EINPresswire/ -- The Choroideremia Research Foundation (CRF), dedicated to finding treatments and a cure for choroideremia (CHM), announces that the deadline for the first cycle of 2026 research grant applications is December 31, 2025. Since its founding, CRF has awarded over $6 million to more than 100 research projects, advancing understanding and treatment options for this rare genetic condition.

CRF's mission is clear: to accelerate the development of effective treatments and ultimately a cure for choroideremia. Achieving this goal relies on supporting research that:

Provides essential resources and knowledge for the field, such as model systems, insights into genetic mechanisms, and annotated patient specimens.
- Opens innovative pathways for diagnosis and drug discovery.
- Supports promising projects less likely to receive traditional funding, including:
- Seed funding for hypothesis-generating studies
- High-quality proposals from young investigators
- Foundational projects with long-term but high-impact potential

All grant applications will be reviewed by CRF's Science Advisory Board twice a year, with the next review cycle at the end of January.

Researchers interested in applying should submit their proposals via email to:
Kathi Wagner, Executive Director: kathiwagner@curechm
Jess Thompson, MD, Science Advisory Board and Research Committee Chair:...
Mike McConnell, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer:...

“CRF is proud to support research that has the potential to transform the lives of those affected by choroideremia,” said Kathi Wagner, CRF Executive Director.“By funding innovative and foundational projects, we continue to move closer to a future where choroideremia can be effectively treated or cured.”

For more information on grant opportunities and application guidelines, visit curechm/research/#_funding

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About Choroideremia

Choroideremia (CHM) is a rare inherited form of blindness affecting approximately 1 in 50,000 people. Due to its x-linked inheritance pattern males are most severely affected with females usually experiencing much milder visual impairment. Symptoms begin in early childhood with night blindness and restriction of visual field being the earliest noticeable effects, eventually progressing to complete blindness. An estimated 6,000 people in the United States and 10,000 in the European Union are impacted by Choroideremia. There are currently no approved treatments for Choroideremia. For more information, visit curechm/#choroideremia

About the Choroideremia Research Foundation Inc.

The Choroideremia Research Foundation was founded in 2000 as an international fundraising and patient advocacy organization to stimulate research on CHM. Since its inception, the CRF has provided approximately $6 million in research awards and is the largest financial supporter of CHM research worldwide. Research funded by the CRF has led to the development of a CHM animal model, the pre-clinical production of gene therapy vectors currently in clinical trials, and the CRF Biobank which stores tissue and stem cell samples donated by CHM patients. For more information, visit curechm

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