Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research

Funds Parkinson's disease research through United States nonprofit grants with science sharing expectations for public outputs.

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research is the world's largest private funder of Parkinson's research, with more than $2 billion deployed since its founding in 2000. It is a U.S. 501(c)(3) public charity headquartered in New York City and runs a global portfolio that spans pre-clinical and clinical development, biomarker work, and clinical trial infrastructure. The foundation also enforces an open science policy across funded projects.

Its current menu includes the Parkinson's Disease Therapeutics Pipeline Program, which offers $250,000 to $5 million over one to three years depending on stage, the Proteoforms Program at up to $1 million for 24 months, the GBA1 Parkinson's Disease Research Catalyst Program at up to $300,000, Targets to Therapies at $250,000 to $2 million, Access Advocate at $200,000 over two years, and the Edmond J. Safra Fellowship at $180,000. The pipeline program is open internationally to industry, academic-industry partnerships, and some academic-led projects, while the other calls are built around biomarker science, target validation, clinical participation, or specialist training.

MJFF stands out because it expects data, preprints, code, and software to be shared with persistent identifiers, and because its application guidance is designed to support structured, milestone-driven research. Applicants who arrive with a clear therapeutic hypothesis, a translational biomarker package, or a clinical participation problem are closest to the foundation's priorities. The result is a highly technical funding environment that rewards teams ready to move from mechanism to patient impact.