OPEN — AASLD Foundation 2027 Frank J. Tusa HE Pilot Award, individual $50,000 institutional research grant, applications due December 7, 2026 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time.
National — AASLD Foundation 2027 Frank J. Tusa Hepatic Encephalopathy Pilot Award ($50,000; December 7)
AASLD Foundation Frank J. Tusa 2027 research pilot provides $50,000 to qualifying nonprofit academic research institutions for new hepatic encephalopathy patient-outcome interventions. Full applications due December 7, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern.
Funding$50,000 fixed one-year award to a qualifying US/Canada/Mexico nonprofit sponsoring research institution; disbursed once at grant start. Applicant amount, not a total program pool. No mandatory universal cash match published. No indirect/travel/registration fees, equipment >=$5,000 needs written approval.
Deadline2027 Frank J. Tusa Pilot application deadline December 7, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, confirmed in controlling 2027 RFA. Award July 1, 2027–June 30, 2028; final research and fiscal reports August 31, 2028.
Last verified2026-11-02
Required next actionRead the controlling AASLD Foundation Frank J. Tusa 2027 RFA PDF and program page. Confirm PI NIH early-stage investigator or faculty at or below Associate Professor, current AASLD membership, >/=20% project effort, nonprofit accredited host in US/Canada/Mexico, mentor if below associate rank, and no overlapping grant support. Prepare signed 2027 RFA covers and eligibility, abstract, NIH-format biosketches, 1-page aims, 3-page research plan, itemized $50k budget, facilities, other support, candidate statement, department-chair 20% commitment, mentor support if applicable, IRB/IACUC forms. Compile one flattened unlocked PDF and submit via liverresearchawards.org by Dec 7, 2026 11:59 p.m. ET.
Broad Eligibility
NIH-defined early-stage investigators up to faculty at/below Associate Professor; active AASLD membership and at least 20% research effort; AASLD-member mentor if below Associate Professor. Sponsored by accredited nonprofit healthcare/health research institution in USA, Canada, or Mexico; federal NIH/FDA/CDC employees ineligible. New hypothesis-based HE patient-outcome intervention research, 1–2 aims, no overlapping federal research funds; one application per person/year.
Atlas Analysis
Official source verification 2026-11-02: 2027 Frank J. Tusa Pilot for Research in Hepatic Encephalopathy AASLD Foundation program page and controlling ten-page RFA issued August 3, 2026. Individual nonprofit institution grant $50,000 for July 2027–June 2028, 11:59pm ET deadline December 7 2026, AASLD investigator + mentor and institution criteria, one/two aims exploring patient-oriented HE interventions, funder-specific direct costs and prohibited travel/indirect fees, equipment >=$5k advance approval, no stated universal cash-match requirement. Required forms pages 6–10, one-page aims, three-page plan, NIHPHS398 budget, letters, IRB/IACUC, single flattened unprotected PDF and online liverresearchawards.org submission. No program pool amount published. Sources https://www.aasldfoundation.org/awards-programs/tusapilotaward ; the controlling 2027 RFA PDF linked from the funder's official program page. No procurement.
AASLD Foundation 2027 Frank J. Tusa Pilot Award for Research in Hepatic Encephalopathy
The AASLD Foundation 2027 Frank J. Tusa Pilot Award for Research in Hepatic Encephalopathy (HE) offers $50,000 to an eligible sponsoring nonprofit research institution for an original one-year project testing new interventions to improve outcomes for people living with liver-disease-related HE. Applicants must submit by December 7, 2026, 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. The grant runs July 1, 2027 through June 30, 2028.
Who may apply
Principal investigators must meet NIH early-stage-investigator criteria or hold a faculty position at or below Associate Professor, be an active American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) member, and commit at least 20% effort. Applicants below Associate Professor level need an AASLD-member mentor or co-mentor in good standing. The sponsoring institution must be an accredited public or private nonprofit health-related research institution in the United States, Canada, or Mexico. NIH, FDA, and CDC employees are ineligible. Existing federal-grant holders must establish that the project is distinct, non-overlapping and cannot be completed with those funds. Only one AASLD Foundation research-award application per individual per calendar year is permitted; up to one applicant per institutional department may be funded for this category.
Research scope and financial rules
Proposals should be innovative, hypothesis-based interventions to improve HE patient outcomes, with one or two achievable research aims during one year. Clinical, outcomes or translational projects should incorporate patient contact, patient clinical data or patient specimens as relevant. Routine extension of an existing funded project is ineligible. The $50,000 is the individual institutional award, not an overall funding pool. Funds are paid once at grant initiation. Direct project expenses are eligible, but equipment costing $5,000 or more requires Foundation approval in writing in advance. Indirect costs, registration fees and travel expenses are prohibited. No universal mandatory matching percentage is specified in the RFA. Unused funding must be returned.
Official application instructions
Review the official 2027 Tusa program announcement and controlling ten-page 2027 RFA. Submit electronically via liverresearchawards.org by December 7, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Include the signed application cover and eligibility checklist, abstract, NIH-format biosketches (five pages per person), Specific Aims (one page), Research Plan (three pages plus references), NIH PHS398 budget and justification, facilities and Other Support statements, candidate statement, department-chair letter confirming 20% effort, mentor recommendation where applicable, relevant IRB/IACUC disclosures and any other expressly required RFA documents. Prepare one flattened, unlocked PDF, in the prescribed order, with correct page headers and filename. For human or animal research, initiate necessary approvals when applying and provide required verification before funding. Final research and fiscal reports are due August 31, 2028.
This is a genuine nonprofit institutional research grant and not a government procurement. Exact requirements reviewed against the funder’s current RFA on November 2, 2026.
Source verificationReferenced source · www.aasldfoundation.orgAtlas last verified this record 2026-11-02. Always use the funder's current application materials, amendments and portal instructions as the controlling source.View source and application materials ↗
