Arthritis Foundation/AOFAS Research Grants

AOFAS and the Arthritis Foundation are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2026 AF/AOFAS Ankle Arthritis Think Tank Research Grants. Four merit-based grants, totaling $1 million over a two-year period, were awarded to support innovative clinical research that advances knowledge toward treatments to stop or slow ankle osteoarthritis.

Congratulations to the 2026 AF/AOFAS Ankle Arthritis Think Tank Grant Recipients!

• A Paradigm Shift in Ankle Osteoarthritis: Synovial Fibrosis and Aberrant Innervation as Core Drivers of Pain
  Lew Schon, MD, and Zijun Zhang, PhD, MD, Mercy Medical Center

• The Advancing Mitochondrial Interventions for Ankle Arthritis
  Bopha Chrea, MD, and Mitchell Coleman, PhD, University of Iowa

• Investigating Synovial Immune Cell Dynamics in Response to Ankle Joint Injuries and Their Clinical Implications
  Natalia Harasymowicz, PhD, Justin Haller, MD, and Megan Campbell, MD, University of Utah

• Ankle-Specific Clinical Validation and Therapeutic Targeting of the 15-PGDH/CD200 Axis to Enable Disease-Modifying Treatment for Ankle OA*
  Jason Bariteau, MD, Emory University
  * Funded in part by the Sigvard T. Hansen Pillar Research Grant

Past Grant Recipients

The 2023 AF/AOFAS Ankle Arthritis Think Tank Research Grants awarded nearly $600,000 in merit-based grants to the following projects:

• Determining the Traumatic Origins of Ankle OA and the Time to Joint Degeneration
  Donald D. Anderson, PhD, University of Iowa and Cesar de Cesar Netto, MD, PhD, Duke University

• The Impact of Bone Quality and Histopathology in Ankle Osteoarthritis
  Constantine A. Demetracopoulos, MD, and Jensen K. Henry, MD, Hospital for Special Surgery

• Defining the Unique Synovial Transcriptome and Proteome of Ankle Post-traumatic Osteoarthritis
  Kenneth J. Hunt, MD, and Michael Zuscik, PhD, University of Colorado-Denver

Program Information

Grant Description

This grant invites proposals for clinical research projects with a budget of up to $250,000 spread over two years. Proposed budget must limit indirect (F&A) expenses to 8%. Indirect costs should be included in the total budget amount.

Research proposals should focus on innovative clinical research that advances knowledge toward treatments to stop or slow ankle osteoarthritis (including hindfoot). A goal of this grant is to support research that will build data needed to secure funding from large institutional sources (such as the NIH, DoD, PCORI, VA and others). Clinical studies must utilize patient reported outcomes, with use of complementary imaging and/or clinical samples being highly encouraged. Studies should comply with clinical and institutional review board (IRB) requirements. Animal studies are not allowed.

Proposed research may include, but is not limited to:

• Optimization of foot and ankle alignment or ankle ligamentous stability for prevention or treatment of ankle OA

• Slow/stop adjacent joint arthritis in ankle or hindfoot, including subtalar joint

• Development of tests or assays using clinical specimens to detect the early stages of ankle osteoarthritis

• Development of therapeutics, including “orthobiologics,” that could modify the course of ankle osteoarthritis

• Genetic susceptibility to ankle osteoarthritis

• Database studies

Grant recipients will be expected to:

• Participate in AATT meetings, which are expected to occur annually; meetings may be virtual or in-person

• Present progress updates at AOFAS and AF meetings as well as prepare annual reports to be submitted to the AF proposal management platform

• Submit manuscript detailing results of the project for consideration to be published Foot & Ankle International (FAI) or another high-quality peer-reviewed journal in the fields of orthopaedic surgery, arthritis, or a related discipline.

• Utilize data and results of the project to submit for large institutional funding (NIH, DoD, PCORI, VA, and others)

• For clinical trials, additional regulations that need to be observed include the registration of clinical trials within 21 days of protocol approval on ClinicalTrials.gov
  

Eligibility

Access to this research grant is a benefit of AOFAS membership. The principal investigator on the application must be an AOFAS member in good standing in the United States. Co-principal investigators are allowed. Principal investigators based in non-US entities and non-US components of US organizations are not eligible to apply.

Eligible organizations include:

• Higher education institutions, including public/state-controlled and private institutions

• Nonprofits with 501(c)(3) IRS status (other than institutions of higher education)

• Non-domestic (non-US) entities (foreign institutions) and non-domestic (non-US) components of US organizations are not eligible to apply

Questions?

Please contact the Arthritis Foundation by email at [email protected].