The Translational Impact Research program supports projects that demonstrate:

• Alignment with D2R’s Mission and Priority Disease Area: Projects must directly address the specific unmet needs within oncology, infectious diseases, rare diseases or cardiovascular and cardiometabolic diseases. Proposals should articulate how they meet the strategic priorities for these diseases, including access to clinical resources, the suitability of RNA therapies, and the relevance to specific populations within Quebec and/or Canada.
• Multidisciplinary Collaboration and Expertise: Projects should demonstrate multidisciplinary collaboration across at least three D2R Foundational Axes, with a team that has the necessary expertise and experience in the disease area, including preclinical and clinical knowledge.
• Partner Engagement: Proposals must demonstrate existing or emerging partnerships with organizations that are positioned to translate the proposed research into clinical outcomes. Evidence of partnership may include access to resources (e.g., expertise, biobank, patient cohorts), financial contributions, and should ideally show an ongoing partnership or active collaboration with an industrial partner, or ongoing discussions about the potential for such collaboration.
• Novelty and Non-Duplication: Projects should offer innovative solutions without duplicating ongoing projects. Proposals must introduce a unique approach and justify the choice of RNA-based therapies.
• Translational Impact: Active engagement of patient groups and/or other communities who might benefit from this research is essential to support meaningful impact. Proposals should highlight how the research team will engage with such groups to achieve direct short-term or medium-term impact on the selected disease area, including treatment of afflicted individuals. Incorporating 'patient partners' from the project's outset is encouraged, as it is a vital component of research design, ensuring projects are grounded in real-world needs. Indicate how this research may position McGill, Quebec, and/or Canada in the international research landscape.

1.2 Award Value and Duration

• Total Budget (Research + Training): Up to $3 million per project.
• Duration: Up to three years (non-renewable)
• Note: In rare and exceptional cases, D2R may adjust award size to support high-priority or strategic considerations.

1.3 Eligible Expenses

Each proposal can request separate research and training budgets using the template provided.

Zero-Based Budgeting: Every expense must be explained and justified, based on project needs. Applicants should prepare a budget directly tied to the project's key milestones and outcomes, with allocations reflecting the specific tasks, services and expenses (including salaries and stipends).

Eligible Research Expenses

• Compensation: salaries and benefits of HQP; technical services, consulting fees, honoraria
• Equipment, Supplies, User Fees & Consumables. Up to a combined maximum of $25,000 for small equipment over three years.
• Computers & Electronic Communications: hardware and software
• Travel & Subsistence: accommodations and reasonable out of pocket expenses for field work, conferences and collaboration-related travel
• Dissemination & Networking: event hosting costs, publishing fees and translation costs
• Services and other expenses
• All expenditures must comply with the .

Eligible Training Expenses

• Supports graduate students and postdoctoral fellows directly involved full-time in the research. Stipends, wages, and mandatory employment benefits are permitted.
• Year 1 funds should primarily be allocated to trainees already identified or realistically hireable within that period. If funds are requested for yet-to-be-hired trainees, include a brief justification and anticipated recruitment timeline.
• Other trainee-related costs (e.g. travel, training) must be included under the Research Budget
• To enable high quality training and mentoring, funds should be used to support a student or postdoctoral fellow in their entirety, rather than being used for a portion of their stipend or wages.

1.4 Applicant Eligibility

Principal Investigator (PI)

• The Principal Investigator must be a 51³Ô¹ÏÍø faculty member holding the rank of Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Full Professor.
• The PI is responsible for leading the development, coordination, and execution of the project.

Co-Investigator(s) may include:

• 51³Ô¹ÏÍøfaculty members who hold the rank of Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor
• Faculty from D2R partner institutions — McMaster University, University of British Columbia, University of Ottawa, Université de Sherbrooke, and Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal (IRCM) — who appear on the approved list of D2R-affiliated researchers submitted by each partner institution
• Co-Investigators are expected to play active roles in project design and execution.

Collaborators

• Can include individuals from academia, industry, government, or community organizations.
• Collaborators are not eligible to receive direct funding from D2R.
• They may contribute expertise, resources, or access to specific research populations or technologies relevant to the project.

• Program Launch: August 27, 2025
• Letter of Intent (LOI) Deadline: October 14, 2025, at 10Ìýa.m. (Eastern Time). Late or incomplete LOIs will not be reviewed.
• Notice of LOI Decision: November 26, 2025
• Full Application Deadline: January 7, 2026
• Anticipated Award Announcement: End of February 2026

An LOI package consists of an online formÌýand specific documents to upload. Use the templates provided, where indicated.

Documents to Upload

1. Letter of Intent (Template)
2. Biosketches, for PI and any Co-Is, combined into 1 PDF (Template)
3. Letter of Support (see instructions below)

LOI due: Tuesday October 14, 2025, at 10 a.m. (Eastern Time). Late or incomplete LOIs will not be reviewed.

3.1 Letter of Intent (LOI) Instructions

Use the template provided. Maximum of 3 pages English, or 4 pages French. Address each of the following items:

A. Scientific Abstract:

• Provide an overview of the project’s objectives, methods, and expected outcomes.
• Identify the project’s multidisciplinary, innovative and translational elements.

B. Alignment with a D2R Priority Disease Area:

• Outline the project’s relevance to one of the prioritized disease areas: oncology, infectious diseases, rare diseases, cardiovascular and cardiometabolic diseases.
• Emphasize how the project aligns with D2R’s strategic priorities and addresses specific unmet needs within these areas.

C. Approach, Experimental Plan and Novelty:

• Provide an overview of experimental plan, focusing on key strategies, potential challenges, and a broad timeline.
• Highlight the project’s innovative approach and differentiation from existing research, and the key milestones.

D. Team and Feasibility:

• Summarize multidisciplinary collaboration across at least three D2R Foundational Axes and the use of diverse expertise for translational outcomes. Explain how each Investigator will contribute to the research program.
• Highlight available resources and expertise, explain project feasibility within the given timeframe and budget.

E. Rationale for Seeking D2R Funding and Partnerships:

• Explain the need for D2R funding (both research and training budgets).
• Highlight the existing partnerships.
• Discuss how TIR funding may lead to further partnerships and funding.

F. Translational Impact

• Describe how you will be engaging with patient groups and/or other communities who might benefit from this research.
• Outline the project’s expected translational impact on prioritized disease areas and populations, and in the proposed timelines.

Appendices are not permitted. Additional pages will be removed prior to review.

3.2 Letter of Support Instructions

A Letter of Support should be from an organization, not an individual, and demonstrate either an existing partnership or a strong interest in forming a partnership within the short term, for the purpose of the proposed research. Partnering organizations should be well positioned to help translate the proposed research into health outcomes.

Letters may be in English or French.

4.1 Administrative Review

Each submission will be reviewed for both the Principal Investigator’s and Co-Investigators’ eligibility, and application completion.

4.1 LOI Evaluation

All eligible LOIs will be evaluated on the following criteria:

• Alignment with a D2R Priority Disease Area
• Scientific Innovation and Novelty
• Approach and Experimental Plan
• Team and Feasibility
• Rationale for Seeking D2R Funding and Partnerships
• Translational Impact

4.3 LOI Notification

All applicants will be informed of the LOI evaluation outcomes via email end of November 2025.

Applicants invited to submit a full application will receive a report outlining any specific items that should be addressed in the full application.

The application consists of an online and specific documents to upload. The requisite links and templates will be provided to those who are invited to submit a full application.

5.1 Documents to Upload

1. Proposal. Combine into 1 PDF:
   1. Project Description
   2. Response to Feedback from the LOI Evaluation (if applicable)
2. Biosketches
3. Updated Letter(s) of Support (if applicable)
4. Budget and Justification
5. Timelines and Milestones
6. Reviewer Suggestions

5.2 Proposal

Page Limits:

1. Proposal inclusive of references: 12 pages if written in English, or 13 pages in French.
2. Response to Feedback from the LOI Evaluation: 2 pages, English or French

Any additional pages will be removed prior to review.

Use the template provided to address the following:

A. Scientific Summary

• An overview of the project’s objectives, methods and expected outcomes.

• Identify the potential benefits, and how the project could attract further funding.

B. Introduction and Background

• Situate the project within the current state of knowledge.
• Explain how the project will fill scientific gaps, provide a proof-of-concept, or introduce novel research directions for the disease area under study (Project Rationale).

C. Proposal

• Describe the project's objectives and the experimental plan, including the multidisciplinary approaches to the research question.

• Explain how the project will contribute to the development of novel genomic medicine-based RNA therapeutics and its translational impact.
• Indicate any challenges the research team expects to encounter, and mitigation plans.
• Describe the project’s potential for innovative contributions, particularly those emerging from its multidisciplinary approach and stakeholder involvement.

D. Research Team and Collaborations

• Explain how each Investigator will contribute to the project, including the expertise provided to meet the project’s objectives.

• Describe how the team’s activities will be coordinated.
• Outline how partners, including industry and patient groups, will be engaged and how their continuous feedback will be integrated into the project. List existing or potential partnerships and funding opportunities that could enhance the project's impact.

E. Training Plan

• Indicate which tasks or phases of the project each trainee will be involved in.
• Describe the mentoring plan, including how each trainee, as mentioned in the Training Budget, will be supervised and supported throughout the project. Specify the key skills they are expected to gain, and how these skills will contribute to both the success of the project and their professional development.

• Describe any additional training opportunities that will be offered to trainees who are supported by funding from this project, including industry internships.

Note regarding Early Career Researchers (ECRs) D2R recognizes that many ECRs may have had fewer opportunities to establish a training record or build large interdisciplinary teams. ECR applicants are encouraged to briefly contextualize these circumstances in their application. All applicants should present a clear and feasible plan for mentoring and training, aligned with the project’s scope and objectives.

F. Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Plan

Provide a description of your EDI Plan specific to your project that covers:

EDI in Research Design

Thoughtful EDI in research design should include EDI considerations embedded throughout all research stages to enhance rigor and impact. Applicants should address:

• Research Questions & Study Design: Explain how research questions consider the needs of diverse populations or specific equity-deserving groups. Describe how potential biases are identified and mitigated, whose perspectives are informing the project, and whether any inherent EDI biases impact the research question. If so, explain how the study design aims to address and mitigate these biases.
• Data Collection & Analysis: Outline how data will be collected and analyzed, ensuring disaggregation where applicable (e.g., by age, gender, disability, ethnicity, socioeconomic status) to capture meaningful differences. Describe strategies to mitigate biases.
• Knowledge Mobilization & Dissemination: Explain how research findings will be shared inclusively, ensuring accessibility for all groups, especially equity-deserving communities. If applicable, describe how therapies developed will be made accessible to diverse populations.

EDI in Research Practice

Thoughtful EDI in research practice should include EDI considerations concerning:

• Team Composition and Recruitment: Describe efforts to assemble a diverse research team, including measures to mitigate systemic barriers in recruitment and enhance diversity. Outline existing strategies and planned improvements.
• Training and Development: Explain how equitable access to training opportunities will be ensured for all team members (faculty, staff, trainees, and partners).
• Inclusion and Accessibility: Describe current and planned measures to create an inclusive and accessible research environment where all members feel valued and integrated.
• Mentorship and Institutional Support: Highlight available mentorship programs and how team members will support each other's professional development beyond research activities. Identify institutional policies and resources that promote EDI within the research setting.

If EDI considerations are not applicable, provide an evidence-based rationale.

G. Budget

This section supplements the Excel sheet, and should not be used to duplicate its content

• Provide a high-level, narrative summary of the budget and justifications.
• Outline the key budget items, ensuring they correspond with the values listed in the budget forms provided.

• Note any budget items that may require additional context or justification.

H. References

• List only works cited in the Project Description.
• Provide a DOI for each reference, where available.

6.1 Administrative Review

An administrative review of each full application will be conducted for completion and eligibility of any team members who have been added since the LOI stage.

Reviewers will be provided with the information that was submitted in the LOI stage.

6.2 Scientific Merit Review

Reviewers will assess applications based on the following five criteria and provide their expert feedback on the proposal’s strengths, weaknesses, and any recommendations to enhance its translational outcomes within the proposed timeframe:

1. Originality and innovation
2. Quality of the research plan
3. Feasibility of the research plan
4. Research team and multidisciplinary contributions
5. Translational impact (the signature feature of this program)

In addition, reviewers will evaluate applicants’ responses to LOI recommendations, provide an overall assessment of the proposal, and make a funding recommendation.

6.3 Alignment with Program Requirements

These elements will be assessed as satisfactory, insufficient, or inadequate.

Sub-criteria:

• Budget
• Milestones
• EDI in the research design
• EDI in the research team and practices

For projects deemed fundable, Principal Investigators will be notified of any issues with the components listed in Section 6.3. Applicants will have the opportunity to revise these sections. Revised sections must be satisfactorily updated and approved before the release of funds.

The applicants will be informed of the results by email in February 2026

Successful applicants will receive a Notice of Award (NoA), which details the terms, conditions, and reporting obligations.

Awardees must complete the D2R Award Acceptance Form and 51³Ô¹ÏÍø’s Research Funding Checklist (RFC) within two weeks of receiving the NoA.

For additional information about the program, please contact D2R.Funding [at] mcgill.ca