Bold Research for a Better Tomorrow
BrightFocus Foundation is a premier private funder of research to defeat Alzheimer’s, macular degeneration, and glaucoma. Through our three research programs—Alzheimer’s Disease Research, Macular Degeneration Research, and National Glaucoma Research—we’ve awarded nearly $300 million in research grants to over 6,000 scientists worldwide, catalyzing countless scientific breakthroughs, life-enhancing treatments, and diagnostic tools.
Apply for a Research Grant
For ideas to take root and grow into future clinical realities, researchers must prove that their theories will work. Each year, BrightFocus awards dozens of grants to scientists worldwide for basic, translational, and clinically oriented research on the causes of or treatments for Alzheimer’s, macular degeneration, and glaucoma.
BrightFocus awards catalyze the efforts necessary to take a brilliant idea from the lab to the doctor’s office.
Alzheimer’s Disease Research
The Alzheimer’s Disease Research program has invested more than $180 million in cutting-edge research.
Macular Degeneration Research
The Macular Degeneration Research program has awarded nearly $53 million since inception.
National Glaucoma Research
The National Glaucoma Research program has funded nearly $51 million in research grants.
Explore Open-Access Science
BrightFocus is the official sponsor of Molecular Neurodegeneration, the No. 1 open-access neuroscience journal.
BrightFocus-Funded Breakthroughs
Since our founding in 1973, BrightFocus Foundation has funded and supported some of the most groundbreaking milestones in Alzheimer’s, macular degeneration, and glaucoma research history. Some funded breakthroughs include introducing the first widely accessible Alzheimer’s blood test in the U.S., creating the first noninvasive technique to measure eye pressure, and pioneering the first patient-derived stem cell therapy for dry macular degeneration.