National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression (NARSAD) announced its 2010 Independent Investigator grants totalling in excess of $4.1 million, which will support 42 innovative researchers at the leading edge of discovery within neuroscience and psychiatry. Since 1987 NARSAD has awarded more than $261.6 million in 3,832 grants to 3,132 scientists around the world.

Independent Investigators seek to produce experimental results that will put them in a position to initiate major research programmes and request major governmental grants. Receiving up to $100,000 over two years, they lead research programs of clinical and basic science investigations into the causes, mechanisms and treatments for serious psychiatric disorders. This year’s Independent Investigators come from 10 leading institutions in nine countries around the world, including Canada, Brazil, Israel and Spain, and 21 leading institutions in the United States, such as Harvard, Columbia and UCLA. Their research topics include schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, such as OCD and PTSD, and childhood disorders, such as autism and ADHD.

The 116-member NARSAD Scientific Council, a prestigious group representing the best and brightest minds in psychiatric research, guided the review and selection process for this year’s Independent Investigators. Forty two grantees were selected from a pool of 217 proposals.

“This year’s applicants brought forward exceptional and diverse proposals that will lead to significant discoveries in the field of psychiatry,” said Robert M. Post, M.D., a member of the Scientific Council and chair of the committee that selected the 2010 Independent Investigators. “We identify those proposals we believe demonstrate the most innovative and promising paths toward better understanding and treatment of psychiatric disorders. As always, the committee was challenged in its selection process and ultimately extremely proud to recommend and support these 42 brilliant, dedicated scientists.”

“NARSAD is on the journey of discovery to recovery,” said Benita Shobe, NARSAD president and CEO. “This captures the determination of the NARSAD mission to fund breakthrough research that leads to advanced discoveries in brain and behaviour research, better treatments for psychiatric disorders, and ultimately, to cures.”

Through these Independent Investigator grants, NARSAD continues its almost 25-year history as the world’s leading donor-supported organization dedicated to finding the causes, improved treatments and cures for psychiatric illness. Its mission is to alleviate suffering from mental disorders by raising and distributing funds for scientific research into such conditions as schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, and child and adolescent disorders, among others.