26 March 2024:

Expressions of Interest (EOIs) are invited from ASCIA members for AIFA research grants.

EOIs are due by midnight on 14th May 2024 and the application form is on the AIFA website www.allergyimmunology.org.au/grants

This year a total of $110,000 will be awarded, comprised of 8 grants that are listed below.

Allergy and Immunology Research

$40,000 AIFA Early Career and New Researcher Grants (4 x $10,000 available)

These grants encourage new research projects which do not yet have major funding. It is important that Early Career and New Researchers are supported to establish track records that will increase their chance of securing future research funding. These include early career scientist researchers, emerging clinician researchers (such as advanced allergy/immunology trainees), and other health professionals (such as dietitians, nurses, pharmacists).

Food Allergy Research Grants

$20,000 AIFA Prof Ann Kupa Food Allergy Grant

$15,000 AIFA DBV Technologies Food Allergy Grant

New AIFA Viatris Grant for Nurses

$20,000 AIFA Viatris Nurse Researcher of the Year

We are delighted to announce this new grant, which will be awarded to a late-stage nurse researcher to facilitate presentation of their completed, or soon to be completed, research at an appropriate international or national conference of their choosing.

Primary Immunodeficiency Research Grant

$15,000 AIFA CSL Behring HAE Clinical Research Grant

AIFA grants awarded in 2024 will be announced in September at the ASCIA 2024 Conference in Adelaide.

Thank you to new and long term supporters of AIFA research grants. Your generous support has contributed to the progress of clinical allergy and immunology research in Australia and New Zealand.

By 2026 AIFA aims to award a cumulative total of $1 million in research grants, selected by experts, for clinically important research into allergy and other immune diseases. Help us achieve this goal by donating at www.allergyimmunology.org.au/donate

20 December 2023: 

Allergy and Immunology Foundation of Australasia (AIFA) grants give teams of researchers the opportunity to progress their original ideas to find out more about immune system disorders. This work leads to improved diagnosis and treatment of allergic, immunodeficiency and autoimmune diseases.

Thank you to our generous donors and sponsors, who provide support for allergy and immunology research through AIFA grants, selected via a competitive process of review by experts in the field.

We wish to thank community fundraiser Lindy Kennedy in regional Victoria. Lindy has an autoimmune disease called scleroderma.  Autoimmune diseases are a broad range of more than eighty related disorders, ranging from common to very rare. They affect around 5% of people and are an important health issue in Australia and New Zealand. https://www.allergy.org.au/patients/autoimmunity

Lindy organised an event to raise awareness at the Rotary Club of Bairnsdale Sunrise and a clinical immunology/allergy specialist was available to answer questions on autoimmune disease. This was followed by a highly successful fundraiser. It is admirable to see such positive action, and the donation from her community will go to directly to an AIFA research grant in 2024.

If you have an idea for an event, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  and we will work with you to make it a reality.

It is important that Early Career Clinician Researchers are supported to establish track records that will increase their chance of obtaining future research funding. This year an AIFA Early Career Research Grant was awarded to Dr Adrian Lee of the Westmead Institute for Medical Research for work on autoimmune disease. His team’s findings are expected to help clinicians better diagnose and monitor patients with autoimmune diseases like lupus and Sjögren’s. Read more here

Thank you to the members of the AIFA Grant Selection Panel who donate their time and expertise to assessing the many expressions of interest and applications for AIFA grants. The panel is mindful of what ideas will translate to real clinical benefits for patients, as well as creating pathways for success for early career researchers.

Help us to get these ideas off the ground. Your donation is a legacy which will help people living with allergy, immunodeficiency, and other immune system disorders.

Donate here to take action on immune disease.

With our best wishes for 2024,

The Chair of the Allergy and Immunology Foundation of Australasia, Dr Melanie Wong, announced the recipients of the AIFA grants for 2023 at the ASCIA Conference in September.

	AIFA Professor Ann Kupa Food Allergy Research Grant to Chief Investigator A/Prof Rachel Peters at Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) in Melbourne for the project “Preventing childhood food allergy: wave 2 of the EarlyNuts study”. Read more…
	AIFA DBV Technologies Food Allergy Research Grant to Dr Vicki McWilliam (MCRI) for the project “Milk Up Trial: A randomised controlled trial investigating the safety and efficacy of early and graded introduction of milk via a “milk ladder”. Read more...
	AIFA CSL Primary Immunodeficiency Clinical Research Grant to Dr Kuang-Chih Hsiao for the project “Improving the survival and clinical outcomes of patients with IFNAR1 deficiency in Oceania”. This is the first AIFA grant awarded to a chief investigator in New Zealand and Dr Hsiao works at The Starship Children's Hospital and The University of Auckland. Read more…
In line with our aim of encouraging new research projects which do not yet have major funding, AIFA has awarded Early Career Researcher Grants to:
	Ms Daniela Ciciulla (MCRI) for “Risks of eating disorder development in a national food allergy cohort: The RiskED study”. Read more...
	Dr Logan Gardner (The Alfred Hospital, Melbourne) for “Evaluating the role of MRGPRX2 activation in Idiopathic Anaphylaxis”. Read more...
	Dr Adrian Lee (The Westmead Research Institute and The University of Sydney) for “Improving the diagnosis, monitoring and prognosis of people with autoantibody-associated systematic autoimmune diseases.” Read more...
	Dr Shruti Swamy (The Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney) for “A novel genetic cause of inborn error of immunity – validation and therapeutics”. Read more...

Congratulations to all the successful Chief Investigators and their teams.

Thank you to our donors and sponsors for making it possible for AIFA to fund a total of $90,000 in research grants for 2023. Thank you also to our expert grant selection panel of clinical immunology/allergy specialists who volunteered their time to review the applications.

The next AIFA research grant round will open in early 2024 and we are working towards awarding a cumulative total of more than $1 million in research grants by 2026.

We are calling for your support for future AIFA grants for allergy and immunology research. All funds donated go directly toward research. Donate or sponsor a named grant at 

11 August 2023: 

The AIFA Chair, Dr Melanie Wong, will announce AIFA grant recipients at the 33^rd Annual Conference of the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA) at the International Conference Centre, Sydney, on Wednesday 6 September 2023.

Chief Investigators of projects funded by AIFA in 2021 will present their research results at the AIFA Research Symposium on 6 September at the ASCIA Conference. See the program here https://ascia2023.com/program.html

ASCIA annual conferences are the leading source of allergy and clinical immunology continuing professional development for health professionals in Australia and New Zealand. If you are a health professional working in allergy or clinical immunology, you can register for the conference here https://ascia2023.com/registration.html

Virtual online participation is available for delegates who are unable to attend in-person.

29 March 2023: 

Thank you to our generous supporters, who have enabled the Allergy and Immunology Foundation of Australasia (AIFA) to offer eight research grants to ASCIA members in 2023.

The grant round is now open and expressions of interest are due by 5 May.

Grants to be awarded in September at the ASCIA conference:

• $20,000  Professor Ann Kupa AIFA Food Allergy Research Grant 
• $15,000  DBV Technologies AIFA Food Allergy Research Grant 
• $15,000 CSL Behring AIFA PID Clinical Research Grant 
• $40,000 (4 x $10,000) AIFA Research Grants 

The four grants of $10,000 are to encourage new research projects which do not yet have major funding. They are available to Early Career Researchers which include:

• Early career scientist researchers
• Emerging clinician researchers (such as advanced trainees)
• Other health professionals (dietitians, nurses, pharmacists)

Grants are awarded as part of a competitive research grant program with applicants invited from throughout Australia and New Zealand. 

To find out how to submit an expression of interest for an AIFA grant in 2023 read more here

AIFA ensures that 100% of donations and sponsorship goes directly to fund grants for allergy and immunology research. 

To follow our work, read about the projects AIFA has supported here or sign up for our newsletter.

21 December 2022: 

Thank you to our generous supporters, who have enabled the Allergy and Immunology Foundation of Australasia (AIFA) to provide over $620,000 to 27 research projects since 2014:

• AIFA ensures that 100% of your tax deductible donation will directly fund grants for allergy and immunology research, not administration or marketing. Donations can be made online on the AIFA website.
• All donations of $100 or more are listed on the AIFA website in perpetuity to provide a lasting legacy.
• Named AIFA research grants of $10,000 or more can be targeted to specific clinical areas.
• AIFA is an ASCIA initiative - ASCIA and AIFA are registered with the Australian Charities and Not for Profit Commission (ACNC).

Thank you also to the AIFA expert grant selection panel, led by Dr Melanie Wong, who volunteer their time to work on the robust AIFA grant selection process.

AIFA grant rounds open in March each year and are announced at the ASCIA Annual Conference in September, which also includes presentations by previous AIFA research grant recipients in an annual AIFA Research Symposium. 

To be eligible for an AIFA grant the Chief Investigator must be an ASCIA member and the research needs to be carried out by the chief investigator and designated team in a non-profit institution in Australia or New Zealand. 

To follow our work, read about the projects AIFA has supported here or sign up for our newsletter.