The Critical Path Institute (C-Path) has awarded $1,699,500 across five Bridging Research and Innovation in Drug Development (BRIDGe) grants, supporting academic and nonprofit teams working on conditions that range from rare neurological diseases to a parasitic infection killing hundreds of thousands of children each year. The grants, announced between March and July 2026, are designed not just to fund science but to wrap researchers in regulatory know-how — helping them build the right evidence package to eventually reach an Investigational New Drug (IND) application.

What makes this program stand out is its hands-on structure: awardees meet monthly with C-Path experts, get formal scientific advisory reviews at three project milestones, and can direct a portion of their grant to outside contract research organizations if needed. Intellectual property stays with the researchers throughout.

By the Numbers:

• $501,000 — largest award, to advance a kinase inhibitor for cryptosporidiosis toward IND
• $456,000 — for a brain-penetrant enzyme inhibitor targeting neurological lysosomal storage diseases (e.g., Tay-Sachs, Gaucher type 3)
• $250,000 — for an antibody therapy targeting sepsis-related cognitive decline, which carries a 2–4x increased dementia risk
• $249,719 — for a gene therapy to prevent retinal degeneration in children with Usher Syndrome Type 1C
• $242,781 — for nonopioid neuropathic pain treatments using sigma-1 receptor antagonists
• ~200,000 — estimated annual deaths from cryptosporidiosis, mostly in children under 5

Why it matters: Many of these conditions have no approved treatments or only partial solutions. By combining milestone-driven funding with regulatory mentorship, C-Path is helping close the gap between promising lab results and therapies that can actually reach patients.