Congrats to our 2025 NMSG Shark Tank winner!

Grace McMacken, MBBCh, Ph.D.
Queen’s University Belfast – Exploring Autoimmune Myasthenia Gravis in Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy: A Pilot Study on a Novel Disease Association

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The next NMSG Shark Tank session will be held at the 27th Annual NMSG Scientific Meeting in San Antonio, Texas in September 2026. If you would like to be considered to present your proposal at the meeting, please email your submission to Donna Schwartze at dschwartze@kumc.edu by June 1, 2026.

Outline

The NMSG Shark Tank session is an opportunity for early career investigators to present a research proposal with a neuromuscular focus for pump-prime funding of $10,000. The scheme is intended to support new and developing research collaborations and result in further grant applications. If chosen to receive the award you will be considered a NMSG study and are eligible for NMSG assistance with your study.

The successful applicant will be expected to submit an itemized budget prior to release of funding. Progress reports are expected once every six months. The successful applicant is expected to present research findings and outputs (e.g. publications, new collaborations, funding applications) at the following year’s NMSG meeting.

** Note: If the winner is not from an NMSG member site, we will deduct a $500 membership fee before sending the award.

Eligibility

  • Lead applicant:
    • Is an early career researcher associated with a principal investigator who is established in the field of neuromuscular diseases.
    • Has not previously received an NMSG Shark Tank award.
    • Is willing to present their research findings at a future NMSG conference.
  • A proposal for a specific piece of research which will be completed within 12 months of the grant award and is feasible with the $10,000 funding available.
  • A proposal relevant to neuromuscular diseases connected to the remit of the NMSG.

Process

  1. Applicants will submit a 200-word abstract outlining their research proposal. This should be written in language understandable by a non-specialist in your particular field and should include:
    1. Type of research (e.g. Basic science, clinical trial, epidemiology, qualitative etc.)
    2. Background and research question (e.g. What unmet need are you addressing? What knowledge gap are you filling? Why is it important?)
    3. Specific hypothesis, aims, and objectives of the project
    4. Expected outcome and next steps, including plans for future study and funding bids
  2. Based on review of abstracts, selected applicants will present their proposal at the NMSG Shark Tank at the annual meeting. The Sharks are a panel of experts who will scrutinize your plans. Your presentations will take the following format:
    1. A 5-minute presentation using no more than three slides. Your job is to get the panel interested in your idea and highlight the importance of your project. Be sure to outline exactly what the grant will fund.
    2. Around 10-15 minutes of questions from the “sharks.” Here your proposal will be scrutinized in more detail (see below).

Presentation

The presentation is an “elevator pitch.” You don’t need to cover everything, but it is necessary to clearly articulate the overall research plan, significance of the project, aims/objectives, supportive background/data, and the budget. Sharks like to be entertained and be sure you make your pitch understandable, or they will become hungry. Be prepared to discuss the following during the question and answer period:

  • Clearly defined hypothesis, aim(s), and objective(s)
  • Any supporting preliminary data
  • Details of the study design
  • Justification of a defined primary outcome measure (if relevant)
  • Statistical analysis plan (inc. sample size justification if relevant)
  • Details and justification of the budget
  • Significance and next stages

Your presentation and responses will be scored in the following domains:

    1. Significance of the proposed research
    2. Innovation
    3. Research Approach/Study Design
    4. Feasibility
    5. Environment/Mentorship
    6. Budget
    7. Presentation/AV

Good luck!

Dr James Lilleker, Lead Shark