Implementation of the call 2019 "Biomarkers"
Find below details on the call’s implementation:
Timeline
The timeline of the JTC 2019 “Translational Biomarkers in Brain Disorders" is shown below:
| When | What |
|---|---|
| 09 January 2019 | Launch of the call |
| 11 March 2019 | Deadline for pre-proposal submission (14:00 CET) |
| 27 June 2019 | Deadline for full proposal submission (14:00 CET) |
| 19 September 2019 | Peer review panel meeting, ranking list |
| October 2019 | Funding decision |
| First half 2020 | Start of projects |
Proposal submission, peer review process, funding decision
Proposal submission
Research consortia had to consist of 3 - 5 research groups from at least three NEURON partner countries participating in this call. Consortia including partners from countries that are to date underrepresented in this funding scheme could increase the total number of partners to six. The two-step process required at first the submission of short pre-proposals describing the research idea. From these a shortlist was selected and the respective consortia were invited to submit full proposals (see also below).
Both pre- and full proposals had to be submitted electronically by the coordinator of the consortium. Proposal templates and guidelines were provided by the Joint Call Secretariat in order to support the applicants in terms of the proposal format. The Joint Call Secretariat is hosted by the DLR Project Management Agency (DLR-PT, Germany) and the Agence nationale de la recherché (ANR, France).
Peer Review
In order to properly cover all aspects of the broad topic, 36 scientific experts and 6 patient representatives were recruited from NEURON partner countries and beyond. Each pre-proposal was assessed in writing by three scientific evaluators and two patient representatives. The assessments were based on the criteria listed in the call text and consisted of a global score and additional comments. The projects were ranked according to the scientific reviewer’s scores. Fifteen scientific experts on the Peer Review Panel (PRP) and three patient representatives discussed these full proposals thoroughly in a face-to-face meeting and provided a funding recommendations and a ranking list. Based on this ranking list, the funding organisations selected 15 projects whose coordinators were invited by the Joint Call Secretariat to submit full proposals.
Funding decision and granting process
The funding decision was taken by the funding organisations participating in the joint call for proposals. Starting with the best proposal and following the ranking list, as many proposals as possible were selected for funding, taking into account the national budgets available.
As a result of this step, the top 15 projects could be funded. The projects comprise 60 research groups (Principal Investigators) from 13 countries. The total funding volume amounts to about 12.1 m€ for three years.
In a last step, the Principal Investigators had to fulfil legal and administrative requirements of their national / regional funding agencies, in order to receive the grant.
A detailed DMP has to be submitted by the consortium coordinator of each project selected for funding within 6 months after the project official start date. For more information consult the extended NEURON DMP format here.
Most of the projects will start during the first half of 2020.
Funding organisations supporting this call
17 funding organisations from 15 countries participated in the JTC 2019 “Translational Biomarkers in Brain Disorders”.
| Funding organisation | Country |
|---|---|
| Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique (FNRS) | Belgium |
| Research Foundation – Flanders (FWO) | Belgium |
| Fonds de recherche du Québec - Santé (FRQS) (Québec) | Canada |
| Canadian Institutes of Health Research – Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addiction (CIHR-INMHA) | Canada |
| Academy of Finland (AKA) | Finland |
| French National Research Agency (ANR) | France |
| Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) | Germany |
| General Secretariat for Research and Technology (GSRT) | Greece |
| Ministry of Health (MOH) | Italy |
| State Education Development Agency (VIAA) | Latvia |
| The Research Council of Norway (RCN) | Norway |
| National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR) | Poland |
| Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development & Innovation Funding (UEFISCDI) | Romania |
| Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAS) | Slovakia |
| National Institute of Health Carlos III (ISCIII) | Spain |
| Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) | Switzerland |
| The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) | Turkey |