EU Research Programmes

Opportunities for funding and networking in sleep research Tarja Porkka-Heiskanen - 1.4.2007

The Seventh Framework Programme (FP7)

is the main instrument for the European Union to fund and promote European research and technological development for the period of 2007 - 2013. The programme has a budget of 53.2 billion euros over 7 years.

Why research at European level?

(The view of the commission)

Pooling and leveraging resources

• Resources are pooled to achieve critical mass
• Leverage effect on private investments
• Interoperability and complementarity of big science
  Fostering human capacity and excellence in S&T
• Stimulate training, mobility and career development of researchers
• Improve S&T capabilities
• Stimulate competition in research
  Better integration of European R&D
• Create scientific base for pan-European policy challenges
• Encourage coordination of national policies
• Effective comparative research at EU-level
• Efficient dissemination of research results

Sixth Framwork Programme (FP6)

• €2.4 billion in research grants; 604 projects in 4 years 
•  Average success rate: 25.4%
  Specific Support Actions 99 €   
  Coordination Actions  25 €   
  STRePs   321 €  
  Networks of Excellence 40 € 
  Integrated Projects  119 €  
• Total number of participants: 7,426

EU research fundig

The 7th Framework program contains two types of research funding: Consortium funding (in EU language collaborative research) and Individual project funding (in EU language frontier research), which is channeled through the European Research Council.

Main policy drivers of health research

The objective of the health researcg programme is to improve the health of European citizens, and increase and strengthen the competitiveness and innovative capacity of European health-related industries and businesses. Global health issues, like emerging epidemics, will also be addressed. European collaboration with developing countries will allow those countries develop research capacities.

Scope of research in the Health Theme

The Framework programme supports basic and applied collaborative research. This includes discovery activities, translational research and early clinical trials (normally only phase I and II).

Preferred form of research:

Collaborative, Multidiscplinary and Translational research is preferred. This applies to groups from several European countries, representing several areas of research (medicine, psychology, sociology, engineering…) and working on both basic and clinical research which can be implemented in minimal time to patient work.

Work programme published 22 Dec. 2006 for years 1 & 2

One-step proposals

• first deadline: 19 April 2007    €637 me 
• second:  18 September 2007 €532 me

“Child health” and “the health of the ageing population”

are two issues which will be addressed across all activities. This concerns all work programme topics seeming to be appropriate.

Translating research for human health

The activity “Translating research for human health” aims at increasing knowledge of biological processes and mechanisms involved in normal health and in specific disease situations, to transpose this knowledge into clinical applications including disease control and treatment, and to ensure that clinical (including epidemiological) data guide further research.
The areas covered by this activity are the following:

• Integrating biological data and processes: large-scale data gathering, systems biology  
• Research on the brain and related diseases, human development and ageing 
• Translational research in major infectious diseases to confront major threats to public health - antimicrobial drug resistance, HIV/AIDS, malaria and TB, emerging epidemics, neglected infectious diseases 
•  Translational research in other major diseases: cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity, rare diseases, and other chronic diseases

Research on the Brain and related diseases

Selected topics for first call (19 April 2007):

• Stroke and mechanisms underlying ischemic brain damage (IP).
• Coding in neuronal assemblies (FRP).
• Neurobiology of anxiety disorders (FRP).
• Memory loss: underlying mechanisms and therapy (FRP).
• From basic spinal mechanisms to spinal cord disease & trauma (FRP).
• Neuron-glia interactions in health and disease (FRP).

Selected topics for second call (18 September 2007):

• Restorative approaches for therapy of neurodegenerative diseases (FRP – max. €6m).
• From mood disorders to experimental models (IP).
• Neuronal mechanisms of vision and related diseases (FRP).

SICA topic:
Childhood and adolescent mental disorders
Targeted region: Eastern European & Central Asia and Western Balkans (FRP).

Human development and ageing

Selected topics for first call (19 April 2007):

• Novel approaches to reconstitute normal immune function at old age (IP). 
• Termination of developmental processes and their reactivation in adult life (IP). 
•  Biomarkers of ageing (IP). 
•  Increasing the participation of elderly in clinical trials (CA or SA). 
•  Research on human development and/or healthy ageing across the EU (CA or SA).

Diabetes and obesity

Selected topics for first call (19 April 2007):

• Early processes in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes and strategies for early prevention (FRP – max. €6m). 
• Combined forms of diabetes in children (FRP – max. €6m). 
• Insulin resistance as a key factor in the development of diabetes and metabolic syndrome (FRP). 
• Pathophysiological mechanisms related to excess fat (FRP). 
• A road-map for diabetes research (CA or SA).

Key elements of the ERC

• Operational autonomy (Executive Agency) 
• Independent scientific governance (Scientific Council)
• Single teams (not international consortia) 
• Excellence as the only funding criterion

Budget and first calls

Total (FP7 Ideas budget): € 7.51 bn

• ≈1/3 Starting Grants, ≈ 2/3 Advanced Grants 
• Less than 5% for operational ERC management
  1st Call:
• StG only, Jan 2007, € 300 Mio. 
• Budget allocated to three areas (for operational reasons)
  2nd Call:
• AdG only, August 2007, € 550 Mio.
  3rd call onwards: 
• StG + AdG ≈ € 1.0 bn per year

ERC strategies

All fields of science and scholarship are eligible

• investigator-driven, bottom-up
  Excellence is the only criterion
• individual team + research project
  Investment in research talent
• Attractive, flexible grants, up to five years under control of the lead researcher (PI)
  Independent individual teams in Europe 
• nationality of researchers is not relevant
• host organisation to be located in EU

Cordis partners service:

Includes a ”search a partner” option
http://cordis.europa.eu/partners-service/home_en.html

How to improve chances for sleep research

• Individual level:
• send in applications
• announce as an evaluator
  National level:
• national bodies are consulted when the frame work programs under preparation
• contacts with members of the EU parliament (MEPP)
• work with national patient organizations
  European level (ESRS) 
• (personal) contacts to commission
• send letters/information to commision 
• patient organizations at European level
• use web page also as a lobbying tool

Networking: what can ESRS do?

Information about sleep research groups on the web page

• Ongoing project
• Under discussion: how extensive information is needed?
• name, contact information, link to home page

In addition: keywords, research project list, description of the research?

Main features of transition from FP6 to FP7:

• Continuity
• Broader scope
• Less focus on genomics
• Emphasis on translational research
• Health policy driven research strongly reinforced

New: emerging epidemics, obesity, chronic diseases, Biomedical engineering

References & Links: