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Please find specific guidelines for São Paulo researcher at www.fapesp.br/11284.

CALL ANNOUNCEMENT

BBSRC-FAPESP JOINT PUMP-PRIMING AWARDS for Anti-Microbial Resistance - AMR and INSECT PEST RESISTANCE IN LIVESTOCK AND AGRICULTURE: Understanding and managing resistance, including novel methods, for pathogen and pest control.

The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) in the UK and the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) in Brazil are pleased to announce a joint Newton Fund call for collaborative research proposals focussing on Anti-Microbial Resistance (AMR) and insect pest resistance in livestock and agriculture.

Although this call is being managed by BBSRC, we would welcome all disciplines to consider how they might address the aims of the call. The deadline for pump-priming applications is 4pm on 6th December 2017.

FUNDING

The call is being managed as a two stage process with the first stage (open now) being a pump-priming proposal. Important: Only applicants that hold a successful pump-priming award will be eligible to submit full proposals to the second stage call, and these proposals will receive additional peer review.

The pump-priming grants will be short-term projects of up to 12 months awarded to a maximum of £80K (80% FEC – Full Economic Costs) in the UK with matched contribution from FAPESP providing the Brazilian component. Please note that it is not necessary to request an equal amount of money from both sides but it is envisaged a balanced partnership in terms of research effort. BBSRC and FAPESP are looking to support around 10 pump-priming projects to establish new or build on existing collaborations.

Spend against the pump-priming projects must take place between April 2018 and March 2019.

SCIENTIFIC SCOPE

Proposed projects should aim to inform, in the context of the wider Brazilian agri-ecosystem, efforts to combat Anti-Microbial Resistance (AMR) and insect-pest resistance in Brazil by investigating one or more of the following priority areas:

• Host pathogen/pest interactions

  • Understanding the role of host-pathogen host-pest interactions in the development and transmission of resistance including the role of farmed animal, crop and soil microbiomes in acting as a reservoir, drug target or alternative control strategy;

  • Understanding the implications of reducing the inappropriate use of antimicrobials and insecticides, e.g. as growth promoters, prophylactic use, excess use on GM resistant crops;

• Underpinning mechanisms

  • Understanding the underpinning mechanisms associated with the emergence, persistence, transmission, evolution, co-selection of relevant resistant pathogens/insect pests or resistance genes;Understanding mechanisms of action of antimicrobials/insecticides;

  • Identification/validation of novel targets for novel antimicrobials and insecticides; 

• Epidemiology

  • Identification of key agriculturally relevant drivers and reservoirs;

  • Understanding of prevalence, pathogenicity and transmission dynamics (genetic, organism and host level), including the biological effects of agricultural management practice on disease epidemiology;

  • Mathematical modelling in an AMR and/or insecticide resistance context; 

• Disease management and control

  • Diagnostics for pathogens and/or insect pests, especially rapid on farm diagnostics; and other biological tools and technologies that can support decision making;

  • Novel alternatives for pathogen control, including immune stimulation and biocontrol;

  • Novel agents for pathogen and/or insect control, including antimicrobials and insecticides, therapeutics and vaccines.

The primary focus should be on microbiological pathogens and/or insect pests of relevance to Brazilian arable crops, farmed animals and reservoirs in agricultural soils, and agents designed to target them; including bactericides, fungicides, broad spectrum antimicrobials and insecticides. This includes pathogens with zoonotic potential where the focus is on farmed animal health. The work also needs to be clear in how it addresses Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) objectives.

This excludes research with a human health focus; and animal research on a human only disease where the animal is a vector for the human disease or is being used as a model species.

While they cannot receive funding, we would like to encourage work with relevant industry partners, where applicable, including farming, breeding and the agricultural supply industry.

CALL STEPS

Stage 1: Pump Priming

The purpose of the pump-priming award is to enable UK and Brazilian researchers to work together to develop preliminary data/partnerships for competitive, integrated, collaborative research proposals for submission to the second stage BBSRC-FAPESP Joint AMR and Insect Pest Resistance in Livestock and Agriculture Call closing date in December 2018.

Stage 2: Full Projects

Following on from successful pump-priming awards, full projects will start in April 2019 and will last up to two years, and will be of a larger scale than the pump priming projects. BBSRC and FAPESP are looking to support around five Stage 2 projects, dependent upon the success of the pump-priming projects.

Important: Only applicants that hold a successful pump-priming award will be eligible to submit proposals to Stage 2, and these proposals will receive additional peer review.

Successful pump-priming projects will be able to submit a two-year research proposal in December 2018, and will be asked to report on the progress of their pump-priming award prior to the second stage panel meeting (January/February, 2019).

ELIGIBILITY

Joint pump-priming applications are invited from UK and São Paulo-based researchers eligible to receive funding as Principal Investigator from BBSRC and FAPESP respectively. For this Newton Fund call, BBSRC will support the project costs for successful UK applicants, whilst FAPESP will support the project costs for successful São Paulo-based applicants.

UK applicants - Standard BBSRC eligibility conditions apply to this call. All UK applicants must be eligible to receive research funding from BBSRC as Principal/Co-Investigator; see the BBSRC Grants Guide for further details: www.bbsrc.ac.uk/documents/grants-guide.

São Paulo applicants - Researchers eligible for FAPESP funding must be formally associated with public or private Higher Education or Research Institutions in the State of São Paulo and, specifically in this Call, must meet the FAPESP eligibility requirements for Regular Research Grants (http://bv.fapesp.br/en/6/regular-grants-2-year-grants).

Important: Researchers from the state of São Paulo must consult FAPESP about their eligibility no later than November, 6th (one month prior call deadline).

In order to have their eligibility analysed, applicants must send an email to (chamada_bbsrc_amr@fapesp.br) with subject "BBSRC AMR – request for analysis of eligibility", attaching the following documents:

1) Name and affiliation of the applicant (SP and UK PIs)

2) Tentative title and a 5-line abstract of the project

3) FAPESP Modality desired (Pump Priming) and its duration

4) Estimated amount of budget to be requested to FAPESP and to BBSRC

5) Summary CV (FAPESP model) of the SP applicant

6) Information about whether the applicant is currently a PI of a FAPESP ongoing project (indicate project number)

7) Estimated time devoted to the project (hours/week)

Within up to 20 days of receiving this request, FAPESP will send the applicant a declaration as to the applicant’s eligibility within this call.

Full guidelines for SP applicants are available at www.fapesp.br/11284.

Principal Investigators are responsible for ensuring that they, and any Co-Investigators included on the application, are eligible. Applications involving any ineligible applicants (UK or Brazil) will result in the whole application being rejected.

The following BBSRC schemes will not apply to this call: New Investigator; Industrial Partnership Awards and Industrial LINK. BBSRC will not fund studentships as part of this call.

Examples of eligible activities and costs for the pump-priming award

Please note that BBSRC and FAPESP are able accept different eligible costs within the pump-priming proposals:

UK applicants (to be funded by BBSRC – please check the BBSRC grants guide)

• Staff time and consumables

• Travel and subsistence costs to enable consortia to participate in workshops

• Exchange visits (short and longer term and in both countries)

• Access to facilities

• Estates and Indirects

São Paulo applicants (to be funded by FAPESP)

• Travel and subsistence costs to enable consortia to participate in workshops

• Exchange visits (short and longer term and in both countries)

• Direct research costs (consumables, services, low cost equipment)

• Access to facilities (access to specialist equipment to support research to gather preliminary data to support full applications to this call.)

Note: FAPESP does not support salary costs. For the pump-priming stage, overheads will not be supported.

PUMP-PRIMING PARTNERSHIP BUILDING WORKSHOP

BBSRC and FAPESP are holding a UK-Brazil partnership building workshop for the pump-priming call on the 5th-6th of October 2017 in São Paulo, to bring together UK and Brazilian scientists in this area. This will provide opportunities for face-to-face networking and for new UK-Brazil collaborations to develop.

An open call for workshop participants closed on 29th August 2017, no further applications will be considered. Participants in the workshop will be able to further develop and finalise proposals with non-workshop participants after the event, prior to the submission deadline on 6th December 2017.

Outputs from the workshop will be made available on the BBSRC website.

Please note that applicants who do not attend the UK-Brazil workshop are still eligible to apply to the call.

THE NEWTON FUND

This call forms part of BBSRC’s Newton Fund activities and therefore requires projects to address Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) objectives alongside their scientific aims.

The Newton Fund was set up by UK Government in 2014 to build research and innovation partnerships with 16 partner countries to support their economic development and social welfare, and to develop their research and innovation capacity for long-term sustainable growth. The total budgeted UK investment for the Newton Fund is £735M from 2014 to 2021, and partner countries provide matched resources within the Fund.

The Fund forms part of the UK’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) commitment which is monitored by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). ODA funded activity focuses on outcomes that promote the long-term sustainable growth of countries on the OECD Development Assistance Committee list. Newton Fund countries represent a sub-set of this list.

More information about the Newton Fund can be found here.

RCUK guidance on ODA compliance can be found here.

HOW TO APPLY

Application process

Stage 1

Brazilian-UK research teams must prepare a joint research proposal, which will be submitted to BBSRC by the UK Principal Investigator (using the Je-S system) and to FAPESP by the São Paulo Principal Investigator (on paper – please see full guidelines for SP applicants at www.fapesp.br/11284).

Applications may involve researchers from multiple eligible UK institutions, but should be submitted as a single Je-S application submitted by the organisation of the lead UK Principal Investigator. If successful, the lead organisation would be the recipient of the UK component of the award, and would be responsible for managing and distributing funds to other participating UK institutions in accordance with the terms and conditions of the award. Funding for the Brazilian component of the collaboration will be paid by FAPESP to the Brazilian partner institution(s).

Stage 2

Instructions for UK and Brazilian researchers around how to apply to the second stage call for full projects will be made available nearer to the call opening in Autumn 2018.

Guidance on Submitting the BBSRC Je-S form

1. Log in to your Je-S account.

2. From the left hand menu, select Documents.

3. Under functions on the Main Menu, select Create New Document.

4. In the Add New Document screen:

a. Select Council BBSRC

b. Select document type Standard Proposal

c. Select scheme Newton Fund

d. Select Call / Type Mode BBSRC-FAPESP Joint Pump-Priming Awards for AMR in Livestock and Agriculture

e. Select Create Document

The Je-S form should be completed in the standard way using the guidance and help text available in the Je-S system. All aspects of the proposal submitted to BBSRC via Je-S should be jointly developed by, and submitted on behalf of, the entire international consortium. Please also note the following guidance which is specific to this call:

5. The start date of the grant should be the 1st April 2018. The grant should finish no later than 31st March 2019.

6. Applicants: only the UK applicants should be included in the applicants section of the Je-S form. Brazilian applicants should be included in the Applicants List as an attachment to the JeS form (see downloads section of call web page).

7. Classifications are mandatory fields and should be completed as follows:

a. Highlight – Select Not in a Highlight Area

b. Strategic Priorities – Please identify which, if any, of the BBSRC strategic priorities the project addresses. Information about BBSRC strategic priorities is available at www.bbsrc.ac.uk/funding/priorities/priorities-index.aspx.

c. Keywords – Please identify at least five (and a maximum of eight) keywords relevant to the project. The quickest way to identify these is to search by science topic.

Resources

A single Je-S application (proforma) should be submitted per project using Full Economic Costing (fEC) for UK institutions. Only costs for the UK component of the application should be submitted in the Resources section of the Je-S application.

Costs requested from FAPESP by the Brazilian applicants should be detailed on the FAPESP submission form (the ‘Non UK Component’ attachment – see downloads section of call web page).

Both the UK and Brazilian costs and the rationale for them must be described in the Justification of Resources document.

Documents required

Applicants will need to ensure that they have uploaded all the mandatory documents required by the Je-S system before they submit their application through Je-S. It will not be possible to submit an application through Je-S without attaching these documents.

Applications to this call are required to jointly prepare and submit a number of additional documents as “attachments”, before submitting the Je-S application. Support for completing Je-S attachments is available in the Je-S Handbook.

1. Social Survey: This section is non-mandatory. Please leave this section blank.

2. Other DA Costs for Research Facilities/Existing Equipment: Please ensure you specify clearly in the description field if you are requesting the use of any of the following BBSRC facilities:

• ARCHER

• National Wind Tunnel Facility

• Research Data Facility (RDF)

• The Genome Analysis Centre (renamed Earlham Institute)

If this is the case, a Technical Assessment Form of attachment type “Facility Form” must also be uploaded with your application.

The BBSRC Je-S application must include the documents specified in the table below:

No.	Document Type	Description
1	Cover Letter (up to two pages A4)	The covering letter should be a maximum of two pages of A4 and should identify any declarations of interest.
2	Applicant List (follow template, available in downloads section of call webpage)	Complete the Applicant List template, providing details of the entire project team (Principal and Co-investigators) in both the UK and Brazil. This should be uploaded as an attachment type “Other Attachment”.
3	Case for Support (up to four pages A4)	Applicants wishing to apply to this call must provide a single joint Case for Support. Applicants should complete this with the call assessment criteria in mind, and must provide information on the following: The main scientific objectives Summary of previous contacts or links with proposed partners Action Plan of work to be carried out during the pump-priming project An outline of how the pump-priming project could be built on for the second stage The Case for Support must be written in English and prepared using: Ariel font or sans serif equivalent with a minimum of font size 11 (excluding text in diagrams and work plans); a minimum of single-line spacing and standard character spacing; margins must not be less than 2cm
4	Partnership and Project Management Statement (up to one page A4)	Attach a statement explaining: a) The nature of the collaboration, including whether it is a new or existing collaboration, the complementarity of the partners and how this proposal builds on previous joint work, where applicable. b) How the partnership represents a true collaboration between the transnational research teams, and the added value of this collaboration. c) A description of how the proposed project will be managed across the international project team, including communication strategies, project leadership and decision-making. The Partnership and Project Management Statement should be uploaded as an attachment type “Other Attachment.”
5	Justification of Resources (JoR) (up to two pages A4)	The Justification of Resources should provide a breakdown and full written justification of the costs covering the entire project, including both the UK and Brazil.
6	ODA Statement (up to one page A4)	Attach a statement explaining how your proposed research is compliant with ODA guidelines. This should be uploaded as an attachment type “Other Attachment”. Guidance on ODA compliance can be found here.
7	Pathways to Impact Statement (up to two pages A4)	Provide pathways to Impact statement, referring to the Je-S help for guidance. Please explain how the outputs of the pump-priming proposal will feed in to the full research grant. Please note that the impact of your research may be achieved after the lifetime of your grant, and you should include details of the potential mechanisms to achieve it.
8	Data Management Plan (up to one page A4)	Provide a Data Management Plan, referring to the Je-S help for guidance.
9	CVs for Applicants (up to two pages A4 per applicant)	Provide a single combined PDF document containing a CV for each applicant involved in the project, (UK and Brazilian applicants), referring to the Je-S help for guidance. Individual CVs must be no longer than two pages of A4.
10	Letter of Support (single combined document)	Provide a single combined PDF document, containing an official letter of support from the Head of Department/Institute Director for each Research Organisation involved in the project (both UK and Brazilian institutions). The letters should confirm the organisation’s commitment to the proposed project and highlight any additional support that will be made available.
11	Facility Form (Complete form)	If relevant, use this section to provide a Technical Assessment Form if your project requests access to any of the BBSRC facilities listed above, referring to the Je-S help for guidance.
12	Workplan (up to one page A4)	Provide a diagrammatic work plan, referring to the Je-S help for guidance.
13	Non-UK Components (follow template, available in downloads section of call webpage)	FAPESP submission form – please use the template provided to submit details of the Brazilian project costs.

Summary of ‘Other attachments’

Applicant list Partnership and project management statement ODA Statement

Assessment Criteria

ODA compliance will be determined on receipt of the application; non-compliance will result in the application being rejected. If you are unsure about whether your project is likely to be ODA compliant, please contact BBSRC (newton.agri-amr@bbsrc.ac.uk) in advance of submitting your application.

Proposals will be assessed against the following criteria:

• Scientific excellence: novelty, importance, feasibility and timeliness of the proposed research;

• The likelihood that the pump-priming project will enable the research teams to develop a competitive full-proposal;

• Relevant expertise and track record of research teams;

• Potential impact of the research on AMR and insect pest resistance in Brazil;

• Research collaboration: including strength and clarity of collaboration, and added value of the collaboration;

• Quality of the management structure proposed (including governance, arrangements for data management and sharing and management of intellectual property);

• Quality and suitability of the research environments and of the facilities available;

• Value for money.

A final decision will be made jointly between BBSRC and FAPESP.

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

Collaboration agreement

As the research projects will be carried out by multiple research organisations and project partners in Brazil and the UK, the basis of collaboration between the organisations and project partners, including ownership of intellectual property (IP) generated during the project and rights to exploitation, and IP management, is expected to be set out in a formal collaboration agreement between the research organisations involved. It is the responsibility of the research organisations to put such an agreement in place before the research begins. The terms of collaboration must not conflict with the funding agencies’ terms and conditions or national laws, nor compromise the ODA compliance of the proposed research by inappropriately restricting use of its outputs by potential beneficiaries.

Arrangements for collaboration and/or exploitation must not prevent the future progression of academic research and the dissemination of research results in accordance with academic custom and practice and the requirements of the funding bodies. A temporary delay in publication is acceptable in order to allow commercial and collaborative arrangements to be established.

Key aspects of the Collaboration Agreement, for example management of IP, should be detailed in the ‘Partnership and Project Management Statement’ document. If the project is subsequently funded, the full Collaboration Agreement must be available on request to BBSRC and FAPESP in due course.

Intellectual property

Ownership of intellectual property (IP) generated during the project and rights to exploitation, as well as any costs regarding management of IP, are expected to be agreed between the collaborating research organisations before the research begins. Details of this agreement should be included in the collaboration agreement (as above). Agreements must not conflict with the funding agencies’ terms and conditions or national laws. Any agreements in place between a research organisation and their respective funding organisation must be adhered to, including the sharing of IP costs or benefits. Any IP sharing agreements in place between a research organisation and their national funding body would be expected to apply only to the IP share of that research organisation. For BBSRC, research organisations should adhere to BBSRC Knowledge Exchange and Commercialisation Policy^[1].

Transfer of biological materials

Collection and exchange of materials may occur between collaborating institutions, as necessary, in compliance with relevant Brazilian and UK legislation. Applicants should familiarise themselves with regulations surrounding the transfer of materials between countries when writing their applications and should ensure that they obtain appropriate guidance on how to go about this before submitting the application, in order to reduce delays once the grant has started. In any case, a material transfer agreement should be put in place prior to any transfer.

Data management

Applicants to this call should give full consideration to the practical requirements for data sharing both within the research teams and to the wider community and describe in the appropriate sections of the application how this will be conducted. Applicants should ensure that they have requested appropriate resources for data management and data sharing.

Use of animals

Experiments using animals funded by BBSRC must comply with the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, amended 2012 and any further embodiments. Institutions and grant holders are responsible for ensuring that all appropriate personal and project licences required under the Act have been granted by the Home Office, and that appropriate Animal Welfare and Ethical Review Body approval has been given. All BBSRC awards are made on the absolute condition that no work that is controlled by the Act will begin until the necessary licences have been obtained. Welfare standards in any overseas animal facilities used must be consistent with those required under UK legislation.

Applicants must ensure that all of the proposed research, both in the UK and any partner country, will comply with the principles of BBSRC’s guidance on “Responsibility in the use of animals in bioscience research” and with the Animal Use requirements in Section 4 of the BBSRC Grants Guide. In particular, UK Institutions should be aware of the following aspect of the guidance relating to research or collaboration outside the UK:

'When collaborating with other laboratories, or where animal facilities are provided by third parties, researchers and the local ethics committee in the UK should satisfy themselves that welfare standards consistent with the principles of UK legislation (e.g. the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986), and set out in this guidance, are applied and maintained. Where there are significant deviations, prior approval from the funding body should be sought and agreed.'

TIMETABLE

CONTACTS AND HELP

For BBSRC enquiries: newton.agri-amr@bbsrc.ac.uk

For FAPESP enquiries: Carolina Costa (chamada_bbsrc_amr@fapesp.br)

 

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