4-year research group within the Scientific Platform Pasteur-University of Sao Paulo

This is an international call for applications for young researchers in the life sciences to lead a four-year research group (“G4”) within the Pasteur-USP Scientific Platform, hosted by the University of São Paulo in São Paulo, Brazil.

Closing date for pre-proposal: January 5, 2024

Closing date for applications: March 15, 2024

This call is launched by the Sao Paulo Research Foundation – FAPESP, Institut Pasteur and the University of São Paulo – USP, as a result of their Cooperation Agreement signed in December 2021.

Research themes
Research must be focused on monitoring viral respiratory diseases in humans/animals with epidemic/pandemic potential, the priorities will be given to Pandemic Grippe and Avian Flu. A particular attention will be paid to the candidate expertise on exploring infectious and (immuno) pathological processes, discovery of new pathological markers; development of preventive measures/ effective control strategies.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible to submit a proposal to this call, a researcher must:

Comply with the eligibility requirements of FAPESP’s Young Investigator Grant, specifications are available YIG Guidelines.
Have between 5 to 8 years post-doctoral experience in internationally ranked laboratories.
Be fluent in English.
Not have a permanent position at Institut Pasteur, FIOCRUZ or USP.

This call is open to all nationalities.

Characteristics of Proposals under this Call

Candidates must follow the rules and guidelines for submitting proposals for the Young Investigator Grant;
The research project must be written in English;
Adequacy of the Project with the research objectives of the Institut Pasteur de São Paulo, as described above in "Research themes".

Duration of the Grant

The duration of the proposed project must be 48 months. The duration may be extended up to 12 months, when requested at the end of the third year, and depending upon a successful merit review.
During the development of the research project, it is expected that the Young Investigator will apply to opportunities for permanent hiring in positions open at the host institution in the state of São Paulo (tenure track option).
After the conclusion of the project, if the Young Investigator obtained a permanent position in a university or research institution in the state of São Paulo, he/she can continue his/her research activities by applying for funding through FAPESP regular lines.

Support offered by FAPESP:

Items allowed by FAPESP as described in item 7 of the YIG Guidelines;
A Young Investigator Fellowship, to be paid for the duration of the grant or until the Young Investigator obtains a permanent position at the host institution in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The fellowship may last up to 24 months, with the possibility of a 24-month extension and a last 12-month extension, always depending upon a successful merit review. The monthly value of the scholarship is announced at FAPESP.
Exceptionally for this Call it is allowed to request one Post-Doctoral (PD) scholarship, for a post-doc to be selected by the Young Investigator. FAPESP’s rules for the Post-Doctoral Fellowship Program, as described here.

Support offered by Institut Pasteur:

Institut Pasteur will allocate a maximum amount of fifty thousand Euros (50.000€) per year to the G4 for the duration of the G4. The funds allocated shall be used to cover the following expenses:

staffing costs, corresponding to 30% to 50% of the total amount per year travels and missions of the G4 scientific members (participation to workshops and meetings),
operating costs, and
equipment.
Management costs are NOT eligible.

Submission of pre-proposal

The pre-proposal must be sent in English exclusively to the e-mails pasteur-usp@fapesp.br and paola.minoprio@pasteur.fr including the following information:

CV in English;
A brief summary of previous scientific achievements and how they contribute to the current proposal (1 page);
Summary description of the Research Project;
Estimated budget to be requested from FAPESP and from Pasteur Institut;
The contribution that will be given by the PI addressed to the priorities of the Institut Pasteur de Sao Paulo as defined in item 2 (1 page). Justify why the proposal is in line with it.

The deadline for submission of pre-proposal is January 5^th, 2024.

Late submissions will not be reviewed. An acknowledgement receipt e-mail will confirm It will confirm the receipt of the proposal.

Submission of full-proposal

Only for those whose pre-proposal has been approved.

The proposal must be submitted through FAPESP’s proposal submission platform, SAGe. All the documents required by the SAGe platform must be uploaded during the online submission. Proposals lacking required documents will be returned without review. The specific path for this Call is: Nova Proposta Inicial > + Outras Linhas de Fomento > + Acordos de Cooperação > + Plataforma Científica Pasteur-USP > + Projeto de Pesquisa – Jovens Pesquisadores > + Chamada de Propostas (2023).

In addition to the normal documents required for Young Investigator Grant proposals, the following items must also be submitted:

A table with the breakdown budget concerning the 200k Euros requested from Institut Pasteur (https://www.pasteur.fr/en/file/42938/download);
A complete list of publications;
2-3 letters of recommendation, by researchers not affiliated to the Institut Pasteur de Sao Paulo;
Letters from their previous and actual PI stating contribution for grants application and training of younger students ( Master, PhD, etc.);
A letter from the host institution agreeing with the appropriateness of the application.

The deadline for submission of pre-proposal is March 15^th, 2024

Timeline

Call announcement: November 03^rd, 2023
Deadline for submission of pre-proposal: January 15^th, 2024
Pre-Proposal evaluation result sent to PIs: January 31^st, 2024
Submission of full proposal: March 15^th, 2024
Selection committee Interview: April 15^th, 2024
Selection result announcement: April 30^th, 2024
Start of Project: June 1^st, 2024

Assessment criteria, evaluation and selection

Procedures

The review process will have two phases, Eligibility of pre-proposals and Merit Analysis of full-proposals.

Eligibility of pre-proposals

Institut Pasteur of São Paulo will review the feasibility of the pre-proposal under the point of view of its strategy and development capacity in the current infrastructure. FAPESP will appraise the merit of the candidates.

Only pre-proposals approved by FAPESP and Institut Pasteur de São Paulo will be invited to submit on-line full-proposals.

Approved candidates will receive the document “Descrição do parque de equipamentos” and will be required to fill out the document “Manifestação do Dirigente e Anexo II”. The proposal must avoid duplicity of equipment, since the existing equipment in the present infrastructure will be described in the “Descrição do parque de equipamentos”.

Merit Analysis of full-proposals

The merit analysis of the full-proposals will be conducted exclusively by Institut Pasteur, acting as the lead agency of the G4 programme. Applicants will be evaluated by the Institut Pasteur P4P committee on the basis of their applications, according to the following assessment criteria.

Assessment criteria

In addition to the procedures used for the FAPESP Young Investigator Grant, the merit analysis regarding the candidates for G4 Leader will consider:

The quality of the candidate’s scientific career, based on publication record;
Peer-recognition of the candidate;
Ability to obtain funding to his/her previous projects;
Ability to manage and train junior scientists.

The merit analysis regarding the pre-proposal will consider:

Quality, originality and feasibility of the project;
How innovative and ambitious within the priority research topics described in 2.
Added value to the Institut Pasteur of São Paulo;
Contribution to health priorities of the Brazilian region.

The merit analysis of the full-proposal led by the Institut Pasteur will also consider:

Willingness to participate in the strengthening of the Pasteur Network;
Capacity to initiate new strategic cooperation with research institutions at local, regional and international level;
Convergence among CV, Project originality/quality and Institut Pasteur de São Paulo strategy for the present call.

Final Decision

The best two to five (2 to 5) ranked proposals will be submitted to the Steering Committee for final selection of a single candidate. These candidates will be interviewed at the joint Steering Committee meeting.
Both the University of São Paulo and Institut Pasteur members of the Steering Committee will have the opportunity to ask international ad hoc experts for an evaluation of the selected applications and to share their impressions during the decision meeting.
The Steering Committee will consist of the following members:
1. The Director of the Institut Pasteur Department of International Affairs;
2. A member of the Institut Pasteur Department of International Affairs;
3. The President of the USP International Cooperation Office (AUCANI);
4. A member indicated by the Rector of USP;
5. A representative of the Scientific Director of FAPESP, without voting.
The nomination of the selected candidate is final and therefore no appeal for reconsideration is possible.

Additional information

Terms of Agreement

Once a G4 Leader has been selected, USP and Institut Pasteur will enter into a G4 creation agreement with the selected G4 Leader. This agreement will specify the functioning and the operating conditions of the G4 program led by the G4 Leader. Such agreement shall set forth provisions regarding the scope of the research program of the G4, G4 Leader rights and obligations, financial matters, liability and insurance, ownership and exploitation of intellectual property rights on G4 activities/results, monitoring of the collaborative project within the G4, communication and publications, confidentiality, as well as the dissemination of results.

FAPESP’s Research Networking Tool

The Virtual Library includes FAPESP’s database of awarded research grants and scholarships. In it, you may search for information on grants and fellowships funded by FAPESP, including abstracts as well the name of participating researchers and their institutions. The Virtual Library includes an interface that allows contacting FAPESP-funded researchers by sending them a message.

Contact information

Candidates are invited to contact the Institut Pasteur of São Paulo to agree on the equipment that should be asked in the proposal in order to avoid duplicity of equipment in the present infrastructure

Questions related to this Call must be directed to:

FAPESP: Virginia Sanches Subiñas
Pasteur-USP Scientific Platform: Paola Minoprio
Institut Pasteur: Marianne Lucas-Hourani