ERDERA: Joint Transnational Call for Proposals on Rare Disease Therapies
The European Rare Disease Research Alliance (ERDERA) is launching a first call for proposals, in which researchers based in Switzerland can take part.
The aim of this call “Pre-clinical therapy studies for rare diseases using small molecules and biologicals – development and validation” is to leverage the complementary expertise of scientists in different countries through collaborative, interdisciplinary research projects. Ultimately, their results are expected to advance the development of novel therapies that will benefit future patients.
Proposals must relate to at least two of the following research areas:
- development of novel therapies in a pre-clinical setting through cell, organoid and animal disease model studies, and/or use of in silico or artificial intelligence models to accelerate the success rate of the pre-clinical stage
- development of predictive and pharmacodynamics biomarkers correlated to the efficiency of the therapy in a preclinical setting that could serve as surrogate endpoints
- replication of pre-clinical studies in an independent lab to increase validity of exploratory findings
- pre-clinical proof of concept studies for evidence of pharmacological activity in vitro and in vivo, pharmaco-kinetics and pharmaco-dynamics of the investigational drug (i.e. small molecule(s) and/or biologic) and first toxicology and safety data
- studies to support readiness for initiating clinical trial authorization conforming to regulatory requirements
Effective translation to human applications should be the key focus of these projects. Applicants should demonstrate access to relevant scientific or regulatory expertise (e.g. through innovation task forces or competent national authorities). For further details, please refer to the ERDERA website.
Support from the SNSF
Although Switzerland is not an associated country in Horizon Europe, Swiss-based applicants can join research consortia on equal terms with applicants from EU member states and other countries participating in the call.
Swiss-based partners must meet the eligibility requirements for SNSF project funding. It is advisable to contact the SNSF Administrative Offices if this will be your first application to the SNSF. Along with the application to the ERDERA Joint Call Secretariat, an administrative application must be submitted to the SNSF by the same deadline. The submission deadline for pre-proposals is 13 February 2025. For further details, please refer to the ERDERA website. An information webinar about the call will take place on 17 December 2024 at 14:00 CET.