LESLEY JONES SEED FUND PROGRAM APPLICATION

LESLEY JONES SEED FUND PROGRAM

The Seed Fund is currently open and receiving applications
GENERAL INFORMATION

The Seed Fund program has been renamed to honor Prof. Lesley Jones. Lesley was deeply involved in the review of these applications, first as an SBAC member and Chair and later as an EC member.

Seed Funds up to a limit of €50,000 are intended to fast-track pilot studies required to apply for larger grants from other organisations, or to estimate the statistical power needed for larger studies (e.g., in clinical trials). Studies funded through this scheme should result in conclusive answers to the hypotheses under test. Any European EHDN member can apply, however we especially encourage applications from working groups to stimulate discussion and collaboration within those groups while reducing any overlap between projects proposed by individual members. Seed Funds are awarded twice a year.

Calls for Seed Fund applications for 2025:

1st March, at 23:59 CET
1st November, at 23:59 CET

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

EHDN will award Seed Funds on a competitive basis amongst the submissions received at each deadline. Basic and clinical projects are welcome.

Proposals rejected at a previous round of applications will not be reconsidered. Amended versions will be treated as new submissions. Addressing all of the reviewers' feedback/comments from previous round does not automatically entitle to funding, as all proposals are evaluated together and only a small number of projects can be funded.

Submissions received after the deadline or incomplete submissions (e.g. CVs for applicants or co-applicants missing, use of wrong application form, word count over the maximum in any section…) will not be considered and will only be reviewed during the next round. Recipients of Seed Funds cannot submit a new application unless they have provided a report that concludes their previously awarded Seed Fund project. Only European projects are eligible; the main PI has to be an EHDN regular member, based in Europe, and at least 50% of the funds must stay in Europe. All co-applicants have to be EHDN members (either regular or associated) and listed in the online submission form.

In the context of your research, questions about intellectual property can arise. Should you be awarded a Seed Fund, a contract with Ulm University Hospital as the legal representative of EHDN will need to be signed. This contract will address those questions as they pertain to for instance Disclosure of Inventions, Ownership of Intellectual Property, or a Covenant not to Seek Intellectual Property Protection. It is important for EHDN that everything that will come out of your project (e.g. data, results, assay, novel treatment, etc) can be shared for HD research and education.

APPLICATION REVIEW PROCESS

Every application will be reviewed by the Scientific and Bioethics Advisory Committee (SBAC).

The SBAC considers the aims, objectives, scientific and clinical merits of the applications, qualifications and capabilities of the investigators and the report of the bioethics advisor. Some criteria for the review of the applications are:

Originality / "out-of-the-box", potential to generate more regular additional funding, potential impact, clear hypothesis and research question, background information, relevant previous and ongoing work considered, methods adequate to test hypothesis, resources and expertise to carry out this project successfully, statistics, costs, ethics and any other factors it deems appropriate.

SBAC’s recommendations will then be available to the EHDN Executive Committee. The final decision regarding endorsement of an application rests with the EHDN Executive Committee, also taking into account EHDN's Scientific Strategic Plan.

Applicants will be informed about the progress of their application.
If applications are endorsed, access to data and/or biomaterials will be granted provided the applicants agree to/that:

1. The Data Disclosure Agreement, Material Transfer Agreement, or Research Agreement.
2. The data from the EHDN database/biomaterials provided will be used for no other purposes than the ones specified in the proposal.
3. The publication policy will be followed.
4. A summary of the project will be posted on the ‘studies in progress’ area of the EHDN public website. The announcement should be no longer than 100 words and describe in simple words (comprehensible for the lay audience) the aims and methods of the project.

PROGRESS REPORTS

If successful in securing funding, applicants need to provide two reports summarising the work that has been accomplished.

An interim report consisting of two parts:

- a summary of work accomplished in the last 6 months
- work planned for the next 6 months

A final report with the results of the study.
This should detail the objectives, material and methods, results, discussion and conclusions. If you have already submitted or published an abstract or publication, please upload it as well. Please do NOT use the publication itself as final report.

In case of any questions or difficulties using this form, please contact Dr Kinga Kołodziej (Kinga.Kolodziej@ehdn.org)
Please read the guidance information above*

I confirm I have read the general information and would like to proceed with the Seed Fund application

Applicant details
Please confirm the following is true:*

The main PI is an EHDN regular member, based in Europe, and at least 50% of the funds will stay in Europe. All co-applicants have to be EHDN members (either regular or associated) and listed in the online submission form.
Name of main applicant / Principal Investigator*

TitleFirst NameLast Name
Email*
example@example.com
Phone number
Please include country code
Institution*
Address*

Address Line 1

Address Line 2

CityState / Province

Postal / Zip CodeCountry
CV (Main PI)*

Cancelof
Co-applicant 1

Full NameOrganisation
CV (Co-applicant 1)*

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Co-applicant 2

Full NameOrganisation
CV (Co-applicant 2)*

Cancelof
Co-applicant 3

Full NameOrganisation
CV (Co-applicant 3)*

Cancelof
Co-applicant 4

Full NameOrganisation
CV (Co-applicant 4)*

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Collaboration*
Explain how the applicants work together and outline other major collaborations important for the research

Proposal details
Project title*
Please specify:*

This is a new proposalThis is a resubmission
Please note that addressing all of the reviewer feedback does not guarantee funding, as the Lesley Jones Seed Fund Scheme is highly competitive. All projects are evaluated together and only a small number of proposals can be funded!
For resubmissions - please state the previously assigned project number below:*
Project Summary*

0/250
Objectives and aims*

Describe the overall objective and specific aims of the project (100 words max)0/100
Response to reviewer comments*

Please specify how the proposal has been updated to address reviewer feedback0/250
Background*

Give sufficient details of past and current research to show that the project aims are scientifically justified (200 words max)0/200
Relevance*

Describe the potential impact of the project. This can be in terms of acquisition of new knowledge/skills or related to impact on users and/or patients (100 words max)0/100
Research design and Methods*

Give details on experimental approaches, study design, and techniques that will be used (500 words max)0/500
Statistical analysis*

Outline the statistical methods that will be used. Justify the numbers of samples you intend to use in your experiments/data analysis and include power calculations. Specify statistical collaborators (300 words max)0/300
Timeline and Milestones*

(200 words max)0/200
Relation to current work from the applicant*

Describe how this application is related to your current projects (100 words max0/100
Future development of research work*

Describe how you intend to use your pilot data e.g. subsequent grant applications, clinical trial etc. (150 words max0/150
Suitability to the Seed Fund scheme*

Describe why you think your project should be considered as a Seed Fund? Why do you consider this as a preliminary project and why it is not a continuation of ongoing work? Please see the EHDN statement. (100 words max)0/100
Other resources*

Describe if you will bring other resources not requested in this proposal to the project, if other funding is available (200 words max)0/200
Bibliography*
Detailed list of all the references provided in the different items above when applicable (e.g. background, relevance, research design and methods...)
Appendices

E.g. preliminary results, relevant calculations, other grant proposals related to the project etc.
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Budget details

Justification of budget costs

Guidelines for Seed Fund Budget preparation
To apply for an EHDN seed fund project, you have to provide a detailed budget for your project. Please follow the specific guidelines:

Personnel costs:
List all positions that should be covered by the Seed Fund budget, with percentage of FTE and duration. As a non-profit organization, EHDN will only cover basic salary and related costs mandated by law. EHDN will not cover leaves of absence, vacations, Christmas or holiday funds, 13-month payments or other similar costs.
The budget should not include the salary of the PI or other researchers employed full-time by their institution.

Consumables:
Provide details of the materials necessary (costs per material, quantity, number of experiments)

Equipment costs:
EHDN does not generally pay for standard equipment. Specific equipment for a particular technique can be funded if this technique is essential for the planned project. In this case, a full justification for the need for the specific equipment has to be included in the project description.
Equipment costs have to be agreed by EHDN before purchasing.

Animal costs:
Provide details on the species, the costs, and the quantity needed for the project.

Publication costs:
EHDN does not cover the costs of manuscript preparation and publication. Please discuss with EHDN where you intend to submit your manuscript for publications PRIOR to submission. EHDN encourages open access publications but will only consider any related costs upon request to the SBAC prior to submission to the journal.

Travel costs:
EHDN only covers travel costs for attending meetings and conferences if the research is being presented (poster, presentations). Provide the name and date of meeting(s) you plan on attending. This is limited to one participant per meeting, with a maximum of 1.500€, Please note the reimbursement happens post-travel and is done against receipts.

Indirect/overhead costs:
These costs are limited to 3% of total budget

Other costs:
Give details and justification for any other costs.

Detailed budget breakdown
Please provide budget breakdown in €

Please be aware that the budget of Seed Fund projects are reviewed by central administration post-award, so if successful, we will be back in touch to confirm the costs that EHDN agrees to cover.

Please note that the Seed Fund will be held with the named applicant's institution via an agreement. First half of the funds will be transferred upon signing of the agreement, and second half of the funds is to be released once the interim report has been submitted and approved by the EHDN.

Personnel

	Name	Project role	Salary	FTE amount	Budget amount
1
2
3
4
5

Consumables, materials and supplies

	Item	Quantity	Price/unit	Total
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Animal costs

	Item	Additional information	Total
1
2
3
4
5

Variable costs (per subject/item e.g. sample costs)

	Item	Additional information	Total
1
2
3
4
5

Equipment (Please note that we do not finance standard equipment. Specialised equipment for a particular technique can be funded if this technique is essential for the planned project)

	Item	Additional information	Total
1
2
3
4
5

Travel costs

	Travel purpose / description	Budget amount
1
2
3
4
5

Indirect/overhead costs (up to 3%)

	Cost	%	Budget amount
1
2
3
4
5

Other costs (subject reimbursement, fees to regulatory authorities etc.)

	Item	Further information	Budget amount
1
2
3
4
5

Sum of the itemized budget (calculated automatically)
Total budget requested (in €)*
Please explain the difference*
If the sum of the itemized budget is different than the total budget requested, please explain the difference
Budget checklist*

Please review all sections of your application carefully*

I have reviewed the application in full, and confirm it is complete and ready to submit
Should be Empty:

LESLEY JONES SEED FUND PROGRAM

Applicant details

Proposal details

Budget details