Emerging Infectious Diseases Priority Research Programme and Equipment (PEPR)
Emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases are a public health priority. The recent COVID-19 pandemic is a concrete illustration of the impact of such diseases on health but also on economies and societies. In this context, the implementation of ambitious research projects is essential if we are to better understand, prevent and control the phenomena of emergence of infectious diseases.
Last updated on 10 October 2024
To address these challenges, France has launched a National acceleration strategy for ‘Emerging infectious diseases and nuclear, radiological, biological and chemical threats’ (MIE-MN) supported as part of France 2030.
The scientific foundation of the strategy consists of two complementary Priority Research Programmes and Equipment (PEPRs) which will be implemented in close collaboration over a 5-year period:
- PEPR MIE, which concerns the prevention and control of emerging infectious diseases. It has been assigned €80 million in funding by France 2030, and is led by ANRS Emerging Infectious Diseases (ANRS MIE) in collaboration with its various French academic partners;
- PEPR PREZODE, which concerns the prevention of zoonotic emergences (viruses, bacteria or parasites transmitted to humans by animals or insects). It has been assigned €30 million in funding and is led by CIRAD, INRAE and IRD, and operated by ANR.
The objectives of Emerging Infectious Diseases PEPR (PEPR MIE)
The objective is to better understand, prevent and control emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases by establishing interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary and multi-institutional relationships and by taking into account the interdependence between the health of animals, humans and ecosystems.
In order to meet the objectives, ANRS MIE has developed a strategy to fund, facilitate and coordinate research according to the following 3 components:
- Component 1 – Accelerating the acquisition of knowledge about EIM
- Component 2 – Organising and developing new treatments, vaccines and other prevention, diagnostic and surveillance tools for EIMs
- Component 3 – Enabling public policies and society to deal with epidemic crises
The expected impacts
The PEPR MIE must enable:
- better pandemic risk preparedness;
- the capacity to respond faster and more effectively (detection, prevention, treatment);
- a significant increase in French scientific community cohesion and responsiveness during the next pandemic, particularly thanks to its capacity for the rapid transfer and industrial scale-up of the findings and resources generated by academic research and/or public/private partnerships.
What concrete activities?
The PEPR MIE will make it possible to support upstream research projects, R&D (TRL 1 and 3), infrastructures, equipment purchasing, and Chairs.
Funding will be through annual competitive calls for proposals, calls for expressions of interest and calls for applications. These calls will address French public research team consortia. The research projects must respect the scope of the call for proposals, and the themes and pathogens targeted.
In total:
- One interdisciplinary call for proposals covering the three parts of the programme (2023, 2024 and 2025);
- One call for expressions of interest to fund research equipment and infrastructures (2023, 2024 and 2025);
- One call for applications for Chairs (scheduled for 2024).
Call for proposals 2023
The first PEPR MIE call for proposals was open from 7 February to 24 April 2023. The Sector Scientific Committee for the 2023 PEPR MIE call for proposals is available here.
Following evaluation by an international panel of experts of the 37 eligible research projects, 11 were selected to receive a total of around €22 million in funding.
Discover the PEPR 2023 winners See the postersCall for proposals 2024
The 2024 Call for Proposals is a continuation of the 2023 Call for Proposals. In order to take into account the evolution of French knowledge and research capacities and to further encourage interdisciplinarity, the priority themes within each component have been redefined, broadened or updated.
In addition, in order to concentrate research efforts and the resources made available under the 2024 call for croposals, the scope of the call has been narrowed down to three disease groups presenting a high risk of a health crisis in France: arboviruses, viral haemorrhagic fevers and respiratory viruses.
The 2024 call for projects has an indicative budget of €13m.
For more information
Place within the emerging infectious diseases research funding ecosystem
ANRS MIE ensures the proper interconnection of the PEPR MIE with the other existing mechanisms for research funding and coordination in this area, and in particular:
- the other components and measures of the MIE-MN acceleration strategy (PEPR PREZODE; innovation component for the pre-maturation and maturation or support for research platforms; organisational component for prevention, preparation and crisis management; training component);
- the other funding windows (of the ANR, and in particular the generic call for proposals; the programmes of the DGOS and its partners, with ReCH-MIE, PHRC, PRT, PRME, PREPS, PHRIP, ReSP-Ir, MESSIDORE; the other ANRS-EID calls for proposals, particularly for collaborative projects with low- and middle-income countries);
- the funding of research in response to a crisis (specific ANRS-EID calls for proposals, initiatives such as CAPNET for COVID-19);
- international programmes – particularly European (Horizon Europe, EU-HERA, DIGITAL Europe Program, EDCTP, etc.).
The priority pathogens of the PEPR MIE call for proposals
VIRUSES
- Arenaviridae: Genus Mammarenvirus (Lassa virus)
- Nairoviridae: Genus Orthonairovirus (Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever virus)
- Phenuiviridae: Genus Phlebovirus (Rift Valley Fever virus)
- Hantaviridae: Genus Orthohantavirus (Andes & Sin Nombre viruses)
- Coronaviridae
- Filoviridae (Ebola & Marburg viruses)
- Flaviviridae: Genus Flavivirus (Zika, Dengue, Yellow Fever & West Nile viruses)
- Orthomyxoviridae (Influenza viruses)
- Pneumoviridae (RSV)
- Paramyxoviridae (Nipah & parainfluenza viruses)
- PoXviridae (Monkeypox & Camelpox viruses)
- Togaviridae (Chikungunya virus)
BACTERIA
- Francisella tularensis tularensis
- Yersinia pestis
- Bacillus anthracis
- Burkholderia mallei
PATHOGENS X
What’s new
France 2030: infectious diseases acceleration strategy
Acceleration strategy for emerging infectious diseases: 3 years of action to be ready for tomorrow – Monday September 30, Corum, Montpellier
16 July 2024
Announcement of the winners of the Call for Proposals PEPR MIE 2023
France 2030: 11 winning projects for the 2023 PEPR MIE call for projects, funded to better understand and prepare to respond to emerging infectious diseases for nearly 22 million euros.
08 November 2023
