FAQs

No. Late applications are not accepted.

Yes. The Leducq Foundation has established the following rules for participation in International Networks:

1. A network coordinator may not participate concurrently in any other active Leducq network, in any capacity.
2. A network member may not participate in more than two Leducq networks concurrently. (This rule applies only to the 5-year term of the grant, and not to the no-cost extension period that networks may choose to implement).

Investigators may not submit more applications than the number in which they could participate if all applications were successful. Practically, this means that in any given year:

1. Applicants for the role of coordinator cannot have their name on any other application submitted to the foundation.
2. A member of a current Leducq network that is expected to continue the following year may be included in only one application to the foundation.
3. An investigator not currently participating in a Leducq network may submit a maximum of either one application where his/her role will be that of coordinator, or two applications in the role of member.
4. For more details, please refer to the International Networks of Excellence Program Description.

Under the terms of the International Networks of Excellence (INE), applications are accepted from teams of at least three researchers. The two Network Coordinators must be from different continents. In the consideration of continent boundaries, conventional geographic definitions will obtain. The INE is open to investigators worldwide, with the exception of the coordinator role, as described above. Applicants must demonstrate expertise in research pertaining to cardiovascular or neurovascular disease and have an affiliation with a major academic medical center. The network may include members from fields outside of cardiovascular and neurovascular research, such as other medical specialties, physics, engineering or information technology, where such members bring a needed expertise to the network.

The size of the network may vary depending on the theme and the type of research, and may not be determined fully at the outset. More important than the size of the network is the rationale for the inclusion of the members, and the case that is made for the collaborative benefit to be gained by their inclusion. At a minimum, a Leducq network should have three institutional members. As a general recommendation, the total number of institutions should not be greater than six, at which point the network becomes difficult to manage. Applicants proposing to include more than six institutions in the network should discuss directly how the administrative and governance challenges associated with a larger network will be addressed. (For this purpose, INSERM units are considered separate institutions if they are at different universities and/or are administered by different INSERM délégations régionales.) All network applicants must elucidate, in the application, how the composition of the network advances the scientific objectives of the research program.

Yes. The rules preclude you from applying as a coordinator only if you are a bona fide member of an ongoing Leducq network. If you receive funding under a Leducq Research Agreement, then you are ineligible to apply as a coordinator in an upcoming application cycle.

Post-doctoral fellows routinely participate in Leducq Networks under the guidance of Senior Network Members. In unique circumstances, post-doctoral fellows may receive direct funding with an allocated budget as a member of a International Network. Decisions about network membership should be guided by scientific expertise. In short, the answer is yes, but the details would need to be worked out at the time the Research Agreement is signed.

No. There is no limit on the number of letters of intent or full applications in which an institution may participate, and there is no advantage or disadvantage in applying from an institution that is submitting multiple applications. There is no restriction on the number of grants or grantees that a single institution may have.

No. In an effort to make researchers aware of available funding opportunities, the Leducq Foundation may sometimes send out notices using particular mailing or institutional lists which may not reach every researcher. This is not meant to restrict the field of applicants.

Not directly. All International Network Program support is provided to institutions for the benefit of named individual investigators affiliated with those institutions. The institution would not have the option to use Leducq funding for persons other than the named investigator in the application. In the event that that an investigator leaves an institution, the foundation’s support follows the investigator.

Researchers who are affiliated with an academic research center are eligible to participate in the Leducq program regardless of the for-profit or not-for-profit status of their institution. In such cases Leducq funding would flow preferentially through the academic research organization, which is likely to be not-for profit. Other arrangements would have to be made on a case-by-case basis.

Yes, provided that the public institution at which they are working can sign the common research agreement.

No. All applicants should be sure to demonstrate the advantages gained through collaboration. Networks that are widely dispersed geographically should address the logistical challenges of communication and meetings, and will have space to do so in detail on the full application.

No.

There is no formal policy regarding the distribution of funds between basic and clinical research. However, historically, most of the programs supported have been oriented toward basic and/or translational science. The high cost of clinical research makes it less likely that the foundation can expect a significant impact from the financial support it offers. That said, it is conceivable that a clinical application could capture the attention of the reviewers, especially if it showed that an international collaborative network offered significant advantages.

The Leducq Foundation encourages networks to use International Network Program funding to support early career investigators, some of whom would benefit from exchange within the network. Foundation funds can be used to support Ph.D. students or post-doctoral fellows within the network. The selection committee would likely not, however, look favorably on using the funds to support an entire training program.

Members should be selective with the publications to be inserted in their CV/Biosketch. They must be relevant to the project. If your proposal is selected for a full application, then prospective members will be able to provide more detailed information.

Include grant support that is relevant to the proposed project; this can be included in a separate sheet. There will be an opportunity to provide more detail in the full application process at a later date.

No budget information is requested at the letter of intent stage. A budget is required only as part of a full application.

Electronic signatures, like those on a PDF of a scanned document, are accepted. No hard copy is requested at this stage of the process.

For more details, please refer to the International Networks of Excellence Program Description.

Yes, there is no limit to the number of attempts to become funded. The Leducq Foundation will not systematically provide feedback on rejected LOIs, but, will attempt to provide a written critique on full proposals that have not been funded. In the event that a repeat application is being considered, we would strongly encourage you to review the Program Description again.

No, disclosure forms must be signed anew by all network members.

No. You do not need an institutional signatory at this time. Institutional signatures are required only after an application is accepted for funding.

There is no minimal % effort for coordinators, but the Scientific Advisory Committee looks carefully at other grants of coordinators.

In addition to the presentation of your science, it is very important for you to justify why the network is utilizing the people you are proposing. What expertise is each investigator bringing to the network-and how will bringing these investigators together be catalytic?

Using the Budget Summary template and following the budget guidelines found in Fluxx,  you should submit individual budgets for each institution and a global budget summary totaling US$8 million. A budget justification narrative should also be included with your budget. This information is only requested at the full proposal stage.

Yes. In fact, we encourage you to re-examine your budget prior to signing the research agreement. We will supply you with some important guidelines on budgetary items.

Yes, please see our document entitled ‘Best Practices of Leducq Networks’ on our website, https://www.flcq.org/.

Each non-US institution that is not a “foreign government” or “international organization” is required to complete the affidavit. Following the initial submission, each non-US institution is required to annually provide the affidavit.  Institutions organized in the United States will not be required to provide the affidavit.

Network coordinators are responsible for submitting progress reports to the Leducq Foundation on a regular basis. These reports, the contents of which are described in the Research Agreement, include, among other items, a summary of the scientific work completed to date, a statement of expenditures for the term, plans for future work, and proposals for changes to the budget.

Leducq:

• Will formally review the progress of the scientific work and the management of the network;
• Will monitor the finances of the network through quarterly reports;
• Will consider changes to the original research design and budget in a timely fashion;
• May conduct a financial audit of the network’s expenditures during the five-year term;
• Will decide during the term whether to renew the support of the network based upon a satisfactory evaluation of that network’s scientific progress and finances, as described in the Research Agreement.

The Leducq Foundation requests a biosketch for all senior members. For others, such as early career, and those not funded by the grant, we simply would like a list of their full names (First, Last, Middle Initial), and their ORCID Numbers. Please also indicate in this list who is and is not funded by the grant. Additionally, the biosketches included with the full proposal may need to be updated to include any new information since the LOI.

For your initial review report, Leducq would like to know everyone who is doing work in the network but we would also like to know who is actually being funded by the grant. So, for your review, it would be beneficial if you documented Early Career Investigators by Full Name (First, Last, Middle Initial), ORCID ID, and a percentage of how much they are being funded by the grant (if none, please indicate as 0%).

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