Diagnostics and Surveillance Networks call image

Pre-announcement: Diagnostics and surveillance network call

JPIAMR is launching the call Diagnostics and Surveillance Networks in April 2022 with the aim to assemble networks of leading experts and stakeholders with an intent to facilitate the development, optimisation and use of diagnostic and surveillance tools, technologies and systems.

Eleven (11) JPIAMR-ACTION members are participating in this network call to date. Each network coordinator will be able to apply for a maximum of 50,000 Euro for 12 or 24 months period for support of its activities.

Read more on the Diagnostics and Surveillance Networks call page.

JPIAMR awards new projects in the area of transmission and interventions

Nineteen projects involving 114 partners from 35 different countries have been recommended for funding within the JPIAMR 13th transnational call One Health interventions to prevent or reduce the development and transmission of antimicrobial resistance. The total funding amount is 25,6 M€.

The call, launched in January 2021, was within the framework of the ERA-NET JPIAMR-ACTION and supported by 30 research funding organisations from 21 countries and by the European Commission. Using a One Health approach, the call aimed to understand the impact of interventions on the development and transmission of antibiotic resistance and to design, implement, evaluate, and compare interventions reducing the development and transmission of antibiotic resistance. Applicants were encouraged to consider the use of interventions that may have an impact in areas where the risk and burden of AMR is greatest, such as in Low and Middle Income countries.

The projects recommended for funding are:

New SAB members appointed

JPIAMR is pleased to welcome the nine new Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) members that have been appointed by the JPIAMR Management Board for the period 2022-2024. The new members are:

  • Ana Alastruey, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Spain
  • Uga Dumpis, Pauls Stradiņš University Hospital, Latvia
  • Sabiha Essack, University of KwaZulu Natal, South Africa
  • Luca Guardabassi, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
  • Christian Giske, Karolinska Institute, Sweden
  • Geetanjali Kapoor, Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy, India
  • Joakim Larsson, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
  • Nilton Lincopan, Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil
  • Kornelia Smalla, Julius Kühn Institute, Germany

Read more about the JPIAMR Scientific Advisory Board

Water

Official start of Aquatic Pollutants projects

The kick-off meeting of the 18 projects funded through the joint transnational call Aquatic Pollutants, in collaboration with the three Joint Programming Initiatives (JPIs) on Water, Oceans and Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), was held on September 30. With 190 participants, the kick-off was a success!

The coordinators of the projects presented their planned research activities to address the risks posed to human health and the environment by pollutants and pathogens present in the water resources and fruitful exchanges took place.

The kick-off was also the opportunity to release the Aquatic Pollutants website, developed by the Transfer project TransNet, and the booklet presenting information on the specific objectives and structure of funded projects around the three themes of the call: Measuring, Evaluating, and Taking Actions.

To know more about the projects, consult the Aquatic Pollutants booklet.

Team in rowing boat

Work with us!

The JPIAMR Secretariat is looking for a senior research officer with a background in medicine and health. With us, you get to work with committed colleagues in an international context to strengthen research and research collaboration on antimicrobial resistance. You will be employed by the Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet), based in central Stockholm, and also take part in the work on the Swedish national research programme on antibiotic resistance.

Senior research officer focusing on antimicrobial resistance

Stockholm

Ref 2.2.1-2021-06611

Antimicrobial resistance is a global problem that impacts on us all. Resistance in bacteria leads to infections that are difficult to treat, and means that complicated medical interventions can not longer be carried out without functioning antibiotics. It is difficult to develop new antibiotics, and we are also at risk of bacteria quickly developing resistance to them through careless and incorrect use. To increase the impact of research, Sweden established a national research programme on antibiotic resistance in 2016, and has since 2011 been one of the driving countries within the global research collaboration Joint Programming Initiative on Antimicrobial Resistance (JPIAMR). Today, JPIAMR involved around thirty countries across the world, and is also receiving strong support from the European Commission. The Swedish Research Council is coordinating the collaboration, and is responsible for the joint JPIAMR Secretariat.

Role and job description

We are offering a role as senior research officer within the field of medicine and health, where you together with knowledgeable and committed colleagues are part of the secretariat that the Swedish Research Council provides for the international collaboration Joint Programming Initiative Antimicrobial resistance (JPIAMR, www.jpiamr.eu). You will also take part in the work on the national research programme on antibiotic resistance, and may also be included in other tasks within the department. The role requires some travel (under normal circumstances), primarily within the EU.

The tasks include:

  • supporting the global collaboration, together with the other personnel at the JPIAMR Secretariat, which includes
    • taking part in the design and implementation of JPIAMR’s strategic research agendas
    • designing, implementing and administrating joint international calls
    • designing and implementing conferences and workshops, following up and analysing research funded by JPIAMR
    • leading work teams and collaborations between the member countries
    • initiating and implementing communication inputs and maintaining contacts with international partners and stakeholders
    • providing scientific and technical advice linked to antimicrobial resistance
    • supporting the direction of the collaboration through coordination and communication between the various JPIAMR steering groups, including producing relevant documents, overviews and reports
  • consulting with other national programmes to drive the national research programme for antibiotic resistance, which includes
    • consulting with experts in the area to update and implement strategic research agendas.
    • consulting with experts in the area to implement national and international calls, conferences and workshops
    • implementing communication initiatives and maintaining and developing national networks of relevance for antibiotic resistance
    • following up the research funded via the national programme
    • coordinating the national research programme with the European framework programme and the global collaboration JPIAMR
  • monitoring international research in antimicrobial resistance, including resources invested and research priorities
  • plus other tasks arising within the Swedish Research Council, such as taking part in department analysis and evaluation.

Your background

You must have:

  • experience of coordinating and providing strategic support to international research collaborations
  • good overall knowledge of, and working networks within, the medical research field in Sweden
  • a doctoral degree or corresponding within an area of relevance to antimicrobial resistance (microbiology, infectious diseases, or similar)
  • good knowledge of Swedish and English, both spoken and written, as the working language within the JPIAMR Secretariat is primarily English
  • experience of project management
  • good ability to absorb and communicate scientific information, both spoken and written, in a way suited to the target group
  • worked with research and its importance for societal development

It is an advantage if you have:

  • experience of own research activities in a field of relevance to antimicrobial resistance
  • experience from Swedish public administration, HEI management, public agency in a relevant factual area, or similar, good knowledge of EU institutions and working methods
  • experience of managing and administering EU projects
  • experience of working with international collaboration partners
  • experience of implementing international calls with peer review

Your personal qualities

We are looking for a person who is committed, proactive, and has well-developed strategic thinking. You must like taking initiatives and working independently, and at the same time communicate well and establish good and trusting relationships, in internal as well as national and international collaboration. We value good organisational skills and a prestige-free attitude very highly, as well as flexibility and the ability to multitask.

We put great emphasis on your personal qualities.

Location

Our offices are at Västra Järnvägsgatan 3 in central Stockholm. In April 2022 we will be moving to Hantverkargatan 11 in Stockholm.

Employment form and start date

We are offering permanent full-time employment, with a 6-month trial employment. We would like you to start as soon as possible, taking into account any notice period.

Are you interested?

If you want to learn more about this position, please contact:

  • Elisabeth Sjöstedt, Unit Manager, +46 8 546 44 014
  • Anders Weström, Unit Manager, +46 8 546 44 318
  • Johan Karmhed, HR Administrator, +46 8 546 44 064
  • Erika Godoy, representing SACO-S, +46 8 546 44 029
  • Anneli Fröjd, representing ST, +46 8 546 44 333

How to apply

Please send us your CV and a personal letter via our recruitment system (form in Swedish) no later than 26 September 2021.
Please mark your application with registration number 2.2.1-2021-06611.

The Swedish Research Council is Sweden’s largest governmental research funding body. The work of the Swedish Research Council is about giving researchers good opportunities to contribute to society with research of the highest quality. Around 250 persons work for us, at offices located centrally in Stockholm and Gothenburg. We manage research applications, evaluate and follow up the conditions for research, and communicate about research. Read more about our workplace and meet some of our staff members at Vetenskapsrådet.se.



JPIAMR-VRI Digital Platform launched!

This unique free-access point aims to facilitate knowledge exchange and data sharing of antimicrobial resistance research data for the entire AMR community across the globe.

The JPIAMR-VRI (Virtual Research Institute) Digital Platform connects datasets through integration of various databases, such as the CARD, Resapath, NCBI Isolates browser ATLAS with more than 140 different public data sources already available in the DISQOVER platform provided by ONTOFORCE. This will help the user analyse, integrate and extract AMR data more efficiently to bring simplicity to complex datasets.

Please provide your feedback to secretariat.jpiamr@vr.se on the entire experience of using the platform and what other AMR relevant datasets would you like to be included in the platform.

Therapeutics workshop summaries

During this three day JPIAMR workshop insights and updates were shared regarding the state of the therapeutics pipeline in a context of related topics and perspectives. The event was attended by 400 people from 45 different countries.

The video recordings of the workshop are now available on the JPIAMR YouTube Channel. Please click on the links to watch the sessions from each day:

Below please find the summaries of the workshop sessions. A full workshop report will be published later.

Day 1, April 20

Session 1: Antimicrobial Therapeutics Landscape

  • The current antimicrobial pipeline is insufficient to tackle the challenges of AMR (WHO, Pew Trust). Still no novel classes addressing WHO priorities.
  • Funders are supporting a diversity of approaches: novelty vs improvements, traditional vs non-traditional (JPIAMR, CARB-X, IMI,). Important to fill gaps in the R&D value chain: new differentiation criteria (BEAM), clinical trial capacities & capabilities (Wellcome).
  • EU (Horizon Europe) taking a variety of AMR initiatives with a One Health approach (partnerships, SMEs, pull incentives)

Session 2:  Choosing wisely — is your product worth developing?

  • Public health needs (WHO priorities) and the future reimbursement landscape should drive our choices.
  • Need to consider new mechanisms to reveal the hidden value of antibiotics (“fire extinguishers”)
    • Added value vs “existing”: Payers need to see data on targeted populations (though phase 4 trials?)
    • Individual vs societal: “benefit to those around me“ is difficult to assess, but regulators (EMA) are open to finding a solution
  • What is desirable and what is achievable: “push” funders are taking a balanced portfolio approach (CARB-X, Novo) also trying to cover geographical gaps (GARDP) but pull incentives are absolutely needed to achieve sustainability

Session 2a: Activities to support the AMR therapeutics research community

  • Patient involvement in research helps to determine societal value of products – charities and patient groups can be an important resource for researchers
  • Research platforms support research collaboration and coordination – crossing geographic and sectoral boundaries
  • Coordinated efforts and information exchange are required to facilitate the transition of innovative products through the AMR therapeutics pipeline and reduce duplication of effort

Day 2, April 21

Session 3: Mtb antimicrobial pipeline

  • Exciting times for TB drug development with novel regimens and a vibrant pipeline
  • Partnership and collaboration are the keys to success: academic discovery and tools, SME agility and Pharma expertise all contribute to reducing duplication of effort
  • Early hit triage based on predicted in vivo relevance helps in reducing drug discovery risks, clinical failure and downstream development costs
  • Optimal drug dosing is critical to balance risk-benefit to improve treatment success; lesion specific PK rather than plasma
  • Novel strategies and outcomes
    • Phenotypic screens
    • Blocking efflux pumps
    • Adjunctive agents to boost efficacy
  • Repurposing of drugs can reduce time and costs of drug development: the example of Nitazoxanide

Session 4: Novel antimicrobial targets

  • Stimulation of the innate immune system as a non-traditional target to quench infection and reduce treatment failure
  • Chemical and antibody screens targeting biofilm formation and other anti-virulence approaches to avoid gene transfer and resistance
  • Novel HTS strategies that explore the non-coding RNA space by targeting TPP riboswitches
  • Novel antimicrobials specific against Helicobacter pylori – FLAV4AMR

Session 5: Non-traditional antimicrobials

  • Tolerance inhibitors sensitize Mtb to stress that is induced under infection, improve the function of Isoniazid, and re-sensitize infections to Isoniazid-resistant isolates
  • Understanding PKPD, in vivo relevance, innate immunity and resistance to develop antimicrobial peptides that can be delivered systemically
  • Antimicrobial peptides and bacteriocins: highly potent agents with potential for reduced antimicrobial resistance
  • Bacteriocins provide opportunities for directed delivery of antimicrobials to improve patient management and compliance

Day 3, April 22

Session 6: Novel strategies

  • Microbial metabolism is attractive novel target for drug development
  • Novel artificial siderophores as “Trojan Horses” – tools for the detection (bioluminescence) and treatment of gram-neg infections
  • Computational modelling approaches that capture biological context and complexity to identify novel targets for antibacterial therapies – drug target identification is key to a successful drug development process
  • Adjuvants inhibiting bacterial pump efflux to maximise the intrabacterial concentration of antibiotics
  • Combination of antibiotics and antibiotic/ adjunctive agents show in vitro activity and PK showing potential for treating resistant pathogens

Session 7: Economic incentives

  • Existing models of reimbursement don’t work for antimicrobial therapeutics
  • Current and future value to the health system needs to be assessed
  • Pilot payments/ reimbursement modes are being tested in the UK and Sweden:
    • Payments are delinked from the volume of use (sales)
    • Critical that more countries develop their own models in order to achieve global impact (eg: Pasteur Act in US Congress)
  • Open Science partnerships to speed-up drug discovery and translation
    • Regulatory data protection supports broad freedom-to-operate and provides private sector incentives

Session 8: Antimicrobial Stewardship, Access and Sustainability

  • Health systems can be rescued if we act collectively now
  • The global disparity in access to antimicrobials needs to be addressed
  • We need innovation, access and security across the whole value chain of antimicrobials
  • Stewardship and access are the cornerstones of medicine – aim to treat everyone everywhere
    • Lack of incentives for antimicrobial stewardship
  • Work needed to implement national action plans and implement IACG recommendations

Results Aquatic Pollutants call and Call on knowledge transfer

The three Joint Programming Initiatives (JPIs) on Water, Oceans and Antimicrobial Resistance are pleased to announce the results from the AquaticPollutants Joint Transnational Call and the Call on knowledge transfer of research on Aquatic Pollutants.

Eighteen projects have been recommended for funding within the Aquatic Pollutants joint call on risks posed to human health and the environment by pollutants and pathogens present in the water resources. In total the projects have 103 applicants involved and will be awarded with 20M€ in requested funding.

Furthermore a Scientific Networking and Transfer Project has been recommended for funding within the Call on knowledge transfer of research on Aquatic Pollutants to strengthen the European Research Area (ERA) in the field of clean and healthy aquatic ecosystems, to fund research and development of methods for supporting knowledge transfer, scientific networking and public engagement as well as to support networking of the eighteen scientific projects of AquaticPollutants.

AquaticPollutants

After an initial 184 pre-proposals involving 1065 partners were submitted in the first step, the second step closed in November 2020 with a total number of 53 full-proposals submitted including 301 partners. In both steps the proposals were assessed for eligibility by the Call Steering Committee and evaluated by a panel of scientific experts. The projects are about to start in September 2021. The projects revolve around three themes:

  1. Measuring – Environmental behaviour of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), pathogens and antimicrobial resistant bacteria in aquatic ecosystems
  2. Evaluating – Risk assessment and management of CECs, pathogens and antimicrobial resistant bacteria from aquatic ecosystems (inland, coastal and marine) to human health and environment
  3. Taking Actions – Strategies to reduce CECs, pathogens and antimicrobial resistant bacteria in aquatic ecosystems (inland, coastal and marine)

The list of the selected projects is available here.

For more information about the Aquatic Pollutants Joint Transnational Call, see:

Call on knowledge transfer of research on Aquatic Pollutants

The project AquaticPollutantsTransNet has been recommended for funding by an independent scientific panel. The project is a consortium of four partners (two French, one German and one Swedish). The project should start in spring of 2021 for a duration of approximatively four years.

The Call on knowledge transfer of research on Aquatic Pollutants was launched in support of the three Joint Programming Initiatives (JPIs) on Water, Oceans and Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) to strengthen the European research area in the field of clean and healthy aquatic ecosystems by facilitating networking between researchers, knowledge hubs and the dissemination of scientific data into the public and administrative sectors. The call opened in February 2020 with a budget of 1M€ gathered by 3 funding agencies involved: Sweden (SRC), Germany (BMBF) and France (ANR) and dedicated to fund proposals issued from the existing call Aquatic Pollutants.

JPIAMR project database published

This new database presents information on projects and networks supported under the various calls coordinated by the JPIAMR.

The JPIAMR supported AMR research database allows users to explore data by investments in AMR research priority areas (as defined in the JPIAMR Strategic Research Innovation Agenda), countries of the researchers involved and details of the individual research projects and networks.

Explore the database.

Inclusion of antifungals in the JPIAMR SRIA

JPIAMR is proud to launch the new Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA), which has been broadened to include antifungal research and innovation priorities.

JPIAMR has held a series of consultations with the antifungal research community to incorporate antifungal research priorities in to the JPIAMR SRIA. The SRIA is a prime guiding tool for AMR research prioritisation in investments, research activities and planning for JPIAMR member states and other funding initiatives. It is also one of the most thorough guidelines on AMR research, helping researchers, policymakers, media, educators, health workers and the scientific community to work together on solutions to curb AMR on a global scale.

Read more and download the new SRIA.

The JPIAMR will be holding a webinar in alignment with the launch of the broadened JPIAMR SRIA: Supporting Transnational Research Collaboration on Fungal Drug Resistance. The webinar will be held on 28 April 2021, 14.00-16.45 CET, and is organised in collaboration with the Israel Ministry of Health.

Read more and register to the webinar.