2.1. Objectives of the SFG Program

• To establish new, interdisciplinary translational research teams across multiple McGill sites. MI4 uses the contemporary definition of interdisciplinary as combining or involving several academic disciplines or professional specializations in an approach to a topic or problem.
• To support preliminary and proof-of-concept studies by these collaborative research teams that will position them to secure external funding. The goal is to seed new research, not to replace conventional sources of funding for already-established programs or to serve as bridge funding for established programs. New teams involve two lead investigators who have not published together in the past 5 years.

2.2. Scope

The M-RD SFG program supports innovative projects that address how specific microbes or microbial communities (microbiomes) at any barrier tissue such as the lung, gut or skin impact the etiology, course, or treatment of Rheumatic Diseases such as: arthritis, lupus, vasculitis, systemic sclerosis and other Rheumatologic diseases.

The proposed research must be interdisciplinary and the two co-PIs should represent different fields of expertise. Examples include but are not limited to: microbiome and clinical research, bacteriology and bioinformatics, microbial ecology and animal models of disease or any combination thereof.

2.3. Team Composition

The M-RD SFG is funded by a donation from the Duthie Saunders Estate to the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS). Thus, at least one co-Principal Investigator must have their primary appointment in the FMHS within McGill University excluding adjunct appointments. The second co-Principal Investigator may be based within FMHS or another McGill Faculty.

The inclusion of other McGill community investigators as collaborators is encouraged, but only two co-Principal Investigators are permitted. Investigators external to the McGill community are welcome to join the project team as collaborators but may not be co-Principal Investigators. Subcontracts to investigators outside McGill University and its affiliated institutions are only permitted under exceptional, well-justified conditions, subject to MI4 approval.

2.4. Eligibility

The Principal Investigators must meet the conditions of University Researcher or Clinical University Researcher as defined by the Fonds de Recherche du Québec (frqs-generales-communes). In accordance with the appropriate McGill policies, a researcher devotes more than 50% of their time to research and teaching.

A researcher may participate in two SFG applications but will only be eligible to receive 1 SFG award per cycle as co-Principal Investigator, to a maximum of two concurrently-held SFG awards. Applicants with multiple appointments must apply through the institution where their primary funds are located. This affiliation cannot switch between MI4 SFG competitions unless the primary source of funds has changed.

2.5. Available Funds and Grant Term

In the special call for the MI4 M-RD SFG program, funds are available to support up to two grants for a maximum of $150,000 each for a grant term of 24 months. MI4 SFG awards are non-renewable and unspent funds must be returned to the source from which the funds originated at the end of this period.

The deadline for submissions is August 25, 2025, at 11:59 PM Eastern Standard Time.

All applications must be submitted by email in PDF format to grantsmcgilli4.med [at] mcgill.ca, copying mi4programmgr.med [at] mcgill.ca.

If additional information is required to complete the MI4 M-RD SFG submissions, please contact mi4programmgr.med [at] mcgill.ca. Generally, a response will be provided within one business day.

Free-Form Project Description (9.5 pages maximum, extra material will not be reviewed).

Use the same headings for each section as shown below and respect the required page length per section.

1. Project Information (1 page)

1.1. Projects title

1.2. Lay Summary (max 200 words)

1.3. McGill Co-Principal Investigators (max of 2; one must be based within FMHS, the other one - within FMHS or another McGill Faculty): department, location, email

1.4. Collaborators

1.5. Project duration and budget requested

1.6. Suggested reviewers EXTERNAL TO MCGILL INSTITUTIONS (3 names, positions and email addresses)

2. Project Description (5 pages, including figures, excluding references)

2.1. Research Rationale and selected Thematic Area

Explain the research question and concept behind the research and justify the novelty of your idea. Identify which broad thematic area the proposal best aligns with: Microbiomes and Rheumatic Diseases.

2.2. Primary Deliverables

Provide up to three, in brief bullet points.

2.3. Background Research (last 5 years)

Summarize previous work leading up to the proposed project. Preliminary data is not required and projects for which extensive preliminary data is available should be submitted to traditional granting agencies.

2.4. Proposed Research Activities

• Briefly describe the proposed study and timeline for the proposed experiments. Employ language that is comprehensible to an interdisciplinary scientific audience.
• Provide clear 12- and 24-month milestones (i.e. interim achievements along a path towards the project deliverables) that can be used to assess measurable progress of the proposal and that will demonstrate ongoing collaboration between the two co-PIs.
• Describe the research outputs and their impact and provide metrics where possible. Avoid general phrases such as new knowledge, better understanding, or highly qualified personnel (HQP) training.

3. Project Team - Ability of Team to Implement the Project (1 page)

• Describe the expertise of the co-Principal Investigators and how the interdisciplinary nature of the team will help achieve the project’s goals.
• Provide a 250-500-word statement describing how the composition of the team is consistent with MI4’s commitment to create new, interdisciplinary translational research teams.
• Describe the role and expertise of co-principal investigators, collaborators, trainees, or research associates.
• Discuss Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) of the Project Team, (two useful links are http://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/_doc/EDI/Guide_for_Applicants_EN.pdf and http://www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/50836.html)
• See sub-section 8 for CV attachment requirements.

4. Long-Term Plan (0.5 page)

One of the major objectives of the SFG program is to enable researchers to apply for external funding using the data and experienced gained during the SFG project. Describe in this section the anticipated grant opportunities that will be pursued, and the anticipated submission dates.

5. Budget (1 page)

Provide a detailed budget covering the 24-month grant term using the Budget worksheet available at: https://www.mcgill.ca/mi4/files/mi4/mi4_sfg_budget_template_2025_0.xlsx. Each individual co-PI’s budget cannot exceed $75,000, and modifications to this worksheet are not permitted. Please declare any potential overlap in your budget that is currently being funded by another source.

The free form document and the CVs must adhere to the following format:

• Page size: 8½ x 11 inches
• Margins: no less than 2.54 cm (1 inch) on all sides
• Font: Times New Roman (no smaller than 12 pts) or Arial (no smaller than 11 pts)
• Header: include the names of the co-PIs
• Graphs and illustrations may be included, and may be in colour if they are of high enough quality to be legible upon printing, but will count as part of the set page limits for each section.
• Assemble the Free-Form and CVs into one PDF package with bookmarks; each page to be consecutively numbered.
• Title the PDF file using the last names of both co-PIs. For example: “Smith & Rutherford.pdf”
• If the Free-Form Project Description exceeds the maximum page limit, it will not be reviewed.

7.1. Cost Sharing

Funds will be awarded equally to each co-PI. The funds are not transferrable between co-PIs. Funds for successful MI4 SFG awards will be disbursed in two equal payments: the first at the start of the project and the second at 13 months, contingent on submission and approval of a 12-month progress report (see Section 10).

7.2. Eligible Costs

All budgeted items must be in compliance and compatible with the policies and guidelines of the co-PIs’ respective institutions, as well as the Tri-Agency Financial Administration Guide (TAFAG) (https://www.mcgill.ca/research/ran-welcome/tri-agency-administration), and must clearly align with proposed activities outlined in Section 2.4.

Only the following are eligible costs:

• Salary support for trainees and research personnel (includes benefits)
• Materials and supplies (consumables)
• Core or platform fees for project related samples or data
• Data evaluation costs by appropriate research experts
• Small equipment up to $5,000 total for each co-Principal Investigator
• Appropriately justified project-related travel

Please note that final decisions regarding budget eligibility will be made by MI4 leadership.

7.3. Overhead

There is no acceptable overhead component to the MI4 SFG awards. All the awarded funds are to be directed towards eligible costs.

8.1. Assessment Criteria

SFG submissions will be evaluated according the following equal-weighted assessment criteria:

• Originality and innovation of the proposed research
• Well-defined research outputs and metrics, appropriate for the career stage of the investigator
• Interdisciplinary nature of the research
• Expertise of the co-PIs, and entire Project Team and synergies created by the inter-disciplinary approach
• The plan for the co-PIs to apply for external funding using the data and experience gained during the SFG project.

8.2. Review Process and Funding Approval Time Frame

SFG submissions will be reviewed in three stages:

Step 1 Due Diligence: The MI4 Executive Committee (Director and Co-Director(s)), with the MI4 Program Manager, will conduct a due diligence review of the SFG submission to validate the required elements in the submission package (Section 5). Submissions that do not comply will be eliminated from further review and applicants will receive a summary of missing elements or deficiencies.

Step 2 Scientific Review Committee (SRC): A SRC composed of members external to the MUHC-RI/McGill community will evaluate and rank the submissions according to the Assessment Criteria (Section 8.1) and provide recommendations regarding the top ranked submissions.

Step 3 Approval by the MI4 Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC): The MI4 SAC will validate the review process, review the recommendations of the SRC, and approve the final list of awards to a maximum of $150,000 per submission.

Conflict of Interest (COI): MI4 will adopt a COI policy to ensure that anyone participating in the review process does not have a COI. Any person declaring a COI, or a potential COI, will be required to recuse themselves from the review process. COIs will be defined using the CIHR definition that can be found at: http://www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/46378.html.

MI4 will contact applicant co-PIs with the funding decision comprising one of the following formats:

• Approved “as is”.
• Approved with recommendations to be incorporated into the project activities.
• Not approved with inclusion of any feedback provided by SRC.

A Grant Agreement and Fund Release Agreement Form will be sent to the awarded co-PIs outlining the terms and conditions of the award. Awardees will be asked to sign and return the award agreement as a proof that they accept the award and its terms. Documentation of appropriate biohazard, radioactive, animal use, Stem Cell Oversight Committee (SCOC) and ethics approvals will be required for the release of funds.

All approved SFG awards will be required to provide a brief progress report (template format) after the first 12 months and after 24 months. Release of the second funding installment will be contingent on demonstration of successful progress with respect to the project plan as detailed in the 12-month progress report (Section 5, sub-section 2.4). The MI4 Executive Committee, with the MI4 Program Manager, will review the report and make a recommendation to the SAC. Following review of the progress report, MI4 may also suggest an alternate project plan, or reduce the amount of the second installment of funds.

• Request for Proposal - MI4 Microbiome and Rheumatic Diseases SFG (PDF - English only)
• MI4 SFG Budget Template
• MI4 Signature Page