Functional exploration at the host-microbiota interface in reproduction includes infertility, pregnancy complications, pregnancy loss, implantation failure, and assisted reproduction, among others.
 

The purpose

From 2025, the Biocodex Microbiota Foundation rewards international research proposals involving the microbiota and its implication in Women's Health and Disease. Every year, the call for proposals covers a specific theme chosen by an International Scientific Committee. Either clinical or fundamental research proposals can be submitted.

The maximal duration of the project will be 3 years.

The applicants

The grants are open to MDs, PhDs or Pharm-Ds working in the subject area (gynecology, obstetrics, microbiology, infectious diseases, internal medicine, oncology, etc.). There are no geographic restrictions for applicants. All countries are eligible.
A principal investigator who received a Women’s Health international grant from BMF can no longer apply for this award for three years. However, the winner of another grant category provided by BMF can apply for the Women’s Health International Grant.

Members of the Women’s Health International Scientific Committee and members of their laboratories are not allowed to apply for grants as Principal Investigators.

In the event of any possible conflict of interest for a Women’s Health International Scientific Committee member, he/she will not be allowed to review the project or participate in the debate, nor will he/she be allowed to vote for that project.

The grant

The annual grant is set at €200,000. It will be awarded to researchers within universities, hospitals or other research settings to finance equipment, operations or staffing costs. However, grants will not be awarded to individuals. The Biocodex Microbiota Foundation (BMF) is a non-profit organization, and thus, the institution’s overhead costs cannot be more than 10%.

The proposed project budget must be presented with all budgetary items listed with a proposed time frame for the utilization of funds.

The grant payment will be made annually and according to this provisional budget on the condition that BMF receives annual interim reports when the duration is longer than one year.

The review of applications

The applications will be sent to each member of the Women’s Health International Scientific Committee (WHISC) for evaluation. 
The evaluation criteria considered are the proposals:

  • consistency with the predetermined subject
  • scientific quality
  • innovation
  • benefit for Women’s Health and Disease
  • quality of the researcher(s)
  • quality of the research environment
  • feasibility

The International Scientific Committee is independent from the Company and is sovereign.

Their decisions will not be contested and do not have to be justified.

The applicants' undertakings

For transparency reasons, the applicants will notify the Foundation of any additional funding received or requested for the submitted proposals.

The applicants agree to provide the Foundation with a final report within the six months following the end of the project. However, if the project is longer than one year, they agree to provide an annual interim report on each anniversary date.

The applicants will mention the Biocodex Foundation's support in any communication or publication of their work with the following sentence: this work was (partially) supported by the Biocodex Microbiota Foundation. Applicants will send copies of these communications or publications to the Foundation.

The applicants authorize the Biocodex Foundation to publicize its support for their proposal and grant both on the BMF website and through other means by uploading the non-confidential summary of the proposal.

Click here to find out more about the information notice.

The postponement of the grant

If there are insufficient applications, the Foundation reserves the right to move the deadline for submitting applications to a later date or to postpone the call for projects.

The application form can be downloaded by clicking the icon below :

Application will open soon...

Once you have completed the application form, the Biocodex Microbiota Foundation would be grateful if you could submit your application electronically using the following e-mail address:

apply@biocodexmicrobiotafoundation.com

Please note the submission deadline: 30th of September 2025 (24:CET). Following submission, all applicants will receive a receipt confirmation.
A late application form will, unfortunately, not be accepted for review by the Women Health Scientific Committee of the Foundation.

Application process (see application form):

All project proposals have to be written in English and in arial, 10 and must respect the stated word limits. They must include:

  • Applicant's curriculum vitae (2 pages including the last or best publications).
  • Confidential scientific summary of the proposal (not to exceed one page) and to include the institution's name and organizational structure.
  • Non-confidential and simplified summary for the public (to be uploaded to the website if the project is selected).
  • Description of the proposed work must not exceed six pages using the Arial 10 font (template provided):
    - 3 pages for the project description, including title and acronym
    - 1 page for the references
    - 1 page for the budget and budget justification
    - 1 page for the schedule (timetable or Gantt chart)

The “Description of the proposed work” should include (but is not limited to) the research aims, methodology, expected results, teams to be involved in the proposal and research, and any necessary authorization from the administrative authorities.

Applications failing to fulfill this description will be rejected.

The application must be submitted via the process detailed on the Foundation website. Every applicant will be sent an acknowledgment of receipt confirming the application is suitable for consideration.

Submissions deadline :09/30/2025