The Programme Thématique Santé du Cerveau: Prévention et diagnostic précoce des maladies mentales – trajectoires et périodes critiques from the Fondation pour la Recherche Médicale (FRM) supports research on the prevention of mental illness and on vulnerability mechanisms during critical periods of development: the perinatal period, adolescence, and young adulthood, as well as adulthood in people with a neurodevelopmental disorder whose cognitive aging may be accelerated by another illness. Projects must improve understanding of risk factors and etiological mechanisms and address early diagnostic strategies for mental and neurodevelopmental disorders, they may integrate behavioral and cognitive dimensions, molecular and cellular aspects of pathophysiology, and non-pharmacological approaches such as neuromodulation or physical activity.
Applications are open to consortia of two to four teams based in France, led by a coordinating team in biomedical sciences working on mental illness or neurodevelopmental disorders and evaluated by the HCERES research department, together with one to three associated teams from other research fields. The applicant must belong to an independent team attached to a French public research or higher education organization, and the applicant and co-applicants must hold permanent positions as researchers, teacher-researchers, research engineers, or hospital-university staff. Foreign teams and private partners may take part, but only eligible French teams can receive funding. Projects that create a new cohort or clinical trial, or that are devoted exclusively to sequencing, are not eligible.
Funding requests may not exceed 700,000 EUR in total, with a maximum of 300,000 EUR per eligible team in the consortium. The project duration is 3 years, and funding must start no later than March 1, 2028.
Pre-applications close on December 3, 2026. Full applications are requested from preselected projects.