NEWSLETTER 1 MARCH Produced by CSO-MOH IL

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1 Produced by CSO-MOH IL Contact: The JPIAMR secretariat is hosted by the Swedish Research Council in Stockholm, Sweden and currently involves the following staff: Ana Beramendi Jenny Fernebro Anna Vallstedt Haeger Pontus Holm Cecilia Mattsson Mikaela Laine You are welcome to contact the secretariat in any matter concerning JPIAMR using the following address: Or: JPIAMR Newsletter No.1 March 1

2 From the Chairman s Desk Mats Ulfendahl Chair, JPIAMR Management Board Secretary-General, Swedish Research Council The European Union aims at creating a unified research area, in which researchers, scientific knowledge and technology will circulate freely. The European Research Area (ERA) is expected to strengthen the scientific and technological bases in the Member States, thus enhancing their capacity to jointly address grand societal challenges. In order to support the implementation of the ERA, the European Commission introduced in 2008 the Joint Programming (JP) concept. The overall objective is to pool national research efforts in order to more effectively tackle specific challenges. In 2010 representatives of several European nations started to discuss a Joint Programming Initiative focusing on antimicrobial resistance, a rapidly emerging threat to human health. After positive Council conclusions in December 2011 the Joint Programming Initiative on Antimicrobial Resistance, JPIAMR, was formally established. JPIAMR now includes 18 member states, and two nations follow our activities as observers. A key element in the JP concept is to establish a common view on the problems within the field, and the ways to address them, formulated in a common Strategic Research Agenda (SRA). Based on the SRA, Member States are expected commit to joint activities. In 2012 JPIAMR applied for and was granted a Coordination and Support Action, i.e. three-year funding from the European Commission to develop and implement an SRA. In other words, we are about to adopt a common view on the problems related to antimicrobial resistance, and more importantly, reach an agreement on what research efforts are required to address the problems. JPIAMR Newsletter No.1 March 2

3 A solid SRA that is recognized by the scientific community and that can be adopted by the member states is fundamental. In order to focus on the most relevant questions and to ensure scientific credibility, a Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) consisting of distinguished and prominent experts in the field, was appointed. Chaired by Professor Herman Goossens, the SAB will assist the Management Board of JPIAMR in formulating the SRA. During the next few months drafts of the SRA will be presented in order to get feedback from not only the member states but also important stakeholder organisations. A Stakeholder Advisory Board is now being established in order to facilitate this important part of the SRA process. Towards the end of the year the SRA should be finalized and then officially launched early The crucial step is of course to implement the SRA, i.e. to initiate concerted joint actions or to coordinate national programmes. This will be a challenge itself but as there is a very strong commitment among the member states I am quite optimistic about the outcome and convinced that JPIAMR will contribute to the implementation of the ERA. The Joint Programming Initiative on Antimicrobial Resistance officially started in September This collaboration currently involves 18 countries and has a main secretariat hosted by the Swedish Research Council in Stockholm, Sweden. The concept of Joint Programming (JP) was launched by the EU Commission in 2008 with the aim to increase the value of national and EU research funding by joint planning, implementation and evaluation of national research programs. Member states were invited to identify suitable themes and in the beginning of 2010 the Joint Programming Initiative on Antimicrobial Resistance (JPIAMR) was proposed by Sweden and Italy. JPIAMR Newsletter No.1 March 3

4 Antimicrobial resistance Antimicrobial resistance is a topic that clearly matches the prerequisites for a Joint Programming (JP). It is a global problem that concerns all and even though it is often described as an emerging threat it is in fact already upon us. Currently, European research on antimicrobial resistance is dispersed and with little collaboration between member states and associated countries. As shown by a recent mapping exercise, few countries appear to have a program addressing antimicrobial resistance; rather, countries are financing separate projects that have been selected in competition with projects from other research areas. The aim of the JPIAMR is to integrate relevant scientific fields across national borders and to create a common European research agenda with a shared common vision. The need for this initiative is obvious bacteria and other infecting agents know no borders and therefore transnational cooperation is crucial. Joint actions are desperately needed and JPIAMR provides the forum and platform for initiating and coordinating these actions. The participating countries are dedicated to the programme of activities, showing a great commitment to the success of the initiative. Together they have formed the first seed of a joint vision on how to combat antimicrobial resistance. JPIAMR Newsletter No.1 March 4

5 Organization The governance structure of JPIAMR includes a Management Board, a Steering Committee, a Scientific Advisory Board, a Stakeholders Advisory Board and a Secretariat. The Management Board (MB) is the main decision making body of JPIAMR, working according to the Terms of Reference. The MB meets on a regular basis and has met seven times since December Each participating country may nominate up to two members of the MB. The MB members must have a Governmental mandate and only one representative from each country may vote. The vision The JPIAMR will coordinate the best European research resources and capabilities to form the critical mass for the development of the most advanced scientific approaches to tackle the problem of antimicrobial resistance, leading to the sustainable use of antibiotics and treatments for infectious diseases. JPIAMR will therefore: Find routes for novel antibiotics and new antiinfectious strategies Scientifically validate means to increase the number of patients treated early with the appropriate antimicrobial Provide scientific evidence on ways to reduce the spread of resistant strains Provide scientific evidence on strategies to reduce the number of patients with resistant or MDR strains, at any level of antibiotic consumption Reduce the consumption of antibiotics The mission The mission of the JPI AMR is to develop scientific proposals for a sustainable use of antibiotics to treat infectious diseases in Europe, and for a decrease in the number of patients with resistant infections. An important element of the mission of JPI AMR will be to connect and collaborate with the different stakeholders involved in its mission. JPIAMR Newsletter No.1 March 5

6 Strategic research agenda (SRA) JPI AMR will define a Strategic Research Agenda with three scientific areas: Biology and dynamics of resistance Prevention of resistance and innovation of treatment options Epidemiology and disease burden The SRA will be the foundation of JPIAMR as it represents the basis upon which the JPI will launch joint actions. As a first step in the development of the SRA, a workshop was held in May 2011 to identify the major needs and challenges from a scientific perspective. The SRA is expected to be finalized in late or early 2014, but will require regular updates to ensure it remains relevant and truly strategic. The Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) Antoine Andremont Fernando Baquero Marc Bonten Yehuda Carmeli Niels Frimodt-Møller Herman Goossens Hajo Grundmann Stephan Harbarth Birgitta Henriques Normark Patrice Nordmann Arnfinn Sundsfjord Timothy Walsh Paul Williams Bruno Gonzalez-Zorn Bichat-Claude Bernard Hospital, Paris IRYCIS, Madrid UMC Utrecht, div. Julius Centrum Harvard University, Boston Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen University of Antwerp RIVM, Bilthoven Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genèva Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm Hôspital de Bicêtre, Paris University of Tromsø Cardiff University University of Nottingham Complutense University, Madrid France Spain Netherlands United States Denmark Belgium Netherlands Switzerland Sweden France Norway United Kingdom United Kingdom Spain JPIAMR Newsletter No.1 March 6

7 Scientific Advisory Board Meeting, January 21, By Jolien Wenink, Programme Officer, ZonMw The primary task of the Scientific Advisory Board is to provide input for the development of the JPI AMR Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) and to propose scientific content and strategic directions to the JPI AMR Management Board. The foundations of the SRA have been articulated in a Vision Paper, which was endorsed in 2011 by all partners of the JPI AMR. In its deliberations, the Scientific Advisory Board considers the entire spectrum of research activity, from basic discovery to strategically targeted research, and including societal needs. It selected six research priorities and prepared a preliminary paper elaborating the selected topics. Even though, since its inception, JPI AMR has focused on human medicine, the Management Board and the Scientific Advisory Board recognize the importance of the veterinary and environmental dimensions of antimicrobial resistance. For this reason, a new member, Prof. Bruno Gonzalez-Zorn, a specialist in veterinary AMR, was asked to join to the Board. There were two major objectives to the meeting. These were to analyse and discuss the current versions of the priority topics by inviting two external experts, Prof. Jürgen Heeseman and Em. Prof Jos van der Meer, to take part in the proceedings, and secondly to discuss how veterinary perspectives can be incorporated into the existing priorities, or if they require revision to incorporate veterinary medicine into the SRA. Based on the deliberations and recommendations offered at the meeting, the members of the Scientific Advisory Board will revise and enhance the research priority paper and will prepare a preliminary draft of the SRA. This will be discussed with the Management Board, the Stakeholder Advisory Board and select experts at a conference scheduled to be held at the end of May. In September, the final draft of the SRA will be presented for web-based national consultations. The next meeting of the Scientific Advisory Board will be held on May 14,. JPIAMR Newsletter No.1 March 7

8 Invitational Conference on the JPIAMR Strategic Research Agenda By Jolien Wenink, Programme Officer, ZonMw is an important year for the JPI AMR. It is anticipated that by the end of the year, JPI AMR partners will consolidate a durable Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) on antimicrobial resistance. The Scientific Advisory Board plays an important role in the development of the JPI AMR SRA, but it requires input from the JPI AMR Management Board and the Stakeholder Advisory Board to complete the final agenda. For this reason, the content and current status of the SRA is a recurring item on the agenda of the Management Board and subsequently, Stakeholder Advisory Board meetings. Before a final draft of the SRA can be submitted for web-based, national consultations (scheduled for September ), it needs to be challenged, discussed and refined by all the relevant experts from the JPI AMR. By the end of May, the Scientific Advisory Board is scheduled to have a preliminary draft of the SRA, ready for deliberation by the members of the Scientific Advisory Board, the Management Board, the Stakeholder Advisory Board and selected guest experts at an invitational conference, to be held on May 27-28, in Geneva. The meeting will be organized in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO). MEMBER STATES JPIAMR Newsletter No.1 March 8