 Introduction History and geographical location of the unit

The NeuroMyoGene Institute, INMG, is a new institute, which will start its full operation in early 2016. Initially, research teams of the INMG will be at different sites on the Health-East Campus and the La Doua campus of the university of Lyon before moving to the Rockefeller Building of the Medical Faculty on the Health-East Campus after renovation is completed in 2017. The INMG will be eventually located at the R3 (5000 m 2 lab space) and the R4 levels (500 m 2 for microscopy platform) of the Rockefeller building. The INMG originates from a partial merger of the two molecular and cellular biology laboratories that existed in Lyon in 2007: the "Centre de Génétique et de Physiologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire" (CGPhiMC) on the scientific campus of the university of Lyon and the "Laboratoire de Biologie Moléculaire de la Cellule" (LBMC) at the ENS of Lyon. Creation of the INMG is part of a profound reorganization of life science research in Lyon, which already resulted in the formation of the Cancer Centre of Lyon (CRCL) and the Neurosciences Research Center of Lyon (CRNL).

Creation of the INMG was motivated by the idea to develop a strong fundamental research institute in cell biology, to provide state-of-the-art technological platforms for various research teams and to create a center of excellence for studying the nervous and muscular systems and translate basic research to the clinic.

The Health-East Campus provides a strong scientific and clinical environment with three large research centers, host hospitals and a large part of the medical faculty harboring about 10 thousand students. Hospitals at Health-East Campus include the neurology, cardiology, psychiatry, pediatric and obstetric hospitals and represent about 80% of the hospital beds in Lyon.

Management team

The INMG will be directed by a director (Mr. Laurent SCHAEFFER) and two deputy directors with distinct tasks. One will focus on scientific policy and scientific communication whereas the second will be committed to human resources and management of the administrative unit. The director's board will be assisted by an Administrative, Partnership and Communications manager (to be recruited). An Executive committee comprising the directors and the group leaders meets once a month and will be consulted for major scientific decisions regarding the selection and creation of new research teams as well as for the annual budget. A laboratory council that meets at least three times a year containing nominated and elected members of the INMG's staff as well as representatives of all the professional categories will serve a similar function. The director is assisted by an international scientific advisory board (SAB) of five scientists from France, Italy and Germany, which evaluates research teams every five years and provides advice for the recruitment of new research teams. The SAB has already evaluated and endorsed the concept of the INMG and approved the selection of research teams constituting the INMG. Finally, the INMG plans to establish User committees (laundry/autoclaves, store, microscopy, cell culture, animal facilities, etc.) to manage the daily life of the Institute and to guaranty efficient flow of information necessary for decision making.

The INMG does not propose to establish formal departments but relies on the strong connections between different research teams and the interdisciplinary structure, which does not seem to require further structuring of the INMG at the moment. 2  Overall assessment of the unit

HCERES nomenclature

Global assessment of the unit

The INMG is a newly created research unit that resulted from a partial merger of the CGPhiMC and the LBMC in Lyon, who have has a long-standing tradition in cell biology and neuromuscular research. So far the INMG consists of 14 research teams and is planned to eventually host 22-25 individual groups. The INMG has managed to attract a number of outstanding scientists from outside Lyon. Some of them are world-leaders in their respective fields. The successful gathering of strong research groups from Lyon and abroad clearly speaks for the attractiveness of the INMG and the appeal of the research concept.

The creation of the INMG makes a strong statement to explore basic processes in the neuronal and muscular system relevant for diseases processes in a complementary, multidisciplinary manner. Main research areas are devoted to: 1) Physiology of the Neuromuscular System. 2) Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology. 3) Nuclear Dynamics. Furthermore, the INMG aims to develop its links to clinical science for transfer of knowledge from bench to bedside. The translational aspect of the INMG is clearly visible by the appointment of 11 clinical researchers in the ranks of the professors and lectures, who will work at the institute and by the success of teams addressing disease-relevant issues. However, the impact of scientists at the INMG on clinical research has been limited so far compared to the success in the basic research arena. The number of patents, spin-off companies, and contracts with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies at present is not overwhelming. It will take major efforts to develop thriving translational projects based on available resources in Lyon that will do more than just supply potential therapy targets and/or provide a few biomarkers. Nevertheless, prospects are excellent and the committee felt that all means are in place and that the newly established INMG will become one of the leading places for basic and translational research relevant for neuromuscular disease processes. The Institute will be located in a very strong scientific environment and benefits from an outstanding set of technological platforms. Access to facilities will be shared with other research centers, which is an excellent opportunity to foster interactions and broaden the expertise. On the other hand, care has to be taken to manage joint facilities appropriately, serve different needs and guarantee the highest possible technical and scientific standard. Recruitment of outstanding scientists and technical personnel devoted to scientific service will be key for success of the shared facilities.

The director has a very solid international reputation in his field, and is surrounded by a number of outstanding scientists. The concept of the INMG leaves room for the recruitment of additional groups, which is a great chance to strengthen the center and sharpen the profile. The committee feels that the institute will most likely generate excellent science during the next 5 years and further increase its international visibility and attractiveness.

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context

The INMG is composed of research teams with a long-standing history of excellent science, with excellent in house expertise covering most aspects of neuromuscular research. A great strength of the INMG is the availability of different models systems, each with its own distinct advantages as well as the focus on the interface between neuronal and muscular research, which is unique for a large research institute.

The scientific environment of the Institute is excellent offering numerous opportunities for collaborations and synergies in particular with the nearby Cancer Centre of Lyon (CRCL) and the Neurosciences Research Center of Lyon (CRNL), University campus, hospitals, and other sites of the University of Lyon.

The restructuring of biomedical research in Lyon is a great chance for establishing continuous success of the new institute. So far, the institute is in a "status nascendi" and will be able to attract several new groups, which offers the ability to further strengthen the focus but also to extend the research portfolio and establish an international research atmosphere. Several of the scientific and technical staff will retire during the next couple of years. Albeit this might result in the loss of certain expertise replacement of retiring staff members also offers the chance to rejuvenate the faculty and attract new talents.

The INMG will have access to an exceptional set of technological platforms and state of the art equipment. It greatly benefited from several programs allowing to acquire cutting-edge equipment for the characterization of cellular and animal models including high-definition echography, 3D x-ray scanner coupled to fluorescence detection, CyToF, ImageStream XL, etc. The renovation of the Rockefeller Building offers additional opportunities, in particular to set up a high-end microscopy facility with light sheet microscopes, high-resolution microscopy, etc. In addition to several in house facilities providing support for more basic but nevertheless vital infrastructure such as media preparation, sterilization, cell culture, histology, etc., the INMG will jointly run together with other institutes six different platforms (microscopy and imaging, rodent facility, zebrafish facility, animal physiology, neurochemistry and an integrated OMICs platform). It will be important to find competent and dedicated personal to run the platforms, provide sufficient support and guarantee transparent access for all teams. A privileged access to these technical platforms by teams of the INMG and the corresponding expertise will constitute an invaluable asset for the institute.

The INMG team members comprise 11 clinical researchers and some teams have a clear translational focus, which reflects the commitment of the INGM to narrow the gap between bench and bedside. However, the overall strategy to expedite translational research is not always clear making it difficult to identify a striking vision for the whole institute. With some exceptions most teams are primarily committed to basic research and did not made major efforts to capitalize on achieved results in terms of clinical applications. As a result, strong connections with pharmaceutical and biotech companies, and with clinical research teams are limited. Only a few patents were granted and a single spin-off is currently getting established. Nevertheless, the focus and established collaborations of the INMG provide an excellent basis for further development of translational research activities. The INMG has demonstrated its ability to attract financial support from governmental agencies and charities but funding from industry could be expanded.

The INMG has managed successfully to assemble a very strong group of team leaders and developed a convincing strategy for future research. At present, different teams are working at different locations until the new institute will move under a common roof. Relocation of the different INMG teams into the newly renovated Rockefeller building is a great opportunity and will allow much better interactions. At the same time, availability of newly established scientific platforms will make new technologies available to each team, reduce costs and efforts that would have otherwise been required to establish technologies individually. The direct neighbourhood of two additional large institutes and the placement of the INMG on the health campus of the university with several hospitals is another major asset that can be exploited in the future. During the transition before moving into the new building major efforts will be necessary keep individually teams together and to build a joint spirit. The start of a new institute is a wonderful occasion to lay the ground for an enduring and stimulating companionship.

As a result of an efficient recruitment campaign, the INMG was able to recruit seven out of the 14 current research teams from outside Lyon including recruits from the US and Australia. Several of them are young scientists in the most productive part of their career. The new building still allows recruitment of new teams or the growth of existing ones. This is a unique opportunity to stimulate high risk/high gain programs.

Teams at the INMG were very successful in raising funds. Two ERC grants (1 consolidation, 1 starting) were awarded and 7 grants were obtained from the European FP6/FP7 programs. In addition, the INMG profited from large grants from the French Investment of Future plan (5.6 Mio €), which adds up to an impressive 18.4 Mio € in grant support in the period from 2009-2014.

The existence of a scientific advisory board, which is consulted for the monitoring of teams and in the context of major strategic decisions, such as the hiring of new groups and changes in institute organization, is very valuable. Its role should probably be increased further, as new rules regarding the distribution of recurrent funds will likely require an external advice.

The INMG has a clear vision and global strategy for future basic research and an excellent starting point to build a strong translation program. The director and its team are dynamically and efficiently pushing the teams towards better science and stronger interactions between them.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context

The committee was very pleased with the achieved results and the prospects of the institute and did not identify threats that cannot be handled. So far, the newly founded INMG did not have to withstood a baptism of fire but still has to prove its ability to cope with challenging situations. It is not difficult to foresee that transition time before moving into the newly renovated Rockefeller building will be a rather vulnerable period, which has to be managed carefully. Construction delays, difficulties in recruiting additional research teams or replacement of retiring staff and cuts in public funding represent considerable threats that might jeopardize success of the INMG and have an impact on its ambitious goals. So far, the INMG is a "virtual" institute with no common history, although several teams have collaborated extensively in the past. During the next period it will be crucial to integrate all teams, in particular those that have been newly recruited to Lyon, into a single unit and to forge a new institute with a strong "esprit de corps". These threats were also identified by the director, although some of them are not really within the reach of the institute management.

The institute has received considerable support from the University of Lyon, CNRS, and INSERM over the last 5 years. The planned increase in the number of teams will require additional funding to cover expenses for additional scientists, technicians/engineers, and the opening of a new building. Operation of the new technology platforms will increase the percentage of resources allocated to infrastructure support, which might reduce the availability of funds for individual research teams to pursue research projects. As a consequence, research teams will depend more strongly on external grants in a context that is getting less favorable in France (decrease of ANR budget). Funding the infrastructure at an adequate level while maintaining flexible funds for research projects will therefore be a major challenge for the INMG.

The INMG seems to suffer from insufficient technical support, particularly for common infrastructure (animal facility among others). The creation of new platforms and the necessity to recruit highly qualified personnel will further increase these problems when no additional funding can be secured. A number of technicians and engineers will also reach the age of retirement within the next 5 years, which might exacerbate difficulties in running the infrastructure, if the retiring persons cannot be replaced. During the site visit university representatives offered support to alleviate these problems by assigning technicians from other units, which are going to be closed or reduced in size.

The technical platforms, which will be used jointly by different institutes, constitute one of the main assets of the INMG. It will be a permanent challenge to maintain and refinance the platforms allowing them to stay competitive and up to date. Failure to provide regular upgrading of existing equipment and acquisition of new instruments will be detrimental. Productivity of research teams might decline if too much time is devoted for managing platforms and providing service. Instead, platforms should be run by dedicated scientists and technicians in close cooperation with different research teams to provide required services.

Despite the excellent environment and the international recognition of the INMG teams, the ability to recruit excellent post-doctoral fellows is hampered by administrative regulations, which restrict the duration of post-doctoral positions representing a major threat to maintain competitiveness. The percentage of foreign team leaders and postdocs at the INMG is limited, which is a shortcoming for an institute that wants to be recognized at an international level.

Despite its attractiveness, the number of PhD students recruited to the Institute seems relatively low and might be enlarged (75 PhD students in 5 years corresponding to roughly 1 PhD student per team per year). The number of foreign PhD students has reached 25%, which seems high for a French Institute but is not impressive compared to international standards. No specific program exists to attract international PhD students or postdocs.

The average age of staff (scientists and technicians) at the INMG is rather high (48 years) and several people are going to retire in the next 5 years (up to 11 people). It will be a critical issue to replace retiring staff. Furthermore, the INMG should try to establish new research teams headed by young promising scientists, who are about to establish themselves as independent scientists.

Teams at the INMG were very successful in raising funds in the period from 2009-2014 and several of the grants will extend into the new contract period 2016-2020. It will be a challenge to maintain and extend this degree of funding in times of shrinking budgets. Teams at the INMG did receive substantial funding from patient organizations and charities but received rather low support from industry. However, in particular translational research requires intense interactions with pharmaceutical and medical companies including substantial financial support. Additional activities are required to convince the industry to participate in INMG projects.

Recommendations

The expert committee strongly supports the present director and his managing team, who did an admirable job to lay the foundation of a new institute and assembled an impressive group of outstanding scientists. It is now of utmost importance to keep the different teams located at different sites together before moving into the newly renovated joint building. The INMG should pursue its successful recruitment strategy to reach a critical mass of 22-25 research groups. Priority should be given to excellent young research team leaders, who are starting their scientific career although the unit would also benefit from recruitment of additional senior scientists complementing and extending the existing expertise. Yet, scientific excellence should always be given priority before strategic or thematic considerations. Significant efforts will be required to shape the new institute composed of a group of teams with different backgrounds and origins into a homogeneous structure that jointly acts together to achieve the mission of the INMG. Collaborations between different INMG teams, in particular those that have been newly recruited should also be encouraged decisively.

Most research teams are devoted to basic research although several clinicians are embedded into research teams and some teams are primarily committed to translational research. There is no need to force basic research teams to pursue translational research but a more comprehensive strategy is required to bridge the gap between bench and bedside if translation of basic research results into clinical practice instead of excellence in basic research emerges as the foremost priority of the institute. A dedicated rotation program with clinicians who are prepared to take a leave from clinical studies, joint seminar series and/or other activities in this direction as well as specific incentives to do translational research might help in this direction. Interactions with pharmaceutical companies and industry should be intensified.

Insufficient support by supervising bodies might hamper the growth of the institute, which needs adequate investments and a proportional increase in the budget to cope with the increase of the number of research teams.

Several central structures such as common platforms are about to be formed. Great care needs to be taken to shape these structures according to the needs of different teams and assure the quality of their performance. Service platforms should be organized independent of individual research teams wherever possible and made available for everyone. The management should make sure that research teams deeply involved in joint technical platforms do not suffer in terms of scientific productivity by spending too much time doing service. Recruitment of dedicated personnel would be potential way to cope with such challenges if the budget permits. Precise rules should be elaborated for replacement of group leaders who leave as well as for the promotion of inside researchers as group leaders.

Collaborations with other institutes at the campus, hospitals and university departments are vital for the success of the institute. The establishment of joint technical platforms represents an excellent way to promote further interactions and foster intense scientific exchange. Joint scientific projects or common grants would also help.

The management should support activities to make the INMG more international. The ratio of foreign PhD students has raised up to 25%, which is a good sign but might be increased further, e.g. by establishing an international PhD program in the area. Such an initiative should be organized together with other research institutes on site and the local and regional bodies, who should offer more PhD fellowships in the area. In addition, it is recommended to increase the number of foreign team leaders and postdocs to establish the INMG as a hub of international research. The use of English as the common language for scientific activities at all levels is an essential step in this process and should be enforced. However, learning French is necessary for daily life. Hence, the INMG should offer support to foreign PhD students and post-docs to solve administrative issues both inside and outside the Institute and assist in organizing or finding language courses. At present, the success in obtaining external grants is excellent. Administrative help for grant applications at the EU level, which are rather time consuming and tedious, seems very good, since scientists at the INMG are entitled to receive help and advice for EU grant applications by a dedicated CNRS office in Lyon.

The INMG should work on ways to offer good and productive post-docs a career track and to keep a position for periods longer than 3 to 4 years. Usually, it is not a priority for competitive scientists to obtain a permanent position early during the career as long as administrative rules do not interfere and sufficient independence can be granted.

The SAB already contributed to the selection of research teams for the new INMG, which is an excellent practice that needs to be continued. The SAB might counsel the management team in budget issues when it comes to the distribution of internal funds. Back up by the SAB might help the management to avoid internal tensions that will inevitably arise when overall funding of the institute becomes tight.

Unit workforce Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016

	Unit workforce
	N1: Permanent professors and similar positions	34	28
	N2: Permanent researchers from Institutions and similar positions	30	23
	N3: Other permanent staff (without research duties)	34	35
	N4: Other professors (Emeritus Professor, on-contract Professor, etc.)
	N5: Other researchers (Emeritus Research Director, Postdoctoral students, visitors, etc.)	12	13
	N6: Other contractual staff (without research duties)	10	6
	TOTAL
	SVE1_LS3 Biologie cellulaire, biologie du développement animal
	SVE1_LS5 Neurobiologie
	SVE1_LS4 Physiologie, physiopathologie, biologie systémique médicale
	SVE1_LS2 Génétique, génomique, bioinformatique

N1 to N6 120 105 Unit workforce Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016

	Doctoral students	25
	Theses defended	50
	Postdoctoral students having spent at least 12 months in the unit	11
	Number of Research Supervisor Qualifications (HDR) taken	9
	Qualified research supervisors (with an HDR) or similar positions	29	29


Evaluation report

This report is the result of the evaluation by the experts committee, the composition of which is specified below.

The assessments contained herein are the expression of an independent and collegial deliberation of the committee.

Unit name:

Hemostasis, inflammation, and sepsis The group headed by Mr Claude NÉGRIER has decided to refocus on the theme of hemostasis emphasizing (i) Physiology and pathophysiology of coagulation and (ii) Coagulation factors and cancer. The future team will be headed by Mr Claude NÉGRIER; expertise for research on the physiology and pathophysiology of coagulation is provided by Ms Yesim DARGAUD; expertise on links between coagulation and cancer is provided by Mr Habib BOUKERCHE. For the next five-year contract the title of the team will be "Hemostasis, inflammation, and Cancer". Two more research teams will spin-off from the EA 4174: The team "Pulmonary and Circulatory Aggression in Sepsis" headed by Mr Bernard ALLAOUCHICHE and the team "Pathophysiology of injury-induced immunosuppression" headed by Mr Guillaume MONNERET.

The research team is located within the Faculty of Medicine RTH Laennec Lyon and is housed on the 3 rd floor of building B of UFR Lyon-Est Laennec. The surface area available to the research-team comprises 635 m 2 , which includes two L2 laboratories for tissue culture. It has access to an animal facility (of the "Institut Fédératif de Recherche", IFR200) in the same building. It has close links with various departments of the University hospital (CHU) of Lyon. Mr Claude NÉGRIER and Ms Yesim DARGAUD are both affiliated to the unit of clinical hemostasis of the University cardiology hospital Louis Pradel. The team has also access to the core genomics facility of the latter hospital.

Management team

There is no formal management committee for the team. Decisions are being made by the teamdirector based on consensus among the various team-members. All permanent researchers, adminstrative, research technicians and engineers and PhD students meet at least once every year and more frequently if required. 2  Overall assessment of the unit

HCERES

Global assessment of the unit

The team has a long-lasting experience in the field of thrombosis and hemostasis, in particular in the area of clinically-oriented research related to the X-linked bleeding disorders hemophilia A and B. The scientific output in clinical research on hemophilia is of the highest level. Investigators from the team participate in numerous clinical trials involving patients with hemophilia A and B. Their international reputation in the area of clinical haemophilia is excellent. Their well-established clinical profile is wellcomplemented by laboratory studies that focus on genetic analysis of patients, improved diagnostic assays to monitor patients with bleeding disorders, and design and development of novel therapeutic approaches for hemophilia. The potential synergy between clinical and translational research in hemophilia provides a very strong asset of the team. The research of this team on the interplay between coagulation and cancer provides an interesting opportunity to further broaden its research-portfolio in a clinically relevant area. Developing sufficient critical mass for this novel line of research and further integration with current lines of research on thrombosis and hemostasis provides an interesting challenge for the future. Altogether, the team is expected to further secure and extend its profile of excellence in the field of thrombosis and hemostasis.

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context

The total scientific production over the past five years is impressive. The impact factors of some of the publications involving clinical trials in hemophilia are extremely high (>20).

The team has a dominant position in France with respect to clinical activities in inherited bleeding disorders. It coordinates a national reference center on bleeding disorders.

The research on clinical hemophilia of this team is internationally at the forefront.

The academic reputation of the team is emphasized by regular invitations of key members at international conferences such as the World Federation of Hemophilia, the American Society of Hematology and the International Society of Thrombosis and Hemostasis.

The team has strong interactions with industry and attracts a lot of external funding from the private sector.

The team is actively involved in training of PhD students. The team's clinical profile is nicely complemented by innovative genomic approaches for studying patients with hemostatic disorders.

The ambition profile of the team is high, aiming for development of novel therapeutic approaches for hemophilia.

There are good funding possibilities for the line of research on the link between cancer and hemostasis.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context

The strength of the team is its ability to acquire grants from industry, the team appears to be less active with respect to other funding opportunities such as ANR and EU-funding.

The high impact papers on clinical trials in hemophilia reflect the authority of the team leader and some members of the team in this area but most of these studies do not result from research performed at the team.

The studies on the relationship between hemostasis and cancer provide a potential opportunity for further scientific development and innovation of the team. Presently, the critical mass available for this line of research appears to be limited and this topic appears not to be very well-integrated with other ongoing activities of the team.

The number of PhD students working in the team is currently 12. Mentoring of PhD students, especially with respect to their future career, can be further improved. Currently, no postdocs are working in the team. In view of the ambitions of the team (development of novel therapeutics for hemophilia and of genomic approaches for bleeding disorders & cancer and hemostasis), input from relatively experienced post-doctoral researchers would help to increase critical mass for these different lines of research. This will be particularly beneficial for the theme "cancer & hemostasis".

Recommendations

Access to clinical samples is well-ensured by the close links of the team with the hospital. Further integration of clinical and laboratory research on hemostatic disorders for instance by applying advanced genomic technologies is needed to further increase the impact of the translational laboratory studies of the team.

The level of ambition of the team is very high. Diversity of research portfolio provides a challenge for the team. The line of clinical research in hemophilia is very well-developed. In view of the available resources, focusing on a more selected number of topics preferably with a clear link to clinical research of the team will help to further position the team in the area of hemostasis (and cancer). Alternative, strategic efforts to acquire more synergy between the different lines of research will probably help.

Currently mainly PhD students employed; recruitment of foreign postdocs will help to further strengthen international academic reputation. Mentoring of PhD students needs to be further improved.

  , INSERM, Unité 1176, Paris Mr Jean-François Schved, University of Montpellier (representative of the CNU) Scientific delegate representing the HCERES: Mr Joost VAN MEERWIJK Representatives of the unit's supervising institutions and bodies: Ms Emmanuelle CANET-SOULAS (head of the Doctoral School "École Doctorale Inter-Disciplinaire Sciences-Santé" -EDISS -ED n°205) Mr Denis FOUQUE, University Lyon 1 Mr François TEILLARD, Hospices Civils de Lyon 1  Introduction History and geographical location of the unit The research team EA 4174 "Hemostasis, inflammation and sepsis" headed by Mr Claude NÉGRIER originates from the fusion of several pre-existing research teams and groups in 2010. The distinct groups of the team were located on several sites of the Medical Faculty of Lyon, in a joint unit of Hospices Civils de Lyon/bioMérieux, and on the campus of the Veterinary School (VetAgroSup).

Unit workforce Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016

	Unit workforce
	N1: Permanent professors and similar positions	14	3
	N2: Permanent researchers from Institutions and similar positions	1	1
	N3: Other permanent staff (without research duties)	14	4
	N4: Other professors (Emeritus Professor, on-contract Professor, etc.)	4	3
	N5: Other researchers (Emeritus Research Director, Postdoctoral students, visitors, etc.)	1	1
	N6: Other contractual staff (without research duties)		1
	TOTAL N1 to N6	34	13
	Unit workforce	Number as at 30/06/2014	Number as at 01/01/2016
	Doctoral students	12
	Theses defended	5
	Postdoctoral students having spent at least 12 months in the unit
	nomenclature Number of Research Supervisor Qualifications (HDR) taken	2
	SVE1_LS4 Physiology, pathophysiology, medical systems biology Qualified research supervisors (with an HDR) or similar positions	11	4


Evaluation report

This report is the result of the evaluation by the experts committee, the composition of which is specified below.

The assessments contained herein are the expression of an independent and collegial deliberation of the committee.

Unit name:

Laboratory of Microbial Molecular Genetics The LMGM is a CNRS unit associated with University Paul Sabatier Toulouse 3. Together with the Laboratoire de Biologie Moléculaire Eucaryote (LBME), it was created in 1992 after a reorganization of the Centre de Recherche en Biochimie et Génétique Cellulaires (CRBCG). In 2011, a service unit (IBCG) was created to manage the logistics, technic and infrastructure of the building hosting the two units. Both units are part of the FRBT "Fédération de Recherche en Biologie de Toulouse", a federation of the life sciences laboratories created in 2011 on the university campus. The FRBT will evolve towards the creation of the federative structure "Centre de Biologie Intégrative" CBI, a research center on post-genomic integrative biology that will emerge with the construction of a new institute physically linked to IBCG. The research teams of LMGM will be grouped in three themes: Genome expression and adaptative networks, Genome organization and maintenance, Genome evolution and plasticity. Each theme will be under the supervision of a group leader, including the head of the unit. This will allow the organization of a board that will assist the head of the unit for the management of LMGM. 2  Overall assessment of the unit

Management team

HCERES nomenclature

SVSE-LS2 / SVSE-LS1

Unit workforce

Unit workforce

Global assessment of the unit

The Laboratoire de Microbiologie et Génétique Moléculaire has a very good visibility at both the national and international levels. Overall, the productivity of the research groups is very good. The scientific policy of the unit shows a strong internal complementarity and a coherence in the developped scientific themes. A bioinformatic team is well integrated into the unit with the development of several collaborative projects with other groups. Research groups obtained very good success in ANR funding. The groups also beneficiate from a good level of technical support and a high number of PhD students. National and international collaborations have been established in many groups. Scientists from the unit participate actively in teaching and training action at the University in the microbiology field. The unit has set up a Scientific Advisory Board to carry out a review of scientific projects. Significant efforts have been made to orientate some of the projects towards system biology in order to join the Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI) and to position the unit as a major actor of the CBI.

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context

Research groups from LMGM have access to innovative technologies already present in the unit or in the IBCG. The access to other cutting-edge technologies will be facilitated through the implementation of new platforms within the new CBI. This new institute will also help the development of multidisciplinary projects and ease the recruitment of new research groups in LMGM. Because of the departure or retirements of several university professors, the unit should recruit new professors in integrative microbiology.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context

Because several group leaders with international visibility have ceased their activity, the new group leaders will need to gain their own visibility, and particular care will be needed to suppport teams with critical size. Most of the teams have been successful in obtaining ANR grants, but the budget of the unit may also rely more on international funding. Besides, only few postdoc researchers have been recruited on the ANR grants because most of the teams have privileged the recruitement of engineers.

As the CBI will develop multidisciplinary projects involving cell biology, development and neurosciences, LMGM should be a driving force for the development of projects involving the use of microbes.

Recommendations

The committee recommends that LMGM launches new calls for the recruitment of new groups in the field of prokaryotic genome biology. It may facilitate the recruitment of new groups by consolidating attractive package starting grants. Besides, the committee feels that a minimal workforce in research groups should be ensured, i.e. providing technical support, primarily for emerging teams.

A high level of collaboration between groups of the unit should be maintained, and the most competitive groups should apply to EU fundings and to international ANR grants. The collegial management of the unit should be reinforced and the direction should take care about internal communication on LMGM's organization and on the ongoing CBI project. LMGM should participate actively in the board of the CBI to play an important role in definition of the CBI scientifc policy and to ensure the development of multidisciplinary projects involving microbes.

  Mr Jean-François COLLET, Catholic University of Leuwen, Belgium Ms Mariana G PINHO, University of Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal Mr Pierre LEBLOND, University of Lorraine, Vandoeuvre les Nancy (representative of the CNU) Mr Olivier LESPINET, Paris-Sud University, Paris Ms Béatrice PY, CIML, Marseille (representative of the CNRS) Ms Pascale ROMBY, IBMC, Strasbourg Scientific delegate representing the HCERES: Ms Sophie EZINE Representative(s) of the unit's supervising institutions and bodies: Mr Dominique GIORGI, CNRS Ms Sylvie ROQUES, CNRS Mr Alexis VALENTIN, Université Toulouse 3 Mr Philippe VALET (director of the Doctoral School N° 151 "Biologie, Santé et Biotechnologies") 1  Introduction History and geographical location of the unit

  Director: Mr Agamemnon CARPOUSIS Deputy Director: Mr Patrice POLARD (until 11/2014) Project Leader: Mr Patrice POLARD

Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016 N1: Permanent professors

	and similar positions	12	8
	N2: Permanent researchers from Institutions and similar positions	16	13,80
	N3: Other permanent staff (without research duties)	14,40	14,40
	N4: Other professors (Emeritus Professor, on-contract Professor, etc.)		1
	N5: Other researchers (Emeritus Research Director, Postdoctoral students, visitors, etc.)		3
	N6: Other contractual staff (without research duties)	9
	TOTAL N1 to N6	51,40	40,20

Unit workforce Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016

	Doctoral students	10,5
	Theses defended	15
	Postdoctoral students having spent at least 12 months in the unit	5
	Number of Research Supervisor Qualifications (HDR) taken	3
	Qualified research supervisors (with an HDR) or similar positions	15	13

The president of HCERES "countersigns the evaluation reports set up by the experts committees and signed by their chairman." (Article 8, paragraph 5)

The evaluation reports "are signed by the chairman of the expert committee". (Article 11, paragraph 2)


Evaluation report

This report is the result of the evaluation by the experts committee, the composition of which is specified below.

The assessments contained herein are the expression of an independent and collegial deliberation of the committee.

Unit name:

Rongeurs Sauvages, Risques sanitaires et Gestion des Populations

Management team

The unit consists of two teams and is managed by one director (Mr Etienne BENOIT) and two team leaders. 2  Overall assessment of the unit

HCERES

Global assessment of the unit

The unit consists of two teams "Resistance to anti-Vitamin K (AVK)" and "Leptospirosis" that have a common base through their link with wild rats. The teams differ in size and maturity and the transversality is limited, therefore the assessment of the unit as a whole should be interpreted with care. Both teams address independent research questions, in both cases there is a mix of basic studies, applied issues and collaborations with industry. The range of activities is broad, particularly for a group of this size, but both teams have a strong reputation and national and international networks. The productivity in terms of scientific publications is average, but this can be explained by the dissemination restrictions required by the excellent industry collaborations. The unit successfully participates in the education of MSc and PhD students.

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context

The unit has a very good reputation, good networks and visibility and there is an excellent collaboration with the industry. The multidisciplinary research topics allow for flexibility in addressing new aspects as the scientific domain develops.

The unit has a rather unique position in France, and at the European level, in focusing on wild rodents, combining aspects of public health with rodent control and the ecotoxicity considerations linked to that.

A valuable unique asset is the collection of different strains of AVK rodenticide resistant rats which offers opportunities for studies on alternative rodenticides. Resistance against anticoagulant rodenticides is an increasing problem in Europe and since the unit is one of the rare and, in any case, most active groups studying this phenomenon, the unit can further strengthen its leader position in Europe. Since the resistance against AVK anticoagulants shares similar mechanisms in humans, the collaboration with medical research also offers further opportunities for the future.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context

The two teams are, on their own, fairly small (particularly the leptospirosis team) which may constitute a risk for their persistence.

The research vision for the teams separately and particularly for the unit as a whole requires further elaboration.

The age pyramid of the unit is cause of some concern because the mean age of the faculty in the unit is above 50 (but the team leaders are younger). Nearly all faculty are assistant professors with a heavy teaching load, with no dedicated research professors. The technical staff has been gradually decreasing.

Recommendations

The unit should consider whether both teams get sufficient added value out of being part of a joint unit, in addition to the shared biological systems (=rats). There should be a continued attention for more synergic and transversal collaboration between the teams.

The unit must consider increasing the capacity in molecular epidemiology, which will improve the link between rodent control and rodent disease research. The opening of a position in molecular epidemiology has been decided, but the unit must make sure that the appointed assistant professor will be affiliated to the unit, on site; such person will further increase the links with the EPIA unit in Clermont-Ferrand. The unit should also include population dynamics and population genetics into the expertise by strengthening collaboration with experts in these fields.

The unit should work on its international visibility, which is lagging a bit behind given the excellent quality of the research. Efforts should be made to attract more international PhD-students and postdocs and increase the international atmosphere in the unit, including opportunities for the students to practice English language skills. The successful attention for increasing the publication profile (higher IF journals) must be maintained and can be strengthened even further (aiming for papers with a larger impact on the scientific community, stressing the importance of the results for paradigm shifts).

The unit should ensure continued technical staff capacity, in view of coming retirements, and ensure its availability for research activities.

  Francois FAUCHER, CHRU de Besançon Ms Virginie SIGURET, Université Paris Descartes Scientific delegate representing the HCERES: Mr Gabriele SORCI Representatives of the unit's supervising institutions and bodies: Ms Emmanuelle CANET-SOULAS (representative of the Doctoral School « École Doctorale Interdisciplinaire Sciences-Santé » -EDISS -n°205) Mr Thierry PINEAU, INRA Mr Thierry ROGER, VetAgroSup 1  Introduction History and geographical location of the unit The unit was formerly focused on mycotoxin toxicology of xenobiotics, but the research areas moved over the past decade to the study of resistance against anticoagulant rodenticides. After the previous report (2009) the research on mycotoxins was dropped and in 2013 a team studying rodent-borne diseases joined the unit. The name of the unit was accordingly changed to RONGEURS SAUVAGES, RISQUES SANITAIRES ET GESTION DES POPULATIONS in 2013. The research unit is located at VetAgroSup (formerly Lyon Veterinary School).

workforce Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016

  nomenclature

	Principal : SVE1_LS1 Biologie moléculaire et structurale, biochimie
	Secondaire : SVE1_LS6 Immunologie, microbiologie, virologie, parasitologie
	SVE2_LS8 Evolution, écologie, biologie des populations
	Unit workforce
	Unit N5: Other researchers (Emeritus Research Director, Postdoctoral students, visitors, etc.)	1	1
	N6: Other contractual staff (without research duties)	5	4
	TOTAL N1 to

N1: Permanent professors and similar positions 12 11 N2: Permanent researchers from Institutions and similar positions N3: Other permanent staff (without research duties) 9 8

N4: Other professors (Emeritus Professor, on-contract Professor, etc.)

N6 27 Unit workforce Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016

	Doctoral students	9
	Theses defended	10
	Postdoctoral students having spent at least 12 months in the unit	1
	Number of Research Supervisor Qualifications (HDR) taken	3
	Qualified research supervisors (with an HDR) or similar positions	7	7


Evaluation report

This report is the result of the evaluation by the experts committee, the composition of which is specified below.

The assessments contained herein are the expression of an independent and collegial deliberation of the committee.

Unit name:

 Introduction History and geographical location of the unit

The research team is derived from a large team of a former inserm-associated unit that was evaluated in 2010. The research team in its present form has significantly reduced its manpower in order to make it fit with the scientific objectives. The laboratory now totally focusses on endocrine tumors that overexpress G protein-coupled receptors. The laboratory sits in an university building situated within the "Hôpital Rangueil", in Toulouse. 2  Overall assessment of the unit

Management team

Global assessment of the unit

The team is composed of a laboratory director who heads a team of 2 permanent position persons, one research-associate, and one engineer. One additional contract scientist belongs to the group and PhD as well as Master students are present.

The team has reduced its number of scientists in order to focus on a single research axis: endocrine tumors, in which the group studies the presence of overexpressed G protein-coupled receptors that can be used in targeted therapies towards cancer cells.

The laboratory has published a significant number of high impact publications in its field of expertise and has had the opportunity to write review articles, present the work in international meetings as well as in social and economical instances.

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context

Focusing of the research themes has allowed the group to gain impact in the community. The laboratory is now well recognized nationally and internationally for its skills and expertise.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context

The team is under the responsibility of only one research institution, the University Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, whose means to support research are limited. This may hamper future project developments and research successes, especially in the field of targeting tumor cells with magnetic particles, a highly competitive topic.

Recommendations

Partnership(s) with groups with pharmaceutics/nanomedicine expertise to strengthen the translational program outlined in the application.

Merging with already established larger research centers/institutes to guarantee broad accessibility to required advanced equipment, to increase visibility and to support the preclinical translational research (in vivo evaluation).

  luc GALZI, CNRS University of Strasbourg, Illkirch Mr Michael PERRAIS, Lille (representative of the CSS Inserm) Scientific delegate representing the HCERES: Ms Maryam MEHRPOUR Representatives of the unit's supervising institutions and bodies: Ms Armelle BARELLI, délégation régionale de l'Inserm Midi-Pyrénées, Limousin Ms Christelle GUEGAN, délégation régionale de l'Inserm Midi-Pyrénées, Limousin Ms Anne ROCHAT, Inserm Mr Alexis VALENTIN, Université Toulouse 3 Mr Philippe VALET (representative of the Doctoral School n°151)


3

Evaluation report

This report is the result of the evaluation by the experts committee, the composition of which is specified below.

The assessments contained herein are the expression of an independent and collegial deliberation of the committee.

Unit name:

Individualisation of treatment of ovarian and head and neck cancers The unit -EA 4553 -was created in January 2011 following its assessment by the "Conseil Scientifique" of the "Université Paul-Sabatier" (May 2010), and then the "Ministère de l'Éducation Supérieure et de la Recherche" (December 2010).

The focus of research in the unit was the individualization of treatment in head and neck and ovarian cancers. This main objective was explored in two complementary ways: "Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic modeling for dose individualisation" and "Analysis of the ovarian tumor microenvironment".

For the next 5-year period, a collective decision was made to split the two subgroups of the unit: Mr Jean-Pierre DELORD and Ms Bettina COUDERC who led the subgroup "microenvironment" are going to join an Inserm research team "PI3K isoforms, Signalling & Cancerogenesis" in the Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Toulouse (CRCT). The members of the subgroup "Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic modeling for dose individualisation" have decided to create a new unit, whose name would be: "Dose individualization of anticancer drugs". 2  Overall assessment of the unit

Management team

Global assessment of the unit

This unit is at the forefront in cancer pharmacology. The unit has made significant contributions to the pharmacology of conventional cytotoxic anticancer drugs, notably platinum complexes and fluoropyrimidines; work on carboplatin being impressive. The unit was amongst the first in the world to demonstrate the importance of pharmacological studies in the clinical development of targeted anticancer drugs. The integration of both pharmacokinetic and pharmacogenetic studies is a particular strength of the group, and has allowed novel insights into the underlying basis of drug side effects. This latter research, as well as studies involving therapeutic drug monitoring and adaptive dosing, has been of direct and significant patient benefit. It should be noted that the team has recently coordinated/participated to several national or regional PHRC studies (Programme Hospitalier de Recherche Clinique). Moreover, with the recent relocation of the unit to the Oncopole site, the group will have access to excellent research facilities in which to undertake the proposed program of research. In particular, the unit will be able to benefit from the opportunity to develop effective collaborations with other teams within CRCT (Cancer Research Center of Toulouse). Lastly, the unit makes a significant contribution to research training at the local and national level, and is involved in the organization of international congresses.

The unit will benefit from the recruitment of additional postgraduate students and postdoctoral staff. This should be facilitated in the near future, through the efforts of the young assistant professors in the team and their objective of increasing of the number of "Habilitation to Drive Researches" (HDR). The unit's publications are impressive given that there are no full-time researchers (all of the academic staff are junior assistant professors reporting to Mr Étienne CHATELUT), and that all the academic and technical staff have important teaching and clinical responsibilities.

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context

The unit has significant strengths in pharmacokinetics and modeling which are applied to excellent effect in local studies and in clinical trial consortia (PHRC). The recent relocation of the unit to the Oncopole site will provide significant new opportunities. The enthusiasm and dedication of staff at all levels was particularly impressive.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context

A weakness of the unit is the limited size of the group, and the proposed staff increases are supported to avoid threats to the viability of the unit. Also, participation to European projects (which is amongst the objectives of the team) would definitely help to further increase its international visibility.

  , Northen Institute for Cancer Research, Newcastle upon Tyne, United-Kingdom Experts: Mr Bruno LACARELLE, Service de Pharmacologie et Toxicologie, CHU Timone, Marseille Mr Antoine OUVRARD-PASCAUD, University of Rouen (representative of the CSS Inserm) Mr Saik URIEN, CIC URC Paris, Centre Necker-Cochin Scientific delegate representing the HCERES: Mr Bernard DASTUGUE Representatives of the unit's supervising institutions and bodies: Ms Marie-Josephe LEROY-ZAMIA, Inserm Mr Alexis VALENTIN, Université Paul-Sabatier Mr Philippe VALET (representative of the Doctoral School n°151 Biologie -Santé -Biotechnologies de Toulouse) 1  Introduction History and geographical location of the unit

N6 13 Unit Workforce Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016

	Project leader: Mr Étienne CHATELUT HCERES NOMENCLATURE SVE1_LS7 Unit Workforce Unit Workforce N1: Permanent professors and similar positions N2: Permanent researchers from Institutions and similar positions N3: Other permanent staff (without research duties) N4: Other professors (Emeritus Professor, on-contract Professor, etc.) N5: Other researchers from Institutions (Emeritus Research Director, Postdoctoral students, visitors, etc.) N6: Other contractual staff (without research duties) Theses defended Postdoctoral students having spent at least 12 months in the unit Number of Research Supervisor Qualifications (HDR) taken TOTAL N1 to Doctoral students Qualified research supervisors (with an HDR) or similar positions	Number as at 30/06/2014 8 1 4 3 2 2 1 6	Number as at 01/01/2016 6 1 5 4

Recommendations

The unit should maintain its focus on pharmacokinetics (PK) and modeling whilst strengthening collaborative links with clinical and translational researchers in the Oncopole. The unit should provide more details about possible technical and scientific collaborations with other teams within the CRCT (Cancer Research Center of Toulouse).

The unit must realize its objectives of training more postgraduate students (through increasing the number of HDRs) and expanding capacity in modeling. The recruitment and development of more junior post-doctoral staff will ensure the future viability of the unit and maintain its international standing. A current collaboration with a young researcher in Canada, previously a post-doctoral fellow in the team, illustrates the importance of international interactions and how these can contribute to the progress of specific aspects of the research program.

The unit would benefit from the involvement of the unit leader in additional university councils, beyond his current involvement in local ethics and clinical trials committees, that are involved in decisions concerning research priorities and resource allocation.


 Introduction History and geographical location of the unit

The Laboratoire d'Annecy-le-Vieux de Physique des Particules (LAPP), is a combined research unit of CNRS and the Université de Savoie Mont Blanc since 1995. It is located at Annecy-le-Vieux, 50km away from CERN, and It has been founded in 1976 by a group of experimentalists and theorists (they created their own laboratory LAPTh later) from Paris, who were attracted by the CERN vicinity. The main field of research is the physics of elementary particles, their interactions, and their impact on the universe we live in today. Both laboratories, LAPP and LAPTh, share the same premises, ~8500m 2 built on 40000m 2 of land. Between 2009 and 2014, a total of ~140 people worked at LAPP, 30 CNRS researchers, 9 faculty, 75 engineers, technicians and administrative staff, 8 postdocs, 12 students, and many visitors.

The history of LAPP is strongly correlated with CERN's activities. It begins at the end of the 70's with experiments at the PS, the ISR and the SPS (EMC, GAMS, …), followed by UA1 at the proton-antiproton collider in the 80's, and the discovery of the W and Z bosons. At the same time, the neutrino physics has been initiated and the laboratory played an important role on the Bugey experiment followed later by CHOOZ and NOMAD. In the 90's, the laboratory focused on the ALEPH and L3 experiments at LEP, and participated in many high precision measurements. In parallel an important R&D program on LAr calorimeters is launched, for the LHC. During the same period the laboratory opens a new domain, astroparticle physics, and initiates new programs on gravitational waves (Virgo), and charged and neutral cosmic ray observations (AMS, HESS) and measurements. By the end of the 90's the laboratory joins BaBar at SLAC and OPERA at the Grand Sasso. By that time about half of the scientific activity is not related to CERN. After a long investment in R&D, construction and commissioning of the LHC experiments ATLAS, LHCb and initially CMS, came the time for the first discovery, the Higgs boson, and high precision measurements. The contribution of LAPP to all these experimental programs is important and renowned worldwide.

Today the laboratory addresses most of the fundamental problems of physics: is there any new physics and new phenomena beyond the Standard Model, what is the nature of dark matter, neutrino oscillations, mass hierarchy and CP violation, gravitational waves. The scientific program is very rich and promising for the future.

Management team

The laboratory management team is composed of four persons: the director, the deputy director, the technical director, and the administrative director. The team is supported by a personal assistant. A laboratory and scientific council advise the director on important or daily issues and scientific matters. 2  Overall assessment of the unit

HCERES nomenclature

Global assessment of the unit

The research unit has successfully established and maintained a high-level research programme that capitalises on the technical excellence of the laboratory. The technical expertise is also supported by the regional prevalence of schools and companies specialising in mechanics and controls. The research unit also profits from the vicinity to CERN that both provides excellent science opportunities and inspires advanced technical and scientific developments to the mutual benefit of both institutions. These were the arguments that led to founding the institute in 1976 and they continue to be valid at the time of modern communication tools where seemingly distance matters less.

The research unit is tightly linked to the Université de Savoie Mont Blanc, which supports a number of staff positions at the laboratory and provides teaching opportunities albeit typically at the bachelor level for physics. The Doctoral School is realised with the slightly more distant Université de Grenoble. The unit is a partner in the newly created excellence cluster ENIGMASS which includes the LAPP and the LAPTh (Annecy), the LPSC (Grenoble) and the LSM (Modane), joining their scientific efforts to focus on the origin of the mass and its diverse implications.

The strategy of the research unit is well developed and centres around two flagship projects at CERN (ATLAS and LHCb), complemented by existing and emerging projects in neutrino physics and a possible linear collider. The laboratory has also expanded into astroparticle physics notably gamma-ray detection (HESS&CTA) and cosmic rays (AMS) where the mechanical and controls expertise is superbly applied and where the physics provides opportunities for collaboration with the theory department -as it does for the LHC experiments. In addition there has been a longstanding activity in gravitational wave detection in the Pisa-based experiment Virgo, which is now entering the commissioning phase of its advanced state, which requires meticulous attention. For the future there may be excellent opportunities for well-measured contributions to cosmology, which arise from the availability of worldexperts and interests in theoretical developments.

On the experimental side the contributions evolve from the expertise on calorimetry, best demonstrated in the contributions to the ATLAS experiment where the responsibility for the LAr calorimeter has been systematically applied and benefited respective physics analyses.

Overall, the physics programme is broad and well balanced. It promises rewarding results for the future and fosters a sound education of young researchers.

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context

The ATLAS and LHCb activities are well imbedded in all aspects of the experiment from conceiving a detector component, building and commissioning it and analysing the data. Similar ownership of the experimental analysis is realised in the research unit's contribution to the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS), where the fruits of the longstanding contribution can now be reaped. The AMS control centre is at CERN. The research unit has been instrumental in the measurement programme of the gravitational wave experiment Virgo, both in continuously optimizing the sensitivity and in proposing technical innovations. With its technical expertise the team holds a prominent position amongst other French Virgo collaborating institutes; this position could be even strengthened by closer collaborating with their partners in France to minimise the overall effort.

Accelerator instrumentation R&D has only been added relatively recently (in 2002) to the portfolio of activities. The topic is well supported by an adequate number of engineering staff and has attracted an outstanding fraction of third party funding. The research activities have been wisely selected and naturally evolved from their beginnings. The contributions to the topic of ultra-precise mechanical stabilisation of accelerator components in particular are renowned and meanwhile called for by groups outside of accelerator applications. The vicinity to CERN is an asset.

The research unit has recently profited from the establishment of two new additions, a joint computing infrastructure (MUST) and a new building (Maison de la Mécatronique) successfully established a high-level research programme that capitalises on the technical excellence of the laboratory.

The technical expertise is also fostered by a number of regional schools, which provide for teaching opportunities, which possibly could be intensified. The lack of Doctoral Schools at Université de Savoie Mont Blanc, however, calls for additional flexibility, as is, e.g. realised with the Université de Grenoble.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context

The technical expertise at the research unit is outstanding and the fraction of engineer and technician personnel is high. In contrast it is not always obvious that this high-level of expertise is sufficiently exploited in physics analyses. In fact, often only one single research physicist is available for a specific topic; a risky situation since the layout and optimisation of experiments should be guided by the physics requirements.

There are common topics between the experiments; a trivial one to be named is the analysis of heavy flavours at the LHC by the ATLAS and LHCb groups. In such cases, an open exchange of ideas and analysis techniques could be beneficial.

Progress in physics is often driven by the motivation of young researchers; in fact, a healthy mix of young and experienced physicists is most important. Given the limitations of higher physics education at the Université de Savoie Mont Blanc and the distance to Université de Grenoble a special effort has to be made to attract students. Such an effort is underway.

Recommendations

The research unit has an outstanding and sound strategy, which was arrived at through an internal consultation process. New opportunities through the COMUE (Communauté d'Universités et Établissements) Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA) need to be seized to position the research unit for successful applications in competitive IDEX excellence programmes. In fact the PAGE research pole (Particles Astrophysics Geoscience and Ecology) initiative already made a good start and is driven by the research unit. The relevance of this engagement is emphasised both to maintain the excellent standing in France and worldwide but also to attract students on a national scale. The research at the unit is internationally renowned and highly competitive and this excellence should not be dampened by its peripheral position in France. In fact, the vicinity to CERN and universities in Switzerland may help to improve the embedding in high-level physics teaching and strengthen the position in the competitive process of student recruitment. Given its location in France the laboratory has to apply unusual methods to attract young researchers and not to suffer from a position of isolation. The contact to other French laboratories should be maintained at all levels.

Research projects have been carefully selected and there is a healthy mix of increasing and declining engagements as the experiments go through their life cycles. The engineering and technical staffs are fully engaged in this process and often drive the success of existing projects and help develop realistic new projects. Matrix organisation is at life, both for engineers and scientists. The large group of technicians and engineers is a bonus and a distinction. This level should be maintained.

The university department supports post-doc positions, which is much appreciated. Actively guiding students towards such positions would create even bigger benefits for the university and the laboratory itself. The Labex-ENIGMASS initiative helps already.

To date the research unit does not host regular external scientific reviews (apart from this HCERES review which is rare). Other laboratories call for a review of their programme by external experts once or twice a year. It should be considered whether such an initiative would strengthen the coherence of the activities and help arrive at critical decisions.


3

Evaluation report

This report is the result of the evaluation by the experts committee, the composition of which is specified below.

The assessments contained herein are the expression of an independent and collegial deliberation of the committee. , 1991), before developing into the current independent Unité Mixte de Recherche (LAPTh, 1999), depending both on CNRS and Université de Savoie (UdS). In the process, despite relatively large distances (Chambéry or CERN: 50km, Grenoble: 130km, Lyon: 150km), LAPTh has built and kept strong scientific relations with theorists at CERN and Lyon, with high-energy experimentalists of both neighbouring LAPP and CERN, while assuming strong teaching roles in Chambéry, Lyon and Grenoble.

Unit name:

The last five years period has been marked by an increasing partnership with Grenoble, first through affiliation to the Grenoble Doctoral School for Physics, then through joint scientific projects, which led to the successful Labex project ENIGMASS. This proactive strategy intelligently anticipated the ministry request for associating all Grenoble and Chambéry universities inside a single structure "COMUE Université de Grenoble -Alpes" (UGA), encouraged by an Initiative D'EXcellence (IDEX) call for which a project is currently under construction.

Management team

The management team consists of a Director, a Deputy Director, and the Head of Administration. It is regularly (4-5 times/year) advised by the Laboratory Council containing all members of the unit, including the non-permanent ones, which have been present for at least one year, and following carefully thought Rules of Procedures. A scientific Advisory Board consisting of the director, the team leaders and one internationally recognized scientist per team has further been created. It can be consulted anytime between its regular meetings every other year during the lab retreat. The director and two team leaders will change for the next five-year period. 2  Overall assessment of the unit

HCERES nomenclature

ST2-Physique

Unit workforce

Unit workforce

Global assessment of the unit

Despite a relatively small size, LAPTh has undoubtedly become one of the best laboratories for Theoretical Physics in France. Its important scientific production is regular and well-balanced between the three teams, each earning a solid worldwide reputation in particle physics, astro-particle and cosmology, or mathematical physics. This recognition has significantly progressed since the last evaluation, and helped reinforcing a rich network of collaborations, projects, workshops and conferences at the French, European and world-wide level, without dropping the fruitful relations with neighbouring LAPP and "local" CERN.

The dynamical and successful policy for grant applications has allowed to host an unusually large number of high quality PhD students, post-docs and visitors. A very good atmosphere helps the fast integration of these newcomers, and stimulates exchanges, also between permanent members. Competent administrative staff further contributes to the quality of life at LAPTh.

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context

The unit possesses strong and often leading expertise in each team, with good synergies between them.

The particle and astro-particle teams are very well prepared for the phenomenological exploitation of coming experimental data.

The unit enjoys an excellent international visibility and well-thought regional connections with LAPP, CERN, Lyon and Grenoble, the latter being boosted by the Labex ENIGMASS success.

The Université Grenoble-Alpes and IDEX projects with Grenoble constitute excellent opportunities to build upon this success.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context

The strategy mismatch between Université de Savoie and CNRS, both of which LAPTh is depending on, is a major source of uncertainty for the future positioning and development of the unit in the regional high-education and research landscape.

The retirement of one quarter of its permanent members over the next ten years, combined with the long-term leaves and subsequent departures of excellent (and thus mobile) elements, may strongly weaken the unit if not balanced by hirings.

It is difficult to invest in a "natural", i.e. local and steady, source of good students.

LAPTh is encouraged to keep and cherish its lively atmosphere and visitor program, and to consolidate its strong scientific connections with CERN, LAPP, as well as with LPSC in Grenoble. The ending of the Labex ENIGMASS must therefore be anticipated to prepare the following period.

The committee fully supports the view that the UGA and IDEX projects are strategic opportunities in which LAPTh has advantages that it should exploit.

Concerning the important issue of long term leaves by CNRS staff raised in the report, the committee has little help to offer other than insisting this is definitely a problem for CNRS to cope seriously with, and keep in mind at times where hirings are too scarce to naturally offer a source of compensation. To the unit, there can be no other recommendation than to continue supporting the best possible candidates, even if those may be more likely to obtain leaves or higher positions elsewhere. Another policy would not have brought LAPTh so far.

As maintaining the research potential of the unit requires about five hirings in the next period, every effort should be made to recruit at least three permanent staff members, most urgently one on particle cosmology and one on the interface between integrable systems and quantum field theory.

  Mr Niklas BEISERT, ETH Zurich, Switzerland Mr Nicolao FORNENGO, University of Torino, Italy Mr Gregory SOYEZ, CNRS, CEA Saclay (representative of the CoNRS) Scientific delegate representing the HCERES: Mr Marc KNECHT Representative(s) of the unit's supervising institutions and bodies: Mrs Karine ARGENTO, CNRS Mr Johann COLLOT (Director of Doctoral School n°47) Mr Roman KOSSAKOWSKI, Université de Savoie Mr Bart VAN TIGGELEN, Institut de Physique of CNRS 1  Introduction History and geographical location of the unit From a theory team inside the High-Energy experimental laboratory LAPP created in 1976 close to CERN, the group successfully developed into a joint laboratory with ENS Lyon (ENSLAPP

Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016 N1: Permanent professors

	and similar positions	7	7
	N2: Permanent researchers from Institutions and similar positions	12	11
	N3: Other permanent staff (without research duties)	5 [4.4]	5 [4.4]
	N4: Other professors (Emeritus Professor, on-contract Professor, etc.)
	N5: Other researchers from Institutions (Emeritus Research Director, Postdoctoral students, visitors, etc.)	7	6
	N6: Other contractual staff
	(without research duties)
	TOTAL N1 to N6	31	29

Unit workforce Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016

	Doctoral students	6
	Theses defended	17
	Postdoctoral students having spent at least 12 months in the unit	9
	Number of Research Supervisor Qualifications (HDR) taken	5
	Qualified research supervisors (with an HDR) or similar positions	17	16


president Didier Houssin

Daniel Aberdam

Evaluation report

This report is the result of the evaluation by the experts committee, the composition of which is specified below.

The assessments contained herein are the expression of an independent and collegial deliberation of the committee.

Unit name

Différenciation Epidermique et Autoimmunité Rhumatoïde In 2011, the unit has been created with a double labeling Inserm/CNRS with the same director as single research team (mono-équipe) (Inserm U1056/UMR 5165 CNRS). The present application is a renewal of this "mono-equipe" team under the two labels with the integration of an UPS team EA 4555 co-headed by an ophthalmologist and a geneticist.

The unit locates within a renovated CNRS building in the heart of the Biological Research square of the University-Hospital of Purpan. Close proximity to Core facility plateforms and clinicical departments of the clinicans of the unit.

Management team

The laboratory has been headed by the same director since 1991. For the present renewal application, they suggest a deputy director (DR2 Inserm). Both have worked together for many years and this organization anticipates well the retirement of the director at the end of the 5 next years. The sharing spots between them and the rest of the unit is well described and defined. 2  Overall assessment of the unit

HCERES nomenclature

SVE1 LS6

Unit workforce

Unit workforce

Global assessment of the unit

The present application is a renewal of a "mono-équipe" unit with on-going projects that have been quite successful during the last 4 years. It mainly focused on identification and characterization of proteins involved in the late stages of keratinocyte terminal differentiation and related skin and joint pathologies (Rheumatoid arthritis, Atopic Dermatitis). Each of the three teams has published satisfyingly, raised financial supports (industries, national and European grants) and deposited patents (no information on licencing was provided).

The integration of a new team leaded by an ophtalmologist and a geneticist is a challenge, as it does not appear obvious that their reseach topics are synergical to these developed by UDEAR. But the visit committee felt that there is a strong will of UDEAR members to integrate the new team to the ongoing technologies for the development of scientific synergy, mainly on epthelial differentiation (skin and cornea) and implant genetic strategies.

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context

-Presence of 2 PU-PH specialized in dermatology with internationally recognized expertise in disease related to the scientific field of epidermal barrier and keratinocyte differentiation. Through their involvement in national and international networks, both are real added value in developing translational studies (from bedside to bench). The rheumatoid arthritis (RA) team has a longstanding and internationally recognized role in anti-citrullinated protein antibodies and their role in RA. A strength of the approach is the translational nature of the research proposal with patient centered work.

-Very good to excellent track record both for basic research and clinical research: best specialty journals in dermatology and rheumatology with members at first/last authors (J Invest Dermatol, Br J Dermatol, J Am Acad Dermatol, Ann Rheum Dis) and very good general scientific publications (J Cell Science, 2014).

-Excellent industrial valorisation and collaboration with industrial partners (Fabre, Chanel, Biomérieux, Novimmune) leading to numerous patents and major industrial contracts.

-Relevance of the proposed project in which collaborations with group 1 and group 2, as well as with geneticists and ophthalmologists (from the current EA 4555) will be largely developed and optimized. It is to note that there is scientific relevance in developing the same methodological approaches for studying both eye and skin epithelia pathological models, so there may be good research opportunities for cross-fertilization among different teams.

-Optimized easy access to technical facilities. Sharing in common technicians from UDEAR with the close CPTP unit is a pertinent local strategy.

-Strong and internationally recognized expertise in the scientific fields proposed in the 4 thematic groups acknowledged by involvement of UDEAR members in national, international (ANR) and international (E2BRN; COST "Skin barrier in Atopic disease") networks.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context

No recruitment of researchers in the last 5 years, neither from local promotion nor from external recruitment.

-The number of post-doctoral fellows is too low (one French in 5 years and no foreign scientists).

-The RA project, largely based on the design of a specific algorithm, could be a weakness if the computer programming expertise is not solved in-house.

Recommendations

-UDEAR should propose clear strategies for recruiting researchers in the next years.

-Even if UDEAR has demonstrated real competence in establishing industrial contracts, obtaining public funds would be of great interest in order to strengthen links with other units specialized in the UDEAR scientific topics. This should result in higher impact outcomes for the unit.

  Mr Jean-Christophe BORIES, Institut universitaire d'hématologie, Paris (representative of the CoNRS) Ms Nathalie CHARNAUX, Laboratory of vascular translational science, Paris (representative of the CNU) Mr Dirk ELEWAUT, University of Ghent, Belgium Ms Agnès LEHUEN, Institut Cochin, Paris (representative of the INSERM CSS) Mr Daniel SCHORDERET, Université de Lausanne, Switzerland Scientific delegate representing the HCERES: Ms Sophie EZINE Representative(s) of the unit's supervising institutions and bodies: Ms Armelle BARELLI, délégation régionale INSERM MPL Ms Christelle GUEGAN, délégation régionale INSERM MPL Mr Bruno LUCAS, CNRS Ms Virginie Mahdi, délégation régionale du CNRS Ms Armelle REGNAULT, AVIESAN Ms Anne ROCHAT, INSERM Mr Alexis Valentin, Université Toulouse 3 Mr Philippe VALET (director of the Doctoral School 151 Biologie, Santé et Biotechnologies) 1  Introduction History and geographical location of the unit UMR 5165 CNRS was created in 2003 and rewed in 2007 with the two major thematics of skin barrier and Rhumatoid autoimmunity, still present in the ongoing unit.

Unit workforce Number as at 30/06/2014 Number as at 01/01/2016

	Doctoral students	4
	Theses defended	10
	Postdoctoral students having spent at least 12 months in the unit	1
	Number of Research Supervisor Qualifications (HDR) taken	0
	Qualified research supervisors (with an HDR) or similar positions	4	10
		Number as at	Number as at
		30/06/2014	01/01/2016
	N1: Permanent professors and similar positions	4 (1.2)	10 (2.8)
	N2: Permanent researchers from Institutions and similar positions	4 (3.9)	4 (3.5)
	N3: Other permanent staff (without research duties)	11 (10.15)	11 (10)
	N4: Other professors (Emeritus Professor, on-contract Professor, etc.)
	N5: Other researchers from Institutions
	(Emeritus Research Director, Postdoctoral students, visitors, etc.)
	N6: Other contractual staff
	(without research duties)
	TOTAL N1 to N6	19 (15,25)	25 (16,3)

signed by their chairman.


Jan Mr

Traas

Teva Mr

Vernoux

Ms Jane Langdale

This report is the result of the evaluation by the experts committee, the composition of which is specified below.

As of 2014, RDP was composed of 46 permanent staff (including 23 technicians and 23 professors, assistant professors (with teaching obligations) and research directors and researchers (with no teaching obligations)). This permanent staff is assisted by 17 PhD students and 17 postdocs plus 12 technicians hired on a temporary basis. The RDP has in house molecular and cell biology facilities including imaging and modelling. It is located on the ENS campus at Gerland (Lyon), and occupies presently 1,800 m 2 , including a single 250 m 2 greenhouse and an expanding number of growth chambers. An additional greenhouse is planned for the near future. Due to lab space constraints, it was decided to limit the team sizes to 13 researchers, students and technicians. In 2013 the RDP's total budget amounted to approximately 5.6 million Euros with 61 % of this amount consisting of permanent position salaries from the funding bodies (CNRS, ENS, INRA, University of Lyon) and a further 17 % comprising temporary staff salaries. RDP belongs to the SFR Biosciences (UMS3444/US8), a research federation effort which aims to coordinate local research policies on Gerland/Charles Mérieux campus. It is also affiliated to the Doctoral School ED 340 : "Biologie Moléculaire, Intégrative et Cellulaire" (BMIC). The main research focus of RDP is the multidisciplinary study of plant reproduction and development.

Management team

Since 2007, the RDP unit has been directed by Dr Jan TRAAS / Dr Teva VERNOUX respectively as director/deputy director with the assistance of the group leaders within the direction team. The general administration and financial services are managed by two permanent INRA and CNRS administrators. The management team is assisted by the laboratory council and the general assembly of all personnel that is held at least once a year. At the end of the current evaluation period, RDP encompassed 7 scientific research teams with a high level of scientific autonomy, each of which was managed by a group leader. For the next period, the same team management structure is proposed with Dr Teva VERNOUX as the elected future director. Dr Teva VERNOUX plans to be assisted by two deputy directors (Ms Gwyneth INGRAM and Mr Arezki BOUDAOUD) and also by a yet to be appointed Scientific Advisory Board. The unit has established itself as a centre for excellence and has become one of the primary research institutes for plant developmental biology in Europe. The unit relies strongly on multidisciplinary approaches and has great synergies between research teams. All of the research teams have been highly successful at winning competitive funding, and in many cases the unit's researchers have been setting the research agenda for the field. A number of the scientific outputs over the last five years have been ground-breaking, and innovative approaches have created new tools that are used around the world. The general culture across the unit is outstanding, with members at all levels feeling valued. In addition to its major contribution to research, the unit makes a substantial contribution to undergraduate teaching and provides a truly international training environment for graduate students and postdocs.

HCERES nomenclature

Sous domaine AEE (Agronomie

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context significant expansion and improvement since last evaluation;

  , INRA, Angers (representative of the CSS INRA) Mr Liam DOLAN, University of Oxford, UK Ms Cristina FERRANDIZ, CSIC, Spain Ms Laurence LEJAY, INRA, Montpellier (representative of the CoNRS) Mr Richard NAPIER, University of Warwick, UK Mr Jerzy PASZKOWSKI, Sainsbury Laboratory, UK Mr Bruno TOURAINE, Université de Montpellier (representative of the CNU) Scientific delegate representing the HCERES: Mr Steven BALL Representatives of the unit's supervising institutions and bodies: Mr Philippe DUGOURD, Université Claude Bernard -Lyon 1 Mr Frédéric GAYMARD, département BAP, INRA Ms Françoise MONEGER (representative of Doctoral Scool « Biologie Moléculaire, Intégrative et Cellulaire » -BMIC -ED n°340) Mr Yanick RICARD, ENS-Lyon 1  Introduction History and geographical location of the unit The RDP (Reproduction et Développement des plantes) laboratory was founded by Mr Christian DUMAS in 1993. It is a joint research unit (UMR), funded by ENSLyon, CNRS, INRA and the UCBL1 (University of Lyon).

  spent at least 12 months in the unit 17 Number of Research Supervisor Qualifications (HDR) taken 5 Qualified research supervisors (with an HDR) or similar positions 13 13 2  Overall assessment of the unit Global assessment of the unit

inclusive and dynamic atmosphere across the entire unit that promotes and reinforces synergies;

substantial scientific achievements provide opportunity to increase international reputation and recruitment.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context space constraints (in terms of both laboratory and plant growth facilities); any strategic expansion needs to be managed carefully to retain coherence and synergies of the unit.

Recommendations

Considering the significant responsibilities associated with the role, the new directors should be provided with management training (as soon as possible) so that together they can develop a robust strategy for the next five years. Ongoing mentoring/support should be offered so that they are able to successfully implement the strategy.

If confirmed that the plant biology ENS Professor position would be returned to RDP when the current post holder retires, as implied during the exchanges between the ENS representative and the evaluation committee, RDP should develop a clear strategy for replacement as a matter of urgency, and initiate the ensuing search for candidates as soon as possible.

To ensure independence of the unit, modelling activities should be reinforced through the recruitment of a new group.

More coherent strategies should be developed and implemented for i) industry liaison, ii) intellectual property, iii) outreach, and iv) increasing international recognition/appreciation of the unit.

If the Interdisciplinary Center for Cell and Developmental Biology (ICB) is formed, any operational structure should not compromise the preeminence of RDP.

Discussions should be initiated with ENS and the University to enable teaching loads of academic employees to be redistributed to other researchers in the unit who wish to teach.

The management team should have oversight of grant applications to ensure that the funds requested are adequate to cover administrative and technical support costs.

ENS should ensure minimal disruption to the unit's activities during refurbishment of new space (the ENS representative confirmed this commitment to the evaluation committee).


3

Evaluation report

This report is the result of the evaluation by the experts committee, the composition of which is specified below.

The assessments contained herein are the expression of an independent and collegial deliberation of the committee.

Unit name:

Host Pathogens Interactions

Management team

During the previous evaluation period (2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014) 2  Overall assessment of the unit

Global assessment of the unit

This excellent Unit has decided to focus on three research themes (Evolution,virulence and emergence of pathogens; Understanding the infectious process and the host response; Contribution to a better control of diseases). The panel was impressed about the volume and amount of research income awarded to the Unit showing national and international collaborations and publications.

The research activities, all together, appear to be of high qualities but the committee has noted disparate achievements between themes which should be compensated by good practice and cross-sub-unit training.

The unit has a good involvement within the PGR activities of the Doctoral Schools SEVAB (n°458) and BSB (n°151) but the number of students, in particular those from BSB, appears low with a reduced number of PhD vivas in the last two years.

The unit has a good involvement with a large number of MSc courses but the volume of teaching hours appears low for the size of the Unit. The Unit is heavily involved in ENVT teaching/training activities.

Members of the unit have good dissemination at conferences and on publications but not always as senior authors.

Strengths and opportunities in relation to the context -Top Know how;

-research activities on prions are influencing national and European health standards; -very strong integration within the socio-economic context and animal health issues at regional, national and European levels; -integrated approaches of animal wellbeing; -strong support from Funding Bodies; -quality of publications; -participation to many national and european research consortia; -collaborative work with private/industrial companies.

Weaknesses and threats related to the context -Original and recent matrix approach aiming at organising the research activities which does not translate into a clear managerial framework and specific scientific issues;

-bottleneck activities such as bioinformatics will need to be addressed to improve capabilities; -tackling distinct, although related, highly competitive scientific issues without sharp focus and/or critical mass and/or know how; -a low ratio PGR students (PhDs and M2 students)/staff full time employees; -majority of researchers are not senior authors for outputs; -contingency plans for staff replacement.

Recommendations

The unit should promote grant writing training workshops to support junior staff to win quickly research grants.

There should be an increasing involvement with doctoral training schools.

  , Institut Pasteur, Paris Mr Ronald MELKI, CNRS, Gif sur Yvette (representative of INRA CSS) Mr Henri-Jean BOULOUIS, ENVA, Maisons Alfort Scientific delegate representing the HCERES: Mr Gabriele SORCI Representatives of the unit's supervising institutions and bodies: Mr Thierry PINEAU, INRA Mr Alain MILON, ENVT Mr Hervé REMIGNON (representative of the Doctoral School SEVAB -n°458) Mr Philippe VALET (representative of the Doctoral School BSB -n°151) 1  Introduction History and geographical location of the unit The Joint Research Unit (JRU) Host Pathogen Interactions is based in the ENVT in Toulouse. This Unit was created in 2003 based on the merge of two previous units.

  the Director of this unit was Mr Francois SCHELCHER (PR1 ENVT), supported by Ms Christine CITTI (DR2 INRA) as his deputy Director.

	HCERES nomenclature
	SVE1_LS6 Immunologie, microbiologie, virologie, parasitologie
	SVE1_LS2 Génétique, génomique, bioinformatique
	SVE1_LS7 Epidémiologie, santé publique, recherche clinique, technologies biomédicales
	Unit workforce
	Unit workforce	Number as at 30/06/2014	Number as at 01/01/2016
	N1: Permanent professors and similar positions	20	18
	N2: Permanent researchers from Institutions and similar positions	7	8
	N3: Other permanent staff (without research duties)	25	23
	N4: Other professors (Emeritus Professor, on-contract Professor, etc.)	2	1
	N5: Other researchers (Emeritus Research Director, Postdoctoral students, visitors, etc.)	1	3
	N6: Other contractual staff (without research duties)	11	12
	TOTAL N1 to N6	66	65
	Unit workforce	Number as at 30/06/2014	Number as at 01/01/2016
	Doctoral students	12
	Theses defended	21
	Postdoctoral students having spent at least 12 months in the unit	1
	Number of Research Supervisor Qualifications (HDR) taken	2
	Qualified research supervisors (with an HDR) or similar positions	21	23

The president of HCERES "countersigns the evaluation reports set up by the experts committees and signed by their chairman." (Article 8, paragraph 5)

The evaluation reports "are signed by the chairman of the expert committee". (Article 11, paragraph 2)

6

Thematic research activities should be better defined in terms of focus.

Researchers should have more involvement with grant evaluation panels, international prizes and responsibilities to develop the international dimension of the Unit.

The relocation in a new building should enhance cross fertilization among researchers to sustain thematic approaches and create shared facilities and human resources.

Such transversal approach should rely on existing strengths to build up on future developments and identify common and complementary needs and expertise, capacities and facilities gaps.

The unit should think and define thoroughly the needs in terms of large data set exploitation, identify what profile meets best with the needs of the Unit.

The unit should advertise and attract/recruit a group with expertise in bioinformatics, which research activities can i) benefit from research carried out within one or more of the three research axis of the unit, ii) bring expertise and assistance to exploit the genomic and proteomic data sets generated within the Unit.