STSM
Short Term Scientific Missions (STSM) are exchange visits to support individual mobility, strengthen existing networks and foster collaboration between COST Action Participants. A STSM should specifically contribute to the scientific objectives of the COST Action, whilst simultaneously allowing those partaking in the missions to learn new techniques, gain access to specific data, instruments and/or methods not available in their own institutions.
Within NECTAR, STSM are one of the networking tools to achieve the scopes of the Action, which are to create a network based on the stimulating collaboration between research groups, to promote knowledge exchange, and to achieve high technological progress in the field of the thermodynamic study of chemical equilibria.
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Short-Term Scientific Mission are visits of a researcher or innovator to a host organization located in a different country than the country of affiliation (for Affiliation, see Article 4.1.1.1.1 on
Annotated Rules for COST Actions document) for specific work to be carried out and for a determined period of time. STSM are valuable i) for the STSM Grantee, that has the chance to receive funding for implementing a project with an international team, obtaining new knowledge or access to equipment or techniques not available in the home institution; ii) for the STSM Host that can receive an international partner in their institution and extend or create a long lasting collaboration. STSM support specific / general topic that can help achieving the Action MoU objectives and deliverables (research coordination). A STSM should specifically contribute to the scientific objectives of the COST Action, helping to achieve the
Action MoU objectives and deliverables.
WHO CAN APPLY and ELIGIBILITY RULES ⌵
The Grant applicant(s) are Action participants with a primary affiliation (see Article 4.1.1.1.1 on
Annotated Rules for COST Actions) to a legal entity located in a COST Full or Cooperating Member country, a COST Near Neighbour Country or a European RTD Organisation.
Other important criteria for the STSM mobility, under the scopes of NECTAR COST Action are:
(a) The STSM need to be carried out in their entirety within a single Grant Period and always within the Action’s lifetime;
(b) The STSM must have a minimum duration of 5 calendar days that includes travel. For the STSMs approved in this Call, STSM must have a limit of 30 calendar days including travel and must be concluded before March 15th, 2024;
(c) The COST Association and the Grant Holder of the Action cannot be considered as being an STSM grantee’s employer, i.e. the STSM Grant cannot be considered as a salary;
(d) STSM grantees should make their own arrangements for all provisions related to personal security, health, taxation, social security and pension matters.
In the case of the 10
th Call, the relevant dates are as follows:
November 5th, 2023: deadline for submission of STSM applications
November 10th, 2023: notification of selected STSM
March 15th, 2024: deadline for the conclusion of STSM activities.
Within
30 days from the end date of the STSM (or 15 days after the end of the Grant Period, whichever date comes first),
- a scientific report drafted by the applicant
- an approval letter of the scientific report from the Host institution
must be uploaded on the e-COST portal.
Also within 30 days from the end date of the STSM, (or 15 days after the end of the Grant Period, whichever date comes first),
- dissemination materials should be prepared and sent to the Science Communication Team (see details below).
The total budget for STSM within this Call is EUR 15000 and the minimum number of STSM grants that will be funded is ten (10).
The maximum budget granted to each approved STSM is EUR 1500 for a maximum of 30 calendar days including travel. The amount granted to each individual STSM will be determined during the evaluation process by STSM Coordinator and may be subject to negotiation with the applicant(s) before approval.
An STSM Grant is a fixed financial contribution which takes into consideration the budget request of the applicant and the outcome of the evaluation of the STSM application.
Please note that STSM Grants do not necessarily cover all expenses related to undertaking a given mission, being only a contribution to the overall travel, accommodation and meal expenses of the Grantee. Applicants are encouraged to evaluate their budget request based on a high benefit/cost ratio and justify it based on the perceived cost of living in the host country/city.
Grants are paid by the Grant Holder Institution after the completion of the activity and approval of all required report/documentation. However, STSMs grantees may request up
to 50% pre-payment of the approved grant. This amount is subject to availability of funds and approval by the Grant Holder Institution. The request of pre-payment shall be submitted to the Grant Holder Manager (Dr Giuseppa Scarfi,
gscarfi@unime.it) and the Grant Awarding Coordinator (Prof. Matteo Tegoni,
matteo.tegoni@unipr.it).
The application procedure is legally bound to the
Rules for COST Actions. Eligible STSM applicants must submit their STSM applications online by logging into
e-COST and go to
https://e-services.cost.eu/activity/grants and click on “Apply for a grant”. Then click on “Continue” on “Short-Term Scientific Mission grant”, to encode a new application. Then you just need to fill the online form with the following information:
The following information is needed on the application form:
(a) Applicant name (automatically filled)
(b) Primary affiliation (automatically filled)
(c) Type (automatically filled)
(d) COST Action: CA18202
(e) Grant period (automatically filled after choosing the COST Action)
(f) Title of the planned STSM
(g) Amount requested
(h) Bank account
(i) Start date requested
(j) End date requested
(k) Host institution name
(l) Host institution city
(m) Host institution country
(n) Host contact person name
(o) Host contact person email
After “Save Draft” and you reach the “Supporting documents” page. Here you need to mention the title of the file you will submit, the type and upload the file.
You should submit:
* Grant Application Template (that you can find in
https://www.cost.eu/STSM_GrantApplication) that you should previously prepare with the following information:
- Action number: CA18202
- Applicant name
- Details of the STSM: Title and Start and end dates
- Goals of the STST: Purpose and summary of the STSM (max 200 words)
- Working Plan: Description of the work to be carried out by the applicant (max 500 words)
- Expected outputs and contribution to the Action MoU objectives and deliverables: main expected results and their contribution to the progress towards the Action objectives (either research coordination and/or capacity building objectives) and deliverables (max 500 words).
* Invitation letter from the Host: it is responsibility of the applicant to obtain a written agreement from the Host institution stating that the applicant may perform the activities detailed in the STSM working plan on the agreed dates. The letter must be dated back not more than 3 months, and must be signed by a permanent staff representative of the Host institution (e.g. head of the research group, PI, director of the department, head of the institute/division etc.).
* Candidate CV: a CV should be submitted, drafted preferably in Europass format (max. 3 pages). (A list of academic publications can be added in separate pages.)
In the Application form field please briefly address the following points:
(a) Proposed contribution to the scientific objectives of the Action. Please include how the planned activities will contribute to the plan of one or more WG(s) of the Action;
(b) Please detail what techniques or equipment you may learn to use, if applicable. Please underline the aspects of complementarity between expertise and instrumentation of the home and hosting institution/research groups;
(c) Please detail the steps you will take to achieve your proposed goals.
Applicants are requested to present a Working plan reasonably feasible and coherent with the time slot reported in the application.
After uploading all the requested documents, the applicant should click on “Submit”, a new window will appear and clicking on “Options”, please “download PDF”. After confirm submission by clicking on “✓Submit”, each applicant is required to send a copy of the downloaded application form and all the other uploaded documents (merged in one single PDF file) to the Grant Awarding Coordinator (Prof. Matteo Tegoni,
matteo.tegoni@unipr.it) and to the Action Vice-Chair (Dr. Sofia Gama,
sofia.gama@uwb.edu.pl) at latest on July 17
th, 2023 (deadline for application). The email must have “STSM 10 CA18202 Application” as the subject line.
The selection of applicants is based on the scientific scope of the STSM application which must be coherent with the overall objectives of the Action. The STSM Committee will select the successful applications.
The STSM Committee is composed of the STSM Coordinator (Prof. Matteo Tegoni,
matteo.tegoni@unipr.it), Prof. Erika Ferrari (
erika.ferrari@unimore.it), and Prof. Stefan Stürup (
stefan.sturup@sund.ku.dk).
In case of conflict of interest (i.e. applicant belonging to a commissioner’s research group), the member that is constrained in his duties will be substituted by the Action Chair or the Vice-Chair.
APPLICATIONS ASSESSMENT and COMMUNICATION OF RESULTS⌵
The STSM Committee will perform the scientific assessment of the applications considering the NECTAR Action scope and objectives, as well as the potential for enhancement of the research interaction between the involved parts, measured by the impact of the exchange expected by the applicants and involved institutions. General criteria for evaluation of STSM proposals are:
General criteria for evaluation of STSM proposals are:
(a) Priority to STSM applications of PhD students or Young Researchers;
(b) Priority to applicants from ITCs;
(c) Gender balance;
(d) Clarity of activity planning (Working plan) and complementarity of resources between home and host institutions/research groups (resources are intended as: technical expertise, infrastructure, or instrumentation);
(e) Main expected results and their contribution to the progress towards the Action objectives and deliverables;
(f) Curriculum Vitae (CV).
The Grant Awarding Coordinator (or the Action Chair/Vice-Chair, in case of conflict of interest) will inform the Grant Holder of the approved STSMs. The Grant Holder will inform each approved applicant by sending a Grant Letter generated from e-COST. The applicant must return this letter of acceptance with his/her signature.
STSM REPORTING AND PAYMENT ⌵
STSM REPORTING AND PAYMENT
Within 30 days from the end date of the STSM the successful applicant must submit the scientific reports (A) and the dissemination materials (B).
A) SCIENTIFIC REPORTS ON E-COST:
(a) The scientific report drafted by the applicant (max 4 pages). A template for the report can be found in
e-COST.
(b) Host approval of scientific report: an official letter / email from a senior Researcher affiliated to the Host institution formally stating the acceptance of the scientific report.
These two documents must be uploaded on e-COST to proceed with the request for payment.
When preparing the scientific report please consider the following:
(a) The scientific report for COST is a public document. Please take this into account in terms of Intellectual Property Rights.
(b) The scientific report does not need to contain specific and detailed results of the research. Rather, it should focus on the aspects that are the aim of STSM (see Purpose of a STSM, page 2 of the
10th Call), in particular how the collaborative research during STSM has strengthen the scientific relationship between Home and Hosting institutions within the framework of Cooperation and Science in the European Union.
A copy of the scientific report in PDF format must be sent, by email, to the Grant Awarding Coordinator (Prof. Matteo Tegoni,
matteo.tegoni@unipr.it) and the Action Vice-Chair (Dr. Sofia Gama,
sofia.gama@uwb.edu.pl). The STSM Coordinator will be responsible for approving the scientific report and informing the Action Chair and the Grant Holder that the STSM has been successfully accomplished.
(Please note that the COST Association can request additional information to substantiate the information contained within the documents submitted by STSM applicants).
B) DISSEMINATION MATERIALS TO SCIENCE COMMUNICATION TEAM:
(a) A poster/video/success story describing the subject of your collaborative STSM activities.
(b) A strong, short advertising sentence summarizing your STSM experience that will be used for promotion of the above material.
Please remember to present Home and Host institutions and your passion for science! Use pictures showing you at work but also after-work. Do not sound too abstract, avoid scientific jargon, use short sentences. The material is to advertise NECTAR COST research, promote you, and will be shown in social media for public audience.
The materials have to be sent directly to the
Science Communication Manager Prof. Elżbieta Gumienna-Kontecka (
elzbieta.gumienna-kontecka@chem.uni.wroc.pl) and to
WG-5 Leader Dr. Álvaro Martínez-Camarena (
alvaro.martinez@uv.es).
Failure to submit the scientific report & dissemination materials, and Host acceptance within 30 days from the end date of the STSM will effectively cancel the Grant.
1st GRANT PERIOD (1st November 2019 to 30th April 2020)
Grantee |
Project |
Home institution |
Host institution |
Silvia Gentili |
Synthesis of His-containing peptides for oxidation catalysis in presence of Cu |
U. Parma, IT |
U. Aix-Marseille, FR |
Dong Han |
Drugs molecules and surfaces/carriers |
U.A. Barcelona, ES |
U. Udine, IT |
Yuliya Toporivska |
New efficient chelators for Zr-89 radiometal: design, synthesis and thermodynamic properties |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
U. Ferrara, IT |
2nd GRANT PERIOD (1st May 2020 to 31st October 2021)
Grantee |
Project |
Home institution |
Host institution |
Lucija Knežević |
Studying Vanadium-organic ligand complexation toward better understanding of Vanadium biogeochemical behaviour |
I. Ruđer Bošković, HR |
U. Paris-Saclay, FR |
Tatjana Trtic-Petrovic |
Thermodynamic study of the micellization process of functionalized surface-active ionic liquids for extraction of technologically critical elements |
Vinca Institute of Nuclear Sciences, RS |
U. Ljubljana, SI |
Nádia Ribeiro |
Evaluation of the DNA affinity of metal complexes derived from 8-hydroxyquinoline ligands |
U. Lisboa, PT |
U. Pisa, IT |
Demetrio Milea |
Data analysis and modelling of the acid-base properties of selected metal ions |
U. Messina, IT |
U. Białystok, PL |
Edyta Nalewajko-Sieliwoniuk |
Tryptophan metabolite interactions towards Fe(II) and Fe(III) ions: a thermodynamic study in aqueous solution |
U. Białystok, PL |
U. Messina, IT |
Andrzej Mular |
68-Ga labelled analogues of desferrioxamine-E for nuclear imaging |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
M.U. Innsbruck, AT |
Sofia Gama |
Spectrofluorimetric methods applied to the study of chemical equilibria of 8-Hydroxyquinoline-2-carboxilic acid metal complexes in aqueous solution |
U. Białystok, PL |
U. Lisboa, PT |
Tatsiana Petrasheuskaya |
Spectroelectrochemical studies on copper and iron complexes of imidazole-derived thiosemicarbazones |
U. Szeged, HU |
S.U.T. Bratislava, SK |
Rosita Cappai |
Synthesis and characterization of Tryptophane metabolites metal complexes |
U. Cagliari, IT |
F.S.U. Jena, DE |
David Fabra Escribano |
Analysis of the interaction of metal-thiosemicarbazone complexes with bio substrates |
U.A. Madrid, ES |
U. Pisa, IT |
Michaela Rendosova |
Exploring of different techniques and computational programmes for thermodynamic studies of silver(I) and gallium(III) complexes |
U. Košice, SK |
U. Messina, IT |
Żaneta Arciszewska |
Caffeic acid interactions towards lanthanides: a thermodynamic study in aqueous solution |
U. Białystok, PL |
U. Messina, IT |
Kinga Garstka |
Characteristics of two zinc SBPs - ZnuA and AztC from Paracoccus denitrificans |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
U. Ferrara, IT |
Andrea Melchior |
Intercalation of platinum complexes with DNA: a theoretical study |
U. Udine, IT |
U.C. Murcia, ES |
Adriana Miller |
Exploiting the NMR spectroscopy to understand the coordination chemistry of the Zn(II) and Cu(II) complexes with the chosen antimicrobial peptides |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
U. Siena, IT |
Silvia Gentili |
Study of copper complexes of His-containing peptides |
U. Parma, IT |
U. Aix-Marseille, FR |
Eugenio Alladio |
SpectrApp - an open-source application for the chemometric evaluation of spectroscopic data |
U. Torino, IT |
U. Białystok, PL |
3rd GRANT PERIOD (1st November 2021 to 31st October 2022)
Grantee |
Project |
Home institution |
Host institution |
Valentyn Dzyhovskyi |
Synthesis of the compounds intended to fit to the flavin mononucleotide riboswitches of Staphylococcus aureus |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
U. Ferrara, IT |
Paulina Potok |
Exploiting NMR spectroscopy to determine coordination mode of the Zn(II), Ni(II), and Cu(II) complexes with metallopeptidases |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
U. Siena, IT |
David Fabra Escribano |
Solution studies on palladium-thiosemicarbazone complexes and their interaction with albumin and DNA |
A.U. Madrid, ES |
U. Szeged, HU |
Alessandro Nicoli |
Predicting the stability of ligand/GPCR complexes with scaled MD simulations: the case of 5-HT2BR and the L209A mutant |
T.U. Munich, DE |
I.I. Technology, IT |
Francesca Binacchi |
ITC study of DNA and BSA binding of Ag(I)/Au(I) N-heterocycle biscarbenes and of Pt(II)/Pd(II) phenanthroline derivatives |
U. Pisa, IT |
U. Burgos, ES |
Milan Mad'ar |
Speciation of copper(II) complexes with polyamino-polyphosphonate ligands with EPR |
Charles U., CZ |
U. Burgundy, FR |
Milan Vranes |
Physicochemical charaterisation of newly synthetized gemini surfactants |
U. Novi Sad, CS |
U. Ljubljana, SI |
Jasmin Suljagic |
Synthesis and apllication of Pd(II)-diimine complex in catalysis |
U. Tuzla, BA |
Goce Delchev U., MK |
Tamás Pivarcsik |
Synthesis of biologically active half-sandwich ruthenium(II) and rhodium(III) complexes formed with sterane-based hybrids |
U. Szeged, HU |
U. Ljubljana, SI |
Anna Rola |
Histidine–rich C–terminal (HRCT) tail of GroEL1 chaperonins as a potential regulator of metal ions concentration in Mycobacteriu |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
A.U. Barcelona, ES |
Elzbieta Gumienna-Kontecka |
Ferrous complexes: the bio-chemical state of art |
U. Wrocław, PL |
U. Messina, IT |
Slawomir Potocki |
Optimization of isothermal titration calorimetry protocols for the study of 1:1 and 2:1 binding |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
U. Catania, IT |
Álvaro Martínez-Camarena |
Determination of the β-amyloid disaggregation capacity of PLA-PEG-CON-pytren polymeric nanoparticles |
U. València, ES |
U. Catania, IT |
Andrzej Mular |
Investigation of FOXE analogues ability to transport iron into Pseudomonas aeruginosa cells |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
U. Strasbourg, FR |
Martina Sanadar |
Separation of Europium(III) in Phosphate based Ionic Liquids |
U. Udine, IT |
U. Masaryk, CZ |
Luca Mancini |
Shyntesis of new receptor |
U. Urbino, IT |
U. València, ES |
Snezana Papovic |
Self-aggregation and ionicity of pharmaceutically active ionic liquids – thermodynamic approach |
Novi Sad, RS |
U. Ljubljana, SI |
Żaneta Arciszewska |
Speciation of lanthanides complexes in biological systems |
U. Bialystok, PL |
CNRS, FR |
Aleksandar Cvetkovski |
Developing the Thermodynamical data sets |
U. Goce Delcev, MK |
U. Parma, IT |
4th GRANT PERIOD (1st November 2022 to 30th October 2023)
Grantee |
Project |
Home institution |
Host institution |
Bartosz Orzeł |
Exploring the metal coordination chemistry of Fe(II) bacterial transporters with the use of NMR spectroscopy |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
U. Sassari, IT |
Eric Kaya |
Binding of Fluorescent Peptides and Lipids to Albumin and DNA |
CNRS Orleans, FR |
U. Pisa, IT |
Adriana Kaszuba |
Study of the interaction of potential anticancer platinum(II) and ruthenium(II) complexes with DNA |
U. Torun, PL |
U. Pisa, IT |
Matteo Marafante |
EPR charactherization of oxovanadium coordination complexes |
U. Torino, IT |
U. Jena, DE |
Maria Cracchiolo |
Molecular interaction study of platinum(II) anticancer drugs with human serum albumin using molecular docking methods |
U. Udine, IT |
U. Cartagena, ES |
Anna Baryłka |
Thermodynamic parameters of protonation processes of a family of hydroxyquinoline: a calorimetric study |
U. Bialystok, PL |
U. Catania, IT |
Alessandra Fantasia |
Synthesis and characterization of poly-hydroxypyridinone based compounds |
U. Cagliari, IT |
U. Lisbon, PT |
Sara Franchi |
Determination of protonation constants via NMR spectroscopy |
U. Padova, IT |
U. Lisbon, PT |
Hilda Kovacs |
Synthesis of new ligands and metal complexes of 8-hydroxyquinoline derivatives |
U. Szeged, HU |
U. Lisbon, IT |
Jasmina Musovic |
The effect of ionic liquid and deep eutectic mixture on stability constants of Ni-DTPA complexes |
Vinca Institute of Nuclear Sciences, RS |
U. Catania, IT |
Teona Teodora Borović |
Influence of chaotropic and kosmotropic additives on thermodynamic parameters of caffeine self-aggregation in water |
U. Novi Sad, RS |
U. Ljubljana, SI |
Andrija Vukov |
Organization of water molecules around the antidiabetic drug Metformin in the presence of selected alkaloids |
U. Novi Sad, RS |
U. Ljubljana, SI |
Emilia Dzień |
Determination of the influence of Cu(II) and Zn(II) ions on the antimicrobial histatins using SAXS and ITC techniques |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
U. Balearic Islands, ES |
Emilija Milovic |
DNA and BSA binding mode of selected aza heterocycles |
I. I. T. K, RS |
U. Burgos, ES |
Giuseppina Santonoceta |
NMR characterization of drug-carrier assemblies with potential biological applications |
U. Catania, IT |
U. Lisboa, PT |
Joanna Wątły |
NMR characterisation of Cu(II) and Zn(II) complexes with peptidomimetic analogues of mucin |
U. Wroclaw, PL |
U. Siena, IT |
Milan Vranes |
Acid-base equilibria in pseudo-protic ionic liquids and in their mixtures with water |
U. Novi Sad, RS |
U. Ljubljana, SI |
Snezana Papovic |
Investigation of the micellization process of newly synthesized surface-active caffeine-based compounds in aqueous solutions |
U. Novi Sad, RS |
U. Ljubljana, SI |
Prof. Matteo Tegoni - CA18202 STSM Coordinator
Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences, and Environmental Sustainability
University of Parma
Parco Area delle Scienze 17A
43123 Parma
ITALY
matteo.tegoni@unipr.it
Dr. Sofia Gama - CA18202 Action Vice-Chair
Department of Analytical Chemistry
Faculty of Chemistry
University of Białystok
ul. Ciołkowskiego 1K
15-245 Białystok
POLAND
sofia.gama@uwb.edu.pl