The CLEAR Project from the Faculty of Pharmacy, Charles University Advanced to the Second Stage of the EIC Transition Open 2025 Call and Received the Seal of Excellence

The Faculty of Pharmacy of Charles University participated in the EIC Transition Open 2025 call under the Horizon Europe programme through the CLEAR project (Cholesterol Lowering in Familial Hypercholesterolemia with Effective Advanced Nuclear Receptor Modulators). The EIC Transition call ranks among the most prestigious and highly selective funding instruments of the European Commission, aimed at translating excellent research results into practical application and further innovation and market development.

The project fulfilled all qualitative evaluation criteria, advanced to the second stage of evaluation, and the project team subsequently took part in an interview with the international EIC jury. The project thus ranked among approximately 16% of the highest-scoring proposals in the call. Based on the evaluation results, the CLEAR project was subsequently awarded the prestigious Seal of Excellence, a certification granted by the European Commission to projects that meet all quality thresholds but cannot be funded due to budget constraints. For the Faculty of Pharmacy of Charles University, this represents a significant milestone in the preparation and submission of projects within the Horizon Europe framework.

An Exceptionally Competitive European Call

The EIC Transition scheme is consistently among the most competitive programmes within Horizon Europe. In 2025, a total of 611 proposals were submitted, of which 546 were evaluated following the formal eligibility check. Only 88 project teams—approximately 16% of evaluated proposals—were invited to the interview stage.

Ultimately, 40 projects received funding, while two additional projects were placed on a reserve list. The overall success rate of the call was therefore approximately 7%. An invitation to interview is widely regarded as clear confirmation of the project’s high scientific quality, innovation potential, and international competitiveness.

In terms of applicant structure, the private sector accounted for more than 51% of submissions, followed by universities (27%) and other research organisations (17%). The most frequently represented countries included Italy, Germany, Spain, and France. From the Czech Republic, three project entities advanced to the interview stage, with the CLEAR project being the only one coordinated by a Czech institution.

From Excellent Research to Innovation Potential

The CLEAR project is not focused on basic research. It falls within a specific category of EIC projects with a strong innovation, entrepreneurial, and knowledge-transfer dimension. Its objective is to advance the results of excellent academic research in the field of pharmacology and metabolic diseases towards practical application, further stages of technological development, and future collaboration with industrial and investment partners.

The project clearly distinguishes its scientific foundation—based on long-term, high-level research conducted at the Faculty of Pharmacy of Charles University—from its innovation and market ambitions, which focus on validating application potential, defining strategic direction, and preparing for the future transfer of research results into practice. In this respect, the project builds upon the Faculty’s previous successful European research activities and advances them towards higher levels of technological and innovation readiness.

Project Team and Institutional Support

The coordinator of the CLEAR project is Professor Petr Pávek from the Faculty of Pharmacy of Charles University, who serves as the principal investigator and is responsible for its scientific and strategic leadership.

The project preparation and the development of its innovation and transfer strategy were also significantly supported by Charles University Innovations Prague a.s. (CUIP), the University’s technology transfer company. CUIP provides long-term expertise in innovation strategy development, intellectual property protection and management, and the systematic preparation of research results for practical application, in alignment with the requirements of the EIC Transition programme.

The award of the Seal of Excellence thus confirms not only the high scientific quality of the project, but also the effective integration of excellent academic research at the Faculty of Pharmacy with the professional transfer infrastructure of Charles University through CUIP. The advancement of the CLEAR project to the second evaluation stage and its assessment through an interview before the EIC jury further demonstrate the Faculty’s ability to succeed within highly selective European innovation and knowledge-transfer programmes.

The evaluation process of the EIC Transition Open 2025 call has now been completed, and the awarding of the Seal of Excellence represents significant European recognition of the project’s quality and innovation potential in the context of a highly competitive funding environment.

A Strong Signal for the Future

Participation in the second stage of evaluation and the expert feedback provided by the European Innovation Council constitute a valuable foundation for the further development of the project and for the continued engagement of the Faculty of Pharmacy of Charles University in prestigious European innovation initiatives.

The CLEAR project thus reinforces the strategic ambition of Charles University to systematically develop not only excellent research, but also its meaningful and professionally managed translation towards tangible societal and economic impact.

Ing. Martin Hubáček, Ing. Mgr. Anna Opitz
Department of Grant Support and Strategic Development