In March 2025, the Senate of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) established the Priority Programme “SEXandGLIA: Sex-dependent mechanisms of neuroglial cell functions in brain health” (SPP 2561). The programme is designed to run for six years. The present call invites proposals for the first three-year funding period.

Scientific Programme

The scientific and societal significance of biological sex differences has been largely overlooked in recent decades. Females have historically been underrepresented in preclinical research, clinical drug trials and drug development. A key reason to intensify research into sex-specific biology is the uneven prevalence, onset and progression of many diseases, including neurological disorders. For example, some conditions such as autism spectrum disorder and Parkinson’s disease are more common in males, while others like major depressive disorder, Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis are more prevalent in females.

Sex differences in the human brain represent a complex and crucial research area with profound implications for both health and disease. Brain masculinisation is initiated by a surge in male gonadal hormones during the neonatal period, which shapes long-term brain structure by organising neural circuits that later support sexual functions after puberty.

These sex-specific differences probably arise from a complex interplay of (epi)genetic and hormonal regulation in both neurons and glial cells. While research has traditionally focused on neurons, the sexual dimorphism of glial cells remains relatively underexplored, despite their essential roles for the survival and functionality of neurons, as well as the homeostasis of their activity.

To gain a deeper understanding of sex-specific brain differences in health and disease, it is crucial to thoroughly investigate the development and function of glial cells in both female and male brains. Although more research projects now include both sexes, a systematic approach to studying sex differences in neuroscience is still lacking. 

The SPP 2561 SEXandGLIA programme aims to address this gap with two main objectives:

• Understanding Sex-Driven Mechanisms in Glial Biology: to uncover fundamental mechanisms at the intersection of genetics and hormonal influences, with a focus on physiological, transcriptional and epigenetic regulation
• Deciphering Functional Consequences of Sex-Specific Glial Biology: to determine how genetic and hormonal differences between males and females affect glial cell function – ideally at the single-cell or cell-type level – and to link molecular changes to cellular phenotypes, thereby identifying transcriptional and epigenetic alterations that contribute to disease

Hence, the SPP 2561 aims at combining expertise on glial biology, functional genomics and computational biology to foster projects that allow major advances in understanding sex-specific roles of glial cells and their cross-talk with neurons, and ultimately the emergence of diseases. Projects aiming to explore sex differences in glial cells must imperatively include:

• a focus on the analysis of sex-dependent functions in macroglial cells (astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, OPCs) in the brain, excluding microglial cells and neurons, unless they are functionally centred on macroglial cells
• analyses on the interplay of sex chromosomes and hormonal influences in glial cells
• approaches using rodent models (in vivo) and/or human systems where tissue integrity is preserved

Additionally, proposed projects proposals must emphasise:

• their collaborative character and potential as an added value of participating in a structured research programme; and
• their strategy to standardise and share datasets in the SPP 2561 consortium.

We discourage project proposals which:

• are purely based on descriptive profiling of sex-specific transcriptomes and epigenomes without studying basic mechanisms and functional consequences of these profiles;
• are based only on descriptive large-scale studies;
• lack a mechanistic focus on deciphering and exploiting sex-specific glial biology;
• aim to characterise patient cohorts from an exclusively clinical perspective;
• focus only on disease aspects and lack a basic research question;
• examine prenatal/embryonic developmental stages, except when they are combined with postnatal stages;
• investigate peripheral glial cells;
• use culture models alone without any clear own or collaborative in vivo approach (e.g. tandem projects).

Proposal Instructions

Proposals must be written in English and submitted to the DFG by 3 December 2025. Proposals are to be submitted solely via the elan portal(externer Link) in order to ensure proposal-related data is recorded and documents are securely transmitted. To enter a new project within the existing Priority Programme, go to Proposal Submission – New Project/Draft Proposal – Priority Programmes and select “SPP 2561” from the current list of calls. 

When preparing your proposal, please refer to the programme guidelines (DFG form 50.05(interner Link), section B) and follow the proposal preparation instructions (DFG form 54.01(interner Link)). These forms can either be downloaded from our website or accessed through the elan portal.

If this is the first time you are submitting a proposal to the DFG, please note that you must register in the elan portal before you can submit your proposal. You must do so by 21 November 2025. You will normally receive confirmation of your registration by the next working day. You will normally receive confirmation of your registration by the next working day. Note that you will be asked to select the appropriate Priority Programme call during both the registration and the proposal process. Applicants who already have an elan account are requested to check their data in elan. If necessary, you can update your data directly in the portal. It is not necessary to register again.

Equity and Diversity

The DFG strongly welcomes proposals from researchers of all genders and sexual identities, from different ethnic, cultural, religious, ideological or social backgrounds, from different career stages, types of universities and research institutions, and with disabilities or chronic illness. With regard to the subject-specific focus of this call, the DFG encourages female researchers in particular to submit proposals. 

Good Research Practice

According to a resolution of the DFG General Assembly, DFG funding may only be awarded to research institutions that have implemented the guidelines laid down in the Code of Conduct for Safeguarding Good Research Practice(externer Link) in their own regulations. The management of your institution is responsible for implementing the guidelines in a legally binding manner. In order to avoid delays in the disbursement of funding, please verify implementation within your institution in good time. For information regarding the implementation, please refer to the Research Integrity Portal(externer Link). If you have any questions on this subject, please contact the Research Integrity team(externer Link) at the DFG Head Office.

Online SEXandGLIA Symposium

Interested applicants are invited to participate and discuss their project ideas at the online SEXandGLIA symposium on 15 September 2025. Please register by 8 September 2025 by sending an e-mail with a title and abstract of your 10-minute presentation to: spp2561@uni-saarland.de(externer Link). 

Further Information 

Here you can find more information on the Priority Programme(externer Link).

When submitting proposals, please use the elan portal(externer Link) and refer to the respective DFG forms 50.05(interner Link) and 54.01(interner Link). The FAQ on Proposal Submission(interner Link) may also be helpful.

For scientific enquiries, please contact the Priority Programme coordinator:

Professor Julia M. Schulze-Hentrich Ph.D., Universität des Saarlandes, Fachrichtung Biowissenschaften, Arbeitsgruppe Genetik / Epigenetik, Tel. +49 681 302-2791, julia.schulze-hentrich@uni-saarland.de(externer Link)

Contact Persons at the DFG Head Office

Programme contact: Dr. Andreas Görlich, Life Sciences, Tel. +49 228 885-2566, andreas.goerlich@dfg.de(externer Link)

Administrative contact: Najat Arrkkaui, Life Sciences, Tel. +49 228 885-2297, najat.arrkkaui@dfg.de(externer Link)

Privacy Policy

We, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation), take the protection of your personal data and its confidential treatment extremely seriously. Therefore, please refer to the DFG’s Privacy Policy(interner Link). If you intend to transmit personal data of third parties, please make sure to do so only if the necessary legitimation under data protection law exist. Before transmitting data of third parties to the DFG, please forward the DFG’s Data Protection Notice to the individuals affected (data subjects). If there is a legitimate interest not to inform individuals beforehand (e.g. for reasons of secrecy or in case of a nomination or candidate proposal), these individuals should be informed no later than at the time of publication.