Promoting Research Opportunities for Latin American Biochemists

The PROLAB program allows graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to spend up to six months in U.S. or Canadian laboratories.

Participants get access to technologies and expertise that may not be readily available in their home countries, allowing them to grow their skills and contribute to building capacity in the life sciences at home.

PROLAB is a joint venture between the Pan-American Association for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Eligibility

• Applications are welcomed from trainees and new investigators (not more than five years past postdoctoral work) from all countries active in the PABMB:
  • Argentina
  • Brazil
  • Chile
  • Cuba
  • Mexico
  • Panama
  • Peru
  • Portugal
  • Spain
  • Uruguay
• The host lab must have an ASBMB member in its leadership.

Applications

The application period begins in November and ends in February.

The following documents should be provided in English:

• A research proposal of no more than two pages, single-spaced, indicating clearly:
  • The nature of the project and the type of experiments to be carried out.
  • The reason it is necessary to travel to a particular laboratory to conduct the experiments rather than to perform them in the applicant's own laboratory.
  • The rationale for the visit duration requested.
• A budget indicating sources of support, whether awarded or applied for.
• A short curriculum vitae of the applicant, including academic record (for graduate students) and a list of publications.
• A letter of agreement from the head of the host laboratory, stating that the institution will receive the applicant, listing papers published by the hosting faculty member during the past five years and current grant support for the laboratory, and indicating whether the host institution will contribute toward the costs of the visit.
• A letter of recommendation from the graduate student’s adviser, postdoctoral fellow’s mentor, or head of department of the applicant's institution indicating how the award would be beneficial.

Conditions

Awards offset the costs of travel and living expenses for one to six months up to a maximum of $5,000 (about $1,000 for travel costs and $4,000 for living expenses). Travel costs cover economy airfares, incidental expenses directly related to travel, and local bus fares to and from airports. The awards will not cover insurance or research expenses. Travel should commence within six months of the award being made. Host institutions are expected to cover living expenses during longer stays.

An award cannot be used to supplement scientific visits otherwise fully covered. Awards will not cover courses, symposia, meetings or congresses.

Selection of the awardees will be based on:

• The research proposal.
• The letter from the thesis adviser, postdoctoral mentor or department head.
• Academic records (for graduate students).
• Appropriate English proficiency.
• Candidate and host laboratory publications.
• Candidate CV.
• Scientific excellence and available infrastructure and availability of research funds in the host laboratory, to cover the proposed research plan.