Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-actions-marie-curie-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet ToxBiome (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Environment and Geosciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

During wheat colonisation, toxigenic Fusarium species produce substantial numbers of mycotoxins, which pose serious adverse health effects in human and animals. The current control strategies rely on the use of resistant varieties and synthetic fungicides. However, these control measures are not always effective. Moreover, excessive use of fungicides has led to the development of resistance in many toxigenic Fusarium species. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop an effective and sustainable method to minimise wheat mycotoxin content. The goal of this project is to provide novel insights into the role of wheat microbiome in preventing mycotoxin contamination and to identify wheat varieties and microbes with potential to promote the suppression of mycotoxin production in wheat. Fungicide untreated winter wheat varieties will be collected from three different experimental field sites in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Then, a targeted metabolomics approach will be used to quantify 10 important mycotoxins in winter wheat samples, to identify resistant and susceptible varieties. Subsequently, DNA will be extracted from the samples and a culture-independent shotgun metagenomic high-throughput sequencing will be applied to characterise the microbiome diversity and function of wheat varieties. Robust statistical tests and bioinformatics tools will be used to analyse and compare sequences and mycotoxin level data, to identify specific microbial species and metabolic pathways that are significantly correlated with wheat varieties found resistant and susceptible to mycotoxin accumulation. Ultimately, the identification of specific wheat varieties that recruit microbiomes that can inhibit mycotoxin production opens new horizons for breeding next-generation crops depending less on fungicide input and resistant to mycotoxin contamination. This project and the planned training activities will further enhance my skills to become an independent researcher.


Participants :
- Agri Food and Biosciences Institute (Royaume-Uni) — Partner, associated partner, Recherche, subvention : 0.0 €
- Wageningen University & Research (Pays-Bas) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 203464.32 €
Projet UTOPIA (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
Panel : Physics
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Electromagnetic waves interacting with materials give rise to polaritons, hybrid excitations of light and matter. Among these, hyperbolic phonon polaritons (HPhPs) in polar crystals stand out for their low loss and anisotropic behavior. Concurrently, Floquet theory has gained prominence in nanophotonics, enabling the engineering of topological properties in periodically driven systems. The UTOPIA project aims to merge these domains, establishing ultrafast Floquet polaritonics as a cutting-edge field. It seeks to demonstrate this concept in natural van der Waals materials and synthetic metasurfaces. Polariton research has evolved from plasmon polaritons to encompass phonons, excitons, and Cooper pairs. Phonon polaritons, with their anisotropic response, have opened avenues for nanophotonics. Recent discoveries in two-dimensional van der Waals materials like hexagonal boron nitride have unveiled hyperbolic polaritons in natural crystals. UTOPIA bridges phonon polaritons and Floquet theory, aiming to pioneer tailored light-matter interactions. Floquet systems endow physical systems with synthetic dimensions via periodic potentials, enabling nonreciprocal systems, topological phases, and 4+ dimensional physics. While Floquet quasi-energy states have been demonstrated in graphene, the field of Floquet polaritonics remains underexplored, lacking a demonstration of temporally driven changes in phonon polariton dispersion.UTOPIA's objectives include: 1) Demonstrating Floquet-driven topological polaritonic transitions via grating coupling in natural materials, mapping near-field observables to the far-field and enabling dynamical phase transitions. 2) Designing metasurfaces supporting synthetic hyperbolic polaritons, expanding Floquet polaritonics to optical frequencies and various temporal modulations.3) Achieving infrared light amplification via polariton-assisted anisotropic parametric amplification, harnessing polaritonic excitations for efficient amplification.

Mots clés : floquet, ultrafast, photonics, polaritons, metasurfaces, non linear optics, 

Participants :
- École polytechnique de Milan (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 265099.2 €
- Université de la ville de New York (Etats-Unis) — Partner, associated partner, Autres, subvention : 0.0 €
Projet SYNERGISTIC (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Chemistry
Statut du projet : SIGNED

The development of enantioselective strategies is becoming highly important as the global chiral chemicals market is expected to reach 120 billion USD by 2025. Among these chiral molecules, β2-amino acids and their derivatives are highly demanding chemicals because of their extensive uses in the synthesis of pharmaceuticals. My SYNERGISTIC proposal will envisage the functionalization of challenging alkenes and CO2 to achieve chiral β2-amino acids under energy-efficient photocatalytic conditions. To achieve this chemistry, I propose a novel approach by employing two different catalysts to activate simultaneously the double bond of alkene and to insert CO2 into the double bond. I will use a metal-free photocatalyst in combination with a halogen atom transfer (XAT) reagent to activate the double bond of alkene, and a homogeneous chiral transition metal complex to insert the CO2 molecule in a face-selective way. The mild reaction conditions of photoredox catalysis should enable to functionalize a wide range of alkenes as well as for late-stage functionalization of ‘functionally challenging’ molecules found in natural products and complex pharmaceuticals. This proposal will significantly contribute to the advancement of the ‘CO2-valorization’ blueprint as well as will create a groundbreaking ‘green approach’ for the synthesis of chiral β2-amino acids using CO2 as a C1 synthon. More importantly, the fundamental new insights of this novel catalytic system that will be gained during this investigation will be a game-changer for the enhancement of sustainable chemistry.

Mots clés : photocatalysis, co2 chemistry, chiral ni catalysis, late stage functionalization, flow chemistry

Participants :
- Université de Bayreuth (Allemagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 173847.36 €
Projet D-EMU (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Social Sciences and Humanities
Statut du projet : SIGNED

D-EMU provides highly innovative research on a crucial challenge for democracy in the EU: the legitimacy of governance in the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). It focuses on conflicts within everyday democratic practices of domestic policy elites participating in the budgetary exercise of the European Semester – identifying a substantial gap in the literature so far. Developing an innovative interdisciplinary approach and using a mixed methods design analysing four cases (France, Germany, the Netherlands and Italy), D-EMU contributes a) to our understanding of the variation of legitimacy conflicts in the EMU and jumpstarts b) a debate about contextualised democracy standards for EU decision-making. The project combines ethnographic and reflexive quantitative methods with conceptual history. D-EMU commits to data sustainability in qualitative research by providing a report on the research process in order to make the qualitative data fully reusable by qualitative scholars. D-EMU is led by Dr Anja Thomas at the Fulda University of Applied Sciences under the supervision of Prof. Dr Claudia Wiesner, a renowned scholar for conceptual history of the European Union. Two secondments (European University Institute and Centre for Research in Economics and Statistics) complement the Fellowship to allow specific methods and dissemination training. Supervision will be closely coordinated; a detailed work and dissemination plan ensure progress and sustainable impact of the project. The MSCA will expand Dr Anja Thomas’ current work on parliaments and make it a beneficial preparation for a larger grant proposal to allow her to become a leader in her field. Fulda University of Applied Sciences commits to fully support the fellow with administrative and additional financial resources, the researcher will contribute to the PhD training at her host institution. Dr Anja Thomas has substantial experience in research and teaching at leading universities, notably in France and the UK.

Mots clés : democracy, democratic practices, european semester, economic and monetary union, european union, legitimicy, roles, actor sociology, conceptual history

Participants :
- Groupe ENSAE-ENSAI (France) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Institut universitaire européen de Florence (Italie) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Université de sciences appliquées de Fulda (Allemagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 189687.36 €
Projet Virome-SHIELD (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Nearly half of all deaths in children under five are linked to undernutrition, which causes developmental issues and increased susceptibility to infections and intestinal inflammation that are not fully corrected by traditional nutrition strategies. Early exposure to commensal bacteria shapes immune trajectories, influencing susceptibility to infections and inflammatory diseases both early in life and in the long-term. Reseach from the host laboratory has demonstrated that commensal bacteria contribute to host development, particularly under conditions of undernutrition. Similarly, commensal viruses (aka the virome) can modulate immune responses. Infants, especially in regions with high rates of undernutrition, are highly exposed to these viruses. However, the virome’s impact on immune development and its contribution to the effects of undernutrition remains largely unexplored. Building on my experience working with a commensal murine enteric virus, I aim to investigate how early immune imprinting by the virome alters host-development trajectories —including growth, metabolism, and sexual maturation—and affects long-term susceptibility to infections and inflammatory diseases in male and female mice. Using a combined approached of hypothesis-driven research (focusing on the homeostatic role of type I interferons) and a RNA sequencing-based discovery, this study will uncover unknown physiological functions of immune cells that are critical in challenging environments like undernutrition. The findings from this study will provide new insights into how understudied factors—such as the virome, sex, and undernutrition—affect immune function, including host-defenses and physiological functions. This knowledge could lead to innovative preventive and therapeutic strategies for undernourished children, such as microbiota-targeted food and immune-based interventions, tailored specifically for boys and girls.

Mots clés : microbiome, virome, mucosal immunology, development, juvenile, infant, undernutrition, sex, interferon, environmental enteric dysfunction

Participants :
- Centre national de la recherche scientifique (France) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 242260.56 €
Projet TRANSITION (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Environment and Geosciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

In line with the European Union strategies, the TRANSITION project aims to advance the scientific knowledge of past climates and evaluate critical metal resources. The first objective of the project is to reconstruct palaeoclimatic conditions by analysing the oxygen and hydrogen isotopic composition of clay minerals and oxides in Lower Cretaceous aluminium-rich rocks (laterites and bauxites) from NE Spain. Current limitations in isotopic analysis due to the nanometric scale of these minerals will be overcoming by developing an advanced analytical procedure using NanoSIMS (nanoscale secondary ion mass spectrometry), thus enhancing Europe's capabilities in this area. TRANSITION also aligns with the European Commission's 2023 recognition of certain metals as critical for the energy transition, since laterites, bauxites, and red muds (bauxite by-products after industrial processing) are valuable sources of such metals. The second objective of the project is the NanoSIMS high-resolution grain-scale mapping of the minerals containing critical metals in laterites, bauxites and red muds , thereby determining the sub-micron distribution and specific location of these metals within these materials. The successful implementation of the project, based on the expertise in geological and analytical chemistry of the applicant and supervisor, respectively, will contribute to the research prowess of Europe. The project’s outcome will be of global significance, inspiring geoscientists worldwide to use NanoSIMS and expand our understanding of past climatic conditions. TRANSITION will also contribute to complementing the Lower Cretaceous paleoclimatic record in Western Europe and will report fundamental data for the future design of critical metals extraction strategies, allowing to consider laterites and bauxites as a source of critical metals, as well as the recycling of red muds as repositories of these metals.

Mots clés : bauxite critical metals hematite hydrogen isotopes icp ms kaolinite laterite lower cretaceous nanosims nanosims mapping oxygen isotopes red muds smectite chemical weathering

Participants :
- Centre national de la recherche scientifique (France) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 226420.56 €
Projet HetY (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Spermatogenesis is a crucial and intricate biological process for species continuity. The sex ratio (SR) meiotic drive system, prevalent in many organisms, skews offspring sex ratios by manipulating sex chromosome inheritance during meiosis. While the underlying molecular mechanisms remain elusive, recent studies suggest that heterochromatin regulation may hold a central role in most SR systems. The HetY project aims to uncover the role of heterochromatin regulation in spermatogenesis by exploiting a natural meiotic perturbation : the Paris SR system in Drosophila simulans. This system is characterized by sister chromatid nondisjunction of Y chromosomes during meiosis II, induced by two X-linked drivers, including a malfunctioning Y-linked heterochromatin protein. We hypothesize that misregulation of Y heterochromatin is responsible for this nondisjunction. Our first objective is to identify the target(s) of the X-linked driver, using advanced CUT&Tag techniques. Some Y chromosomes resist to drive, potentially due to their intrinsic ability to evade perturbations of their heterochromatin landscape. Our second objective is to characterize those perturbations, through a comprehensive transcriptomic analysis to pinpoint extensive changes in heterochromatin landscapes. Recent findings indicate that the resistant ability of Y chromosomes correlates with their simple satellite repeat composition, and studies suggest that simple satellite expression is essential for male fertility. Our third objective is to probe the role of simple satellite RNA in chromatin organization and spermatogenesis. To this end, we will design shRNA against simple satellites identified in our previous study, assessing their influence on the sex ratio phenotype and potential induction of morphological defects during spermatogenesis. Our analyses will illuminate the interplay between heterochromatin regulation and spermatogenesis, offering new insights into these essential biological processes.

Mots clés : spermatogenesis heterochromatin meiotic drive genetic conflict sex chromosome drosophila satellite repeat

Participants :
- Université autonome de Barcelone (Espagne) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Centre national de la recherche scientifique (France) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 226420.56 €
Projet ESCAPES (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
Panel : Social Sciences and Humanities
Statut du projet : SIGNED

ESCAPES studies national and international responses to forced displacement from a comparative perspective. The project seeks to advance existing understandings of the policy, legal and institutional factors shaping states’ use (or non-use) of so-called ‘active refugee admission policies’ – resettlement and complementary pathways for admission of refugees to third countries – and to explore a set of normative issues raised by existing policies and practices. The project will achieve the above-mentioned aim through an interdisciplinary and multi-method examination of refugee admission policies adopted by Canada and a selected group of EU Member States (Germany, Italy and Sweden) in response to three large-scale displacement situations: the Syrian situation (2011 onwards), the Afghanistan situation (2021 onwards) and the Ukrainian situation (2022 onward). The project starts from the recognition that States’ responses to the above-mentioned situations have displayed significant differences in terms of numbers of people admitted, admission instruments and procedures, and the rights granted to beneficiaries upon arrival. Against this background, ESCAPES has the following main objectives: a) develop an innovative conceptual framework to shed light on the dynamics of national and international policy-making in the field of resettlement and complementary pathways, and explain variation in states’ responses to different refugee situations; b) contribute to the nascent literature on the role that refugee agency and autonomy (should) play in accessing and navigating refugee admission instruments; c) expand existing scholarship on a set of normative issues raised by resettlement and complementary pathways’ policies and practices, paying specific attention to aspects of equity and non-discrimination, procedural fairness, and access to rights.

Mots clés : forced displacement, refugees, resettlement, human rights, non discrimination, european union, canada, institutionalism, policy framing

Participants :
- Institut universitaire européen de Florence (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 306223.08 €
- Toronto Metropolitan University (Canada) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
Projet ODIM (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Physics
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Dark matter, identified primarily by its gravitational effects, is not composed of Standard Model (SM) particles, posing significant challenges that require coordinated and comprehensive responses. To optimize detection methods, it is important to understand the true nature of dark matter, which contributes to the generation and dissemination of experimental evidence, and to implement effective techniques and simulations. These mysterious particles have changed our knowledge of cosmological observations and nonbaryonic particles. The insights gained from this discovery are crucial for improving precise techniques for distinguishing dark matter from various background noise sources and for exploring potential candidates beyond the traditional weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs). The DAMIC-M experiment at the Laboratoire Souterrain de Modane uses advanced CCD technology to increase sensitivity to dark matter candidates, particularly light WIMPs, and other exotic particles. With support from the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action Program, the ODIM (Optimisation of the DAMIC Instrument at Modane) project aims to optimize detection techniques and minimize background noise, which is crucial for distinguishing dark matter signals from other sources. Ongoing research emphasizes the importance of simulations and material selection to improve detector performance and sensitivity. Further exploration of dark matter candidates beyond WIMPs is important, as is the development of new detection technologies. International cooperation and multidisciplinary collaboration will be vital in overcoming existing challenges and advancing our understanding of dark matter.

Mots clés : ccd detectors, underground laboratories, shielding

Participants :
- Centre national de la recherche scientifique (France) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 226420.56 €
Projet RAND-COMB-DESIGN (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Mathematics
Statut du projet : SIGNED

The objective of this proposal is to develop fundamental and influential research into combinatorial designs. These objects have fascinated pure mathematicians for over 200 years and have also found many applications, for example in biological experiment design or in the design of strong error correcting codes in order to transmit data securely. The majority of research in design theory has focused on the existence and construction of designs. However recent breakthroughs have opened up exciting new perspectives, allowing for a much deeper understanding of these objects. The aim of this project is to develop these new directions by adopting a probabilistic stance and studying random designs. Our key objectives explore the existence and statistics of global structures in large designs and the longstanding problem of efficient algorithms for random sampling of designs. Through this, the project will foster connections between areas of pure mathematics, in particular extremal and probabilistic combinatorics, and the field of randomized algorithms in theoretical computer science. In order to achieve the proposal's objectives, the researchers will build upon a range of powerful novel methods, drawing on the expertise of the experienced researcher in absorption techniques and spanning structures and that of the host in rainbow structures and Markov chains. This will foster an exchange of knowledge between the two parties and greatly enhance the research potential of the experienced researcher. This project thus provides a pivotal opportunity for the development of his career as a young scientist, enabling him to push this exciting branch of design theory forward, broaden his knowledge and cement himself as a prominent researcher in several disciplines.

Mots clés : probabilistic combinatorics, randomized algorithms, random discrete structures, combinatorial design theory, extremal combinatorics

Participants :
- Université polytechnique de Catalogne (Espagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 165312.96 €