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

The SPICES project applies and develops state-of-the-art statistical methods to image forming exoplanets and characterize planet-forming disks. More than 5000 exoplanets have been detected as of today, showing a great diversity in planetary system architectures that is still not entirely understood. Many of these planets were found in systems that have dissipated their birth environment, and do not allow for the study of the early times of planet formation. Originally formed in gaseous protoplanetary disks surrounding newborn stars, long-period giant planets such as Jupiter shape the evolution of planetary systems including that in our own Solar System. They can gravitationally interact with disks and imprint signatures such as gaps, rings, and spiral arms. Such features are routinely observed in high resolution disk observations, suggesting that a large population of massive planets are actively sculpting protoplanetary disks. Later on, these gas-rich disks dissipate within a few Myr while terrestrial planets form, and planetesimal collisions lead to second- generation dust populations (i.e., debris disks). Observation of planetary systems in different stages is therefore key to understanding their formation and evolution. Using modern statistics-based methods, I propose the Statistics-driven Planet Imaging in Circumstellar EnvironmentS (SPICES) project to perform unprecedented inspection of planet forming disks, thus detecting planets that are embedded in disks while characterizing disk mineralogy. By doing so, I will bridge the gap between revolutionary data analysis methods in analyzing and the myriad of high-quality data, and ultimately provide new insights into the formation and evolution of planetary systems.

Mots clés : protoplanets planet imaging planet disk interaction multivariate statistics

Participants :
- Université Côte d'Azur (France) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur (France) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 195914.88 €
Projet MOM-OR-DAD (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Environment and Geosciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Alternative developmental and reproductive programs provide powerful sources of adaptive variation, which greatly enhances survival in changing environments. Yet, how divergent reproductive strategies and traits evolve remains poorly investigated particularly in the ocean, where the dramatic effects of climate change and anthropogenic impact on reproductive dynamics threaten entire animal communities. For this, I plan to close this knowledge gap by investigating the molecular and genomic basis underlying the divergent reproductive strategies and reproductive timing in Platynereis marine bristleworms. These animals are easy to breed in laboratory conditions, are genetically-accessible, and display a kaleidoscopic diversity of reproductive traits in closely-related species. Specifically, I plan to: 1) dissect the molecular mechanisms of the drastically divergent reproductive strategies of the sister species P. dumerilii and P. massiliensis, and 2) decode the genomic basis of alternative lunar reproductive periodicity in Platynereis species. Thus, I will combine my experience in working on the reproduction and chronobiology of these models with evolutionary genetics, population and comparative genomics, functional genomics and transcriptomics strategies mastered in the host lab. On one hand, I will provide ground-breaking insights on how molecular machinery can be drastically rewired generating novel and adaptive combinations of reproductive traits. On the other, I will shed light on the elusive molecular nature of lunar reproductive periodicity, a widespread phenomenon particularly in the marine environment, and its evolution. Currently, endocrine disruption and light pollution are severely affecting animal sexual development and reproductive timing, respectively, challenging the conservation of entire ecosystems. In this context, this research will also provide fundamental resources to better understand their effects on the marine environment

Mots clés : reproductive strategies, reproductive timing, invertebrates, platynereis

Participants :
- Université de Padoue (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 188590.08 €
Projet CarbTMM (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Environment and Geosciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Coastal carbon release is drawing escalating concern globally, primarily because of its adverse effects on climate change mitigation and the pursuit of carbon neutrality. Driven by outer bank collapses, tidal meanders frequently migrate across coastal landscapes, revealing sediment layers that would otherwise remain concealed. This exposed sediment is rich in organic carbon, which is released back to the atmosphere upon oxidation. Despite the significance of this mechanism, a notable research gap exists in linking coastal carbon release to the intricate dynamics of tidal meander migration (TMM). This void can be attributed largely to the challenges of accurately simulating TMM. To bridge this research gap, CarbTMM aims to unravel the mechanisms underlying TMM and to understand its influence on coastal carbon release. The proposal will address four pivotal objectives. Firstly, investigate the mechanisms of bank collapse in tidal environments through physical experiments, and formulate parameterized, physics-based functions that accurately capture characteristics of such collapse events. Secondly, refine the start-of-the-art morphodynamic models by integrating newly developed functions for bank collapse, to better simulate the evolution of single tidal meanders (Nays2D) and complex tidal networks (Delft3D). Thirdly, formulate an idealized, process-based TMM model for global-scale applications, drawing on insights from the refined sophisticated models. Lastly, generate and evaluate projections detailing TMM-driven coastal carbon release at global scale under current and future climatic scenarios (e.g., sea-level rise). In achieving these objectives, CarbTMM aims to provide profound insights into the coastal carbon cycle and strengthen our proficiency in assessing potential capacity of coastal carbon storage. Furthermore, predicting TMM near coastal infrastructures can help protect coastal communities and their assets.

Mots clés : coastal carbon release, tidal meanders, bank erosion, bank collapse, morphodynamics, tidal flats

Participants :
- Université de Hokkaidō (Japon) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Deltares (Pays-Bas) — Partner, associated partner, Recherche, subvention : 0.0 €
- Université de Padoue (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 172750.08 €
Projet CtR (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Carbon to Roots aims to improve alfalfa, the most grown forage in the world, to help fight climate change by storing more carbon from the air into the soil. By using advanced genetic techniques and microProteins engineering, the project will develop alfalfa varieties with deeper and steeper roots. These improved root systems will store more carbon underground, reducing the amount released into the atmosphere. This research will fill three major gaps: 1. Understanding the genetic networks that control alfalfa's root system. 2. Developing deep learning methods to measure root system architecture in alfalfa. 3. Creating efficient strategies to engineer alfalfa's proteins in a dominant fashion, obtaining steeper and deeper roots bypassing homozygosity in tetraploid outcrossing alfalfa varieties. The project will use cutting-edge technologies and infrastructure and collaborate for two years with experts at the Salk Institute for Biological Sciences, leveraging the existing knowledge and technology in root architecture for carbon sequestration within the Harnessing Plants Initiative to achieve these goals. The knowledge acquired at Salk will be used in the final project year, when selected alfalfa varieteis will be transformed and regenerated in Denmark, at the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences of Copenhagen University, using the alfalfa tissue culture expertise of the research fellow and plant transformation infrastructure available there. The expected outcome is alfalfa plants that store more carbon in deeper soil layers, helping to mitigate global warming, as well as improve soil health and the drought resistance of the selected varieties. The discoveries achieved in this project will also benefit other crops improvement efforts. In fact, alfalfa has an incredibly high natural variation, which will be explored in Carbon to Roots to understand what are the gene variants and gene networks responsible for steeper and deeper roots in crop systems.

Mots clés : microproteins, high throughput phenotyping, gwas, genome sequencing, scrna seq, tissue culture, plant transformation, crispr cas9, dominant mutations, tissue specific promoters

Participants :
- Salk Institute for Biological Studies (Etats-Unis) — Partner, associated partner, Recherche, subvention : 0.0 €
- Université de Copenhague (Danemark) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 447706.08 €
Projet AsympTensorPolytope (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Mathematics
Statut du projet : SIGNED

In AsympTensorPolytope I will study the behavior of moment polytopes of families of tensors, as well as their ability to prove bounds on (asymptotic) tensor rank and subrank. I aim to determine properties of the moment polytopes of the unit tensors of varying ranks, as well as matrix multiplication tensors, in particular whether they are distinct from the generic polytopes of their respective format. To achieve this, I will use a combination of the various different descriptions of moment polytopes, which come in representation-theoretic, symplectic-geometric, intersection-theoretic, or more combinatorial forms. In particular, I will study the behavior of moment polytopes under taking direct sums and Kronecker products of tensors, as well as recently obtained computational results. The project has the potential of proving new bounds on the complexity of various tensors, as well as furthering our understanding of Strassen's asymptotic spectrum of tensors. The techniques here can also be extended to understand other settings, such as symmetric or antisymmetric tensors (bosonic or fermionic systems), algebras and quiver representations. As a result, AsympTensorPolytope will have an impact in other contexts such as the complexity of matrix multiplication, quantum information theory and combinatorics.

Mots clés : tensor rank, moment polytopes, representation theory

Participants :
- Université de Copenhague (Danemark) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 247553.28 €
Projet RECOVER (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Chronic non-cancer pain (CP) negatively impacts all areas of functioning, severely limiting quality of life and increasing the risk of mental disorders. Psychological interventions are a key part of treatment, with meta-analyses showing small to moderate effects on pain intensity and associated outcomes. Psychological interventions are themselves complex, with multiple, distinct components. There is presently no taxonomy of these components and no information about which components are the active ingredients supporting the treatment effect, which are redundant or even harmful and whether some patients respond better to some components rather than others. The RECOVER project is premised on two principles: (1) to optimize treatments, we need to know their building blocks; (2) to improve treatment response, we need to examine patient-level predictors of responses. The aims of RECOVER are (a) decomposing complex psychological interventions for CP; (b) re-evaluating efficacy by examining the specific contributions of components and combinations; c) examining patient characteristics (e.g.,age, gender, pain history) predictive of better response to components or combinations and d) creating an open app based on the project findings, allowing users to personalize treatment by selecting the most effective components. The methodology will involve retrieving and reutilizing individual participant data from randomized controlled trials of psychological interventions for CP and using advanced meta-analytic methodology such as component network meta-analysis. Training activities will span the entire project duration, and the outcomes will be presented at international conferences and submitted to top-tier, peer-reviewed journals. RECOVER has the potential to make important strides toward optimizing and personalizing psychological treatment of chronic pain.

Mots clés : pain chronic pain psychological treatment individual participant data network meta analysis active ingredients personalised treatment

Participants :
- Université de Washington (Etats-Unis) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Université de Padoue (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 265099.2 €
Projet QUEST (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Physics
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Energy management has always been crucial, throughout history, in advancing technology, enhancing productivity and fostering sustainable development. It is thus not surprising that even now, at the verge of the second quantum revolution, the field of quantum thermodynamics is emerging as one of the most vibrant branches of quantum many-body physics. A key focus of this research area is the conversion of heat, work, and information within quantum systems and, as a consequence, the conceptualization of quantum thermal machines, such as quantum thermal engines, refrigerators, and quantum batteries, which leverage quantum effects like superposition, entanglement, and coherence to extract and transfer energy between quantum systems. Among these, quantum batteries stand out for their potential to achieve faster and more efficient charging processes compared to their classical counterparts, as demonstrated by pioneering studies on the realization of the quantum Dicke battery, which showed a collective speedup of the charging process. These outstanding results have motivated a growing interest towards these quantum technologies. However, despite significant progresses, the field still faces numerous challenges, including stabilization of stored energy, optimization of charging protocols, and enhancement of energy transfer. Within this context, the limitations of current simulation techniques, which often rely on exact diagonalization, restrict the exploration of larger and more complex systems, particularly in higher dimensions. Therefore, as energy management continues to be pivotal in technological advancements and sustainable development, QUEST seeks to address the need for breakthroughs in the development of quantum energy devices, advancing the current state-of-the-art in the field of quantum technologies for energy storage and transfer by developing efficient numerical simulations tools for the design and characterization of many-body quantum batteries.


Participants :
- Université de Padoue (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 193643.28 €
Projet GWSKY (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Physics
Statut du projet : SIGNED

While scientists observed the night sky with telescopes for centuries, only in the past decade have we began to probe it with gravitational waves (GWs). Next-generation GW observatories, if properly exploited in synergy with current and future galaxy surveys, have the potential of mapping the structure of the Universe in a fully independent and complementary fashion with respect to what has been done so far. In particular, by studying GW propagation across cosmological distances and GW sources spatial distribution, we can shed light on dark matter and dark energy properties, and also on what the correct theory of gravity is. Even if numerous studies have already investigated the theoretical feasibility of this kind of analysis under relatively simplistic assumptions, none of them have ever provided a framework that demonstrates how this goal is, in fact, achieved. The purpose of this project is to bridge the gap between the current idealised analysis and an actual realistic implementation, ultimately capable of informing us about the underlying properties of these GW sources and our Universe. In other words, I aim to provide an end-to-end framework that fully characterizes how GWs can be used to trace the three-dimensional large scale structure of the Universe. This project is divided into three main stages. First, I will provide a robust methodology to create realistic mock catalogs of GW sources spatial distribution for different classes of compact objects. Second, I will develop a statistical procedure to create optimal GW sky maps both from detected and undetected GW events, aiming to minimize the amount of statistical and systematic noise. Finally, I will forecast the capability of future GW experiments in synergy with galaxy surveys to characterize different populations of compact objects. Completing this program will allow me to not only shape the design of future experiments, but also to provide a starting point for real-data analyses.

Mots clés : cosmology, gravitational waves, compact objects physics, large scale structure

Participants :
- Université de Padoue (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 209483.28 €
Projet FXSdev (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the most common inherited form of intellectual disability and the main monogenetic cause of autism spectrum disorder. FXS is caused by the epigenetic inactivation of the FMR1 gene during the first trimester of gestation. FMR1 encodes for the fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP), which regulates the transport and translation of mRNAs involved in brain development. Already at 6 months of age, FXS infants display structural alterations in several brain areas, including the fronto-striatal circuit, suggesting an altered neural network assembly during fetal brain development. Structural anomalies in the fronto-striatal circuit may underlie symptoms that strongly impair the life of FXS patients, such as attention deficit, hyperactivity, stereotypic language and motor behavior, and problems with impulse control. This project aims at understanding the causal factors of the altered assembly of the fronto-striatal circuit in FXS fetuses. To achieve this goal, we will generate human cortical and striatal brain organoids from FXS naïve induced pluripotent stem cells, and assemble these organoids into cortico-striatal assembloids. The resulting in vitro model will be used to conduct research in two directions. First, it will allow us to recapitulate cortico-striatal circuit assembly in FXS, identifying potential defects in axon growth and guidance, neuron morphology and neural connections. Second, we will investigate the molecular causes of these defects, in particular how the absence of FMRP affects the expression of proteins involved in the assembly of the FXS cortico-striatal circuit. These studies will make it possible, for the first time, to spatiotemporally follow the pathological events that cause FXS, both at the cellular and at the molecular level, and they will pave the way for the identification of new therapeutic strategies to prevent the development of the disease.

Mots clés : fragile x syndrome, brain organoids and assembloids, neural network assembly, cortico striatal neural circuit

Participants :
- Université de Padoue (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 188590.08 €
Projet MAP (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Economic Sciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

The urgent need for rapid decarbonization of the global energy sector to meet Paris Agreement goals requires more robust policies based on a deep understanding of the sector’s key economic actors, investment decisions and incentives, and influence on policymaking. However, these factors have not yet been thoroughly studied. The MAP project addresses this critical research gap by examining, at the global level, primary energy supply firms' physical investment, categorized by technology - dirty, clean, or options like CCS potentially diverting resources from cleaner alternatives. These investments will be traced to the firms’ ultimate owners, whether governments or shareholders. Additionally, MAP will analyze how ownership, control, and board structures influence energy and climate policies. Ultimately, the project aims to identify the most effective policy mixes for achieving rapid decarbonization of energy, considering these dynamics. MAP will employ empirical, econometric and network analysis to study investment patterns, ownership structures, and their influence on climate and energy policymaking. It will also develop an agent-based model to simulate policy scenarios and assess policies' effectiveness. The project will provide insights into energy decarbonization's industrial and political economy dimensions by integrating economics, network analysis, energy system modelling, and political science. Hosted at UniCA within a leading multidisciplinary research group and supervised by Prof. Mauro Napoletano, an expert in agent-based models and network analysis, the project will produce cutting-edge research. The fellow, expert in climate economics, innovation, and concentration, will contribute to the group's research and knowledge exchange. This fellowship will broaden the applicant's expertise, research capabilities - enhanced through advanced courses at UniCA - and professional networks, positioning her for a tenured role at a leading EU institution.

Mots clés : decarbonization primary energy supply political influence agent based modelling ownership and control networks

Participants :
- Université Côte d'Azur (France) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 226420.56 €