Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-actions-marie-curie-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet SensHolo (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Environment and Geosciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Chemosensation is a critical signalling process for sea cucumbers which relies on the interaction between their chemosensory receptors and various ligands for foraging and reproduction. Although there is a vast amount of research on the chemistry of secreted specialized metabolites of sea cucumbers, and some behavioural data evidencing chemoreception of these metabolites, the chemosensory receptors of these organisms have not yet been identified and nothing is known about the physiology behind sea cucumber chemosensation. This setback is in large part because the scientific approach behind studying chemosensation requires a vast array of techniques and expertise in ethology, chemistry, molecular biology, and biophysics. Firstly, a behaviour associated with a chemical cue must be quantifiable, secondly, the precise chemical cue eliciting the behaviour response must be identified and isolated, thirdly, the chemosensory receptor of this specific cue needs to be identified on a tissue, cellular, and molecular level, and finally, the activation of this specific receptor by a specific chemical cue must elicit a measurable response on a molecular, cellular, tissue, and organismal level. Through this project, I will elucidate the physiology of chemical communication between sea cucumber by considering these sequential steps in chemosensation. With my previous experience in sea cucumber ethology and chemistry, SensHolo will enrich my skill base in molecular biology and biophysics so that the mechanisms behind intraspecific chemical communication between sea cucumbers may be determined from both the emitter and receiver perspective; from signal to receptor. This holistic approach will be ground-breaking in chemosensation and sea cucumber research. It will enable future research to address the evolution of chemosensation in marine invertebrates and the chemical ecology of sea cucumbers both in the context of optimizing aquaculture and in their ecological conservation.

Mots clés : sea cucumbers, holothuroid, receptor, chemosensation

Participants :
- Université de Bergen (Norvège) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 226751.04 €
Projet CST-TUNA (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Environment and Geosciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Tuna, a cornerstone of global fisheries, representing 10% of marine catches and sustaining numerous jobs, confronts pressing challenges from overfishing and climate change. To address these issues comprehensively, our proposal outlines a three-fold strategy: 1 - Advanced Spatial Modeling: We will employ Bayesian spatial models, specifically INLA (Integrated Nested Laplace Approximation), to predict tuna catch and price dynamics while considering vital environmental factors. This approach will unveil intricate relationships between catch, prices, and environmental variables, providing a deeper understanding of the complex interplay; 2 - Climate-Based Predictions: Building upon the insights gained from our spatial models, we will integrate predictions from the Norwegian Climate Prediction Model (NorCPM). This integration will allow us to provide skillful forecasts for tuna catch and price fluctuations over the next decade. These forecasts are invaluable for anticipating and responding to dynamic changes in the tuna industry, enhancing its resilience; 3 - User-Friendly Web Application: In collaboration with experts from ICES (International Council for the Exploration of the Sea) and the Norwegian IMR (Institute of Marine Research), we will develop a user-friendly web application. By developing this tool, we aim to make our scientific insights accessible to a wide audience, including researchers, managers, and policymakers. This project not only enhances our understanding of tuna fisheries and climate vulnerabilities but also empowers coastal communities, supports sustainability, and aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals. Our commitment to open-science practices ensures lasting impact through readily available project code and results.

Mots clés : spatial temporal models, bayesian, inla, numerical models, decadal prediction, tuna

Participants :
- Université de Bergen (Norvège) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 226751.04 €
Projet MAL-ZOO (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2021)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Plasmodium falciparum cerebral malaria (CM) is the most severe complication during malaria infections. CM is associated with patient coma and blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption resulting in brain swelling and patient death. In the zoonotic malaria parasite P. knowlesi, CM is described in rhesus macaques but occurs neither in human infections nor in the natural long-tail macaque reservoir. Infected red blood cell cytoadhesion to endothelial cells and the release of parasite toxins have been described as pathogenic mechanisms of falciparum CM. Both factors are present in P. knowlesi in all three primate hosts, albeit at different levels and result in different clinical outcomes. Therefore, I hypothesize that the pathogenic mechanisms of CM in primates are host and parasite-specific. As in vivo studies are limited to post mortem samples, I aim to develop in MAL-ZOO novel microvascular 3D in vitro models of the human, rhesus macaque and long tail macaque BBB. I will adapt existing differentiation protocols for human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) to generate macaque endothelial cells, astrocytes and pericytes, that will be introduced in a 3D microvascular model. Taking advantage of the microfluidic properties of the devices, I will characterize the dynamics of P. knowlesi cytoadhesion to the endothelium of the three hosts. Afterwards, I will measure the BBB pathogenicity of these two parasites by confocal microscopy, functional permeability assays and RNAseq transcriptional analysis and correlate it to the parasite cytoadhesion levels. The cross-species comparison will be used to highlight species-specific virulence factors during P. falciparum and P. knowlesi infections. This will improve our understanding of the mechanisms leading to P. falciparum CM in humans and the pathogenic potential of zoonotic P. knowlesi malaria.

Mots clés : bioengineering, in vitro infection models, cerebral malaria, p falciparum, p knowlesi, zoonotic malaria

Participants :
- Laboratoire européen de biologie moléculaire (Allemagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 180096.96 €
Projet SHELLACRAFT (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Chemistry
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Cow milk allergy, lactose intolerance, calorie intake concern, and soy allergy, presence of unpleasant off-flavors and lack of essential nutrients such as calcium all hinder the consumption of dairy products and plant-based dairy alternatives, respectively. Therefore, in the project, a novel concept of the creation of low-calorie alternatives (milk, yogurt mimic products) additionally fortified with sustainable plant-based bioactives and minerals will be ambitiously pursued by using a natural polymer shellac. Shellac is a sustainable food source, a biodegradable resin obtained from the secretion of lac insects (Kerria Lacca), being recognized as a safe food additive by the FDA. The distinguishing factors of shellac are: lipophilicity, surface activity, self-assembling properties, supramolecular interaction ability. What is more, it is also non-allergic and it can also form calcium–shellac microsphere; hence it is a promising starting material for the preparation of an allergen-free non-dairy milk alternative at low cost. To meet the low-calorie and bioactive-fortified goals, formulation and production of non-dairy milk and yogurt will be achieved by shellac as a main ingredient in combination with virgin coconut oil and xanthan gum. Appropriate drying technology will be used to form easy-to-apply powders that will serve as a base for the production of low-calorie dairy alternatives that will be preserved in the form of dehydrated products. The reconstituted products will be examined for physical and chemical properties, toxicity, organoleptic, digestibility, and bioaccessibility studies including new aspects of process contaminants determination (safety issue). This study provides new insight into the characterisation of new products and will aid in extending the scientific network for future collaboration. The SHELLACRAFT aims to develop a sustainable and allergen-free dairy-plant alternative platform for products that will meet various consumer demands.


Participants :
- Université du Danemark du Sud (Danemark) — Partner, associated partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Université des sciences de la vie et de l'environnement de Wrocław (Pologne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 179006.16 €
Projet BEndTarG (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2021)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Alzheimer disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia (60-80% of cases) with a prevalence near 50 million people. There is no cure available and there are only two classes of approved drugs that are effective in treat some of the cognitive symptoms and potentially delay the clinical decline. Despite the considerable progress achieved in the research of best performing disease-modifying agents, the main clinical challenge remains the accomplishment of an efficient and safe therapeutic option that can arrest the disease progression and prevent cognitive failure. In this project, I am proposing an innovative approach to improve AD pathophysiology by targeting the brain endothelium to improve the Amyloid-β (Aβ) clearance using gene therapy. I will use super-selective nanocarriers to carry relevant genes for the enhancement of the Aβ clearance mechanism. These nanocarriers will be functionalised to allow the specific targeting of brain endothelial cells and to increase its potency to deliver the therapeutic gene into these cells. This project will combine for the first time, the use of super-selective binding strategies and gene therapy for brain endothelium targeting and modulation in the context of AD. Overall, I will develop an innovative therapy for AD treatment, capable of reaching the BBB in a non-invasive way, being able to target the brain endothelium, overcome the defective Aβ transendothelial clearance, and potentially arrest the disease progression and prevent cognitive failure. Therefore, this project will reach a global impact by substantially contributing with a novel avenue to change the clinical course of AD pathogenesis.

Mots clés : blood brain barrier, gene delivery, transcytosis, amyloid transport, alzheimer disease

Participants :
- Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (Espagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 165312.96 €
Projet BrainAtCardio (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

This project aims to investigate the early associations between cardiovascular health and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology, with a focus on subclinical atherosclerosis (SCAth) and cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs), in a large cohort of asymptomatic, middle-aged individuals. The overarching objective is to determine how cardiovascular health in subclinical stages influences both cerebrovascular integrity and early AD biomarkers, and to examine how these factors contribute to cognitive decline, with particular emphasis on sex-specific differences.  The proposed research leverages data from the PESA-Brain study, a deeply phenotyped cohort integrating advanced neuroimaging and cognitive testing, with longitudinal cardiovascular and blood-based biomarkers assessments. We will first test the relationships between cardiovascular health markers and cerebrovascular health, focusing on brain perfusion, microstructure, and microinfarcts. We will then explore the links between cardiovascular health and AD pathology, using plasma and brain amyloid and tau biomarkers, as well as cognitive outcomes, including memory and executive function.  The project will employ advanced statistical approaches, such as linear mixed models and mediation analysis, to handle the complexity of multimodal data and examine causal relationships between cardiovascular health, brain pathology, and cognition. By including sex-stratified analyses, the research will provide critical insights into gender-specific susceptibilities, which have been underexplored in previous studies.  The relevance of this project to the work programme lies in its potential to shift the focus of AD prevention to midlife, offering novel insights into the neurobiological pathways that link cardiovascular dysfunction and neurodegeneration. These findings could pave the way for earlier interventions targeting modifiable CVRFs, significantly reducing the incidence and societal burden of dementia in aging populations.

Mots clés : cerebrovascular health, mri, pet amyloid, cardiovascular risk factors, subclinical atherosclerosis, dementia, cognition, middle aged cohort, biomarkers, cognitive decline, neurodegeneration

Participants :
- Ministry of Health (Espagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 194074.56 €
Projet DIANA (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Physics
Statut du projet : TERMINATED

Astrophusical accretion disks are the main engine of most of high energy sources. Although they have been studies for decades, we still do not know their exact structure and their evolution with luminosity. A clear example is at high luminosity, for which our best theory predicts the presence in all sources of an instability which leads to the cyclic disruption/rebuilding of the disk. However, from the observational point of view, we have observed only a handful of accreting black holes. My recent work has demonstrated that these instabilities can take place also in accreting neutron stars, opening a new way to study this still poorly understood process. The main objective of DIANA is to exploit the recent advancements in highly accreting binary systems to set the most stringent constrains on the evolution structure of the accretion disk around neutron stars near the Eddington limit. To achieve this, I will combine for the first time X-ray polarization measurements with fast O-IR observations. The synergy of these two groundbreaking techniques will allow me to link directly the variations of the accretion flow structure to the relativistic ejections observed in these systems. Building on these observational results I will develop the first 1-D model for accretion instabilities around accreting neutron stars. This will represent a significant advance in our understanding of accretion disks, as will allow us to compare the appearance in BH and NS, providing key constrains on the origin of instabilities, and informing future 3D global simulations.

Mots clés : accretion disks, neutron stars, black holes, jets

Participants :
- Center for Theoretical Physics (Pologne) — Partner, associated partner, Recherche, subvention : 0.0 €
- National Institute for Astrophysics (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 172750.08 €
Projet MOKA (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Information Science and Engineering
Statut du projet : SIGNED

In MOKA, we will design and implement methods for managing the evolution of large and dynamic knowledge graphs (KG). Currently, KG are getting much attention from both industry and academia because they have properties that support the design and development of more intelligent and intelligible systems by connecting and structuring knowledge, ensuring semantic interoperability between information systems and providing richer content for automatic reasoning. However, one of the most widely agreed-upon problems experienced by data scientists and knowledge engineers is the maintenance of such KG over time. Since KG model the knowledge of a given domain, they have to be frequently updated to reflect the evolution of that domain which demand significant effort from experts and once updated changes are lost which leads to a general impoverishment of knowledge over time. To do so, our methods and tools will allow to (i) identify and characterize changes that occurs in KG when the domain evolves which will significantly reduce the efforts of domain experts in the KG maintenance tasks and (ii) define a mechanism to represent the evolution of a domain within a so-called Historical Knowledge Graph (HKG) that will allow users having a clear and deep understanding of the evolution of the domain knowledge over time. The proposed methods and tools will be evaluated on the KG of the Open Research Knowledge Graph initiative and the data of the space domain. We will have a significant impact on scientific, technological, economic and societal aspects. This will be made possible thanks to the proposed dissemination, exploitation and communication plans aimed at a large audience that will facilitate the development of the career of the researcher.

Mots clés : knowledge graph evolution

Participants :
- Luxembourg Institute of science and technology (Luxembourg) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 191760.0 €
- Leibniz-Gemeinschaft (Allemagne) — Partner, associated partner, Organismes publics (hors enseignement & recherche), subvention : 0.0 €
Projet HePeQul (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Physics
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Laser diodes are pivotal for the Internet of Things (IoT), and forthcoming 6G communication by enabling efficient data transmission, low power consumption, and integration into photonic circuits. Perovskite nanocrystals-based LEDs (PeLEDs) offer a promising platform for solution-processable laser diodes with their tunable emission properties and high gain coefficients. The most critical step toward achieving Perovskite laser diodes is the development of high-power efficient PeLEDs capable of operating at the high current densities (j) required for lasing threshold. Despite recent advancements in PeLED efficiency, the key challenge remains: engineering high-power PeLEDs that must overcome the severe Auger recombination and excessive heat generation. In this HePeQul project, I aim to develop high-power efficient PeLEDs by focusing on three main objectives: (1) developing high-quality PeQDs with suppressed Auger recombination and enhanced photoluminescence (PLQY>90%) by controlling nanocrystal nucleation growth processes and implementing surface modification strategies, (2) optimizing device architectures and transport layers to achieve efficient and balanced charge injection (EQE > 20%), and (3) Integrating advanced thermal management techniques, incorporating current-focusing patterns with pulse-mode driving, to enable PeLEDs to sustain high current densities (j>100 A cm⁻²). HePeQul will not only push the boundaries of current PeLED technology but also provide a foundation for next-generation high-performance optoelectronic devices, with potential applications in displays, lighting, and laser technologies. The project will also equip the fellow with interdisciplinary knowledge and skills. Successful implementation of HePeQul will promote the host organization's international competitiveness in PeLED and laser filed. Additionally, the commercialization of newly developed QD materials and PeLED products will contribute to economic growth and job creation in Europe.

Mots clés : quantume dots, light emitting diodes

Participants :
- Université de Linköping (Suède) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 252180.0 €
Projet LIFECYCLE (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Chemistry
Statut du projet : CLOSED

During the last years, we have witnessed an evermore increase in the number of molecules detected in the region between stars, the interstellar medium, where new stars are born. Of the different families of molecules to which the new astronomical detections belong, cyclic and aromatic molecules are particularly puzzling for astrochemistry. Although they are ubiquitous in Earth-based chemistry, the positive detection of aromatic species in the interstellar medium came only a few years ago. This finding has initiated a wave of detections that reveal as many answers as pose new vital questions. For example, aromatic species are critical in the formation of prebiotic molecules. Hence, detecting these molecules presents significant, far-reaching implications for questions beyond astronomy, such as the origin of life on our planet.  In this project, we will determine the main formation routes of cyclic and aromatic molecules in the interstellar medium and the main destruction and conversion pathways that these molecules undertake once formed. We will pursue the project using first principles computer simulations, aiming to disentangle the physical and chemical basis for the origin of these species. Our goal is to find sources of molecular diversity in our universe, constrain the maximum chemical complexity expected in space for cyclic species, and determine how these molecules could be delivered to planets such as the Earth.


Participants :
- Conseil supérieur de la recherche scientifique (Espagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 181152.96 €