Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-actions-marie-curie-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet VarCrysDef (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2021)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Mathematics
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Defects are omnipresent in crystalline materials and the understanding of their emergence and interaction is essential for the prediction of the macroscopic material behaviour. Thus, there is a huge interest to pass in a rigorous mathematical way from atomistic models for crystal defects to macroscopic models, e.g., for crystal plasticity. From a variational viewpoint this can be addressed by deriving effective limiting energies from lattice energies when the lattice spacing vanishes. A powerful method to carry out such a variational coarse-graining procedure is Gamma-convergence. In this framework we address here the variational coarse graining of lattice energies which capture the formation and interaction of defects of different dimension, namely partial dislocations and stacking faults. The splitting of dislocations into partial dislocations resulting in a stacking fault is a typical phenomenon of closed-packed crystalline structures. Thus, on the one hand we aim at proposing and analysing a suitable discrete model for partial dislocations and stacking faults in HCP, on the other hand we will embed this result into a broader context by investigating in a general framework the emergence of fractional vortices and string defects in XY-model type energies. Eventually, we will characterise geometric properties of minimisers for the coarse-grained energies.

Mots clés : calculus of variations, gamma convergence, discrete to continuum variational analysis, dislocation models, vortex models

Participants :
- Université de Rome « La Sapienza » (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 172750.08 €
Projet HUMAN-CONSERVATION (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Environment and Geosciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

The catastrophic global decline of biodiversity is one of the most pressing problems facing humanity. Effective conservation solutions must be informed by evidence. Conservation policy and practice historically relied solely on the natural sciences for guidance, but there is increasing recognition that considering the human dimensions of conservation is vital. These are complex and span diverse fields of classic and applied social sciences, and are particularly pertinent for problems which are inherently the result of human decisions and actions, such as wildlife trade.  Wildlife trade is a major driver of biodiversity loss and a pathway for zoonotic disease transmission. Illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade is a significant threat, placing ~12,000 terrestrial vertebrate species (ca. one quarter of the total) at risk of extinction. Furthermore, the rising frequency of zoonotic epidemics and pandemics, including COVID-19, has highlighted the devastating human health consequences of wildlife consumption. Shifting global power structures and geopolitics add to the complexity of the challenges faced. Improved wildlife trade governance and environmental governance in biodiversity-rich areas is needed to manage zoonotic disease risks and implement integrated preventative approaches like One Health. How can wildlife trade governance address the challenges of our geopolitically polarized, post-pandemic world?  In the HUMAN-CONSERVATION project, I will pursue three Research Objectives on the human dimensions of wildlife trade. Building on my expertise on the human dimensions of wildlife trade, my ability to lead interdisciplinary collaborations, and Prof. Di Marco’s strengths in comparative species modelling and in using integrated approaches to connect conservation solutions to broader societal goals like human health, the HUMAN-CONSERVATION project will inform wildlife trade policy, help combat wildlife trafficking, and define frontiers in conservation geopolitics.

Mots clés : biodiversity conservation conservation social science wildlife trade wildlife trafficking geopolitical tensions

Participants :
- Université de Rome « La Sapienza » (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 172750.08 €
Projet SETRU-2.0 (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Social Sciences and Humanities
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Stone sarcophagi are one of the most important witnesses of Etruscan funerary art and craftmanship. Although a few examples are attested between the 8th and the 5th centuries BC (Orientalist, Archaic and Classical periods), most of the production dates from the 4th-2nd centuries BC (Hellenistic period) and is mainly distributed in the necropolises of the southern Etruria (northern Lazio), and more specifically in the territory of the city of Tarquinia. The reference publication on these objects dates from the mid-20th century and concerns only Hellenistic decorated pieces, studied through the prism of art history (iconography, stylistics); it was expanded in 1974 and 2004 to form a corpus of ca. 420 decorated sarcophagi well preserved. The undecorated specimens have never been taken into consideration, even though they represent between half and two third of the Etruscan stone sarcophagi of this period. The earliest examples have never been the subject of a synthetic study any more. The SETRU-2.0 project aims to fill the gaps in research on all Etruscan stone sarcophagi and to establish a new reference publication that goes beyond artistic and stylistic considerations, through a complete inventory these objects and a methodological guide applicable to future discoveries and other type of handmade products. Its originality lies in the fact that it considers the entire production (from the 8th to the 2nd century BC; sarcophagi whole or fragmentary, decorated or not, painted or not, inscribed or not, of fine or coarse workmanship), on a global and interdisciplinary approach (archaeology, art history, epigraphy, geology, anthropology, etc.), and on the implementation of a specific methodology, from the study of tool marks to the use of 2.5 and 3D surveying (RTI, photogrammetry, lasergrammetry) and analysis tools and techniques (GIS, 3D modelling). This project is definitively innovative for this class of object and more widely in Etruscology.

Mots clés : stone sarcophagi etruria italy methodology development inventory traceology 3d modelling gis

Participants :
- Université de Rome « La Sapienza » (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 188590.08 €
Projet TrAdE-Pic (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Social Sciences and Humanities
Statut du projet : SIGNED

The project aims at examining the vernacular tradition of the Historia de Duobus Amantibus, first written in Latin in 1444 by Enea Silvio Piccolomini. This novella is an example of literary and commercial success in the 15th-16th centuries: it was translated into many languages and circulated widely across Europe, both in its Latin and vernacular versions. The research will focus primarily on the French and Italian prosimetra, and study them within a comparative approach which will consider the cultural and book history, the impact of new readership on literature, the translation and rewriting processes, the changes in the depiction of characters (especially women). It will provide the first critical editions of these translations, the first complete analysis and the first comparative study of all the prosimetra. The research will embrace and develop actual disciplinary trends, which transcend the literary framework and consider the many historical, cultural, commercial and gender-related aspects. It will deliver an analysis resolutely anchored in the study, the understanding and the valorisation of the European heritage. Therefore, the work undertaken will expand our understanding of the literary, linguistic, historical-cultural aspects of the 15th-16th centuries, of the humanist construction, the book market, the exchanges between different areas and between society and cultural production. The project also intends to reach a public interested in cultural history and humanities studies. The tradition of the Historia de Duobus Amantibus is particularly able to attract a wide audience, as it is an erotic novella whose mechanisms of distribution and adaptation resonate with several current issues. It is therefore an ideal medium for communicating about literary and cultural history. It will also serve as a communication tool to explain the methodology used to edit old texts and provide information about philology and about what is read when reading an ancient text.

Mots clés : rewritings vernacularisations cultural transfers book history book market depiction of women prosimetra enea silvio piccolomini historia de duobus amantibus antitus faure alessandro braccesi

Participants :
- Université de Rome « La Sapienza » (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 172750.08 €
Projet SeRBoMo (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2022)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Idiopatic scoliosis (IS) is a human pathology that affects 1-4% of adolescents worldwide, who suffer from spine deformities for which an effective treatment is not currently available. At present, evidence for genetic causes of IS exist, but the aetiology of this pathology is still not understood. The zebrafish is a powerful organism to model human pathologies that entail body axis misalignment as, by swimming in a viscous liquid, its spine is subject to forces similar to the ones acting on the spine in bipedal position. One essential player in the establishment of embryonic zebrafish longitudinal axis is the Reissner Fibre (RF). The RF consists of SCO-spondin protein, which, during post embryonic life, is secreted by a paraventricular organ, the SCO. Zebrafish scospondin mutants lack the RF and exhibit severe scoliotic phenotype. Remarkably, a similar scoliotic phenotype is observed in the tph2-/- zebrafish, genetically depleted of serotonin. Preliminary observations have shown that serotoninergic projections reach the SCO, in mammals and in the zebrafish. My research objective is to unravel how the neuronal activity of serotoninergic neurons can control the maintenance of a straight longitudinal body axis during the zebrafish post embryonic life. Firstly, a detailed characterisation of spine alignment in correlation to RF assembly will be carried out in the tph2-/- zebrafish. Secondly, the serotoninergic neurons projecting to the SCO will be anatomically located and mapped. Thirdly, the neuronal mechanism by which serotoninergic neurons regulate RF maintenance will be functionally investigated. The long-term goal of this research project is to gain insights in the progression of IS, and to inform preclinical research on the development of diagnostic tools, which are currently lacking.

Mots clés : zebrafish, body axis morphogenesis, serotonin

Participants :
- Institut du cerveau (France) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 195914.88 €
Projet EpiGlyco (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : SIGNED

An increasing number of neurodevelopmental pathologies are associated with disorders of glycosylation. One such disorder is MOGHE (Mild Malformation of Cortical Development with Oligodendroglial Hyperplasia in Epilepsy), which is primarily caused by brain somatic mutations in the gene SLC35A2. This gene encodes the sole known ER/Golgi UDP-galactose transporter, and mutations in SLC35A2 result in loss of galactose from glycans. The only therapeutic approach to control MOGHE-related seizures is surgical resection of the affected brain region. The host lab has used this tissue to gain insight into the genomic, histological and transcriptomic characteristics of MOGHE. To better understand the pathophysiology of this condition and promote future therapeutic approaches (e.g. galactose supplementation), I will model MOGHE by generating mosaic SLC35A2 knockout myelinating organoids. Through imaging and electrophysiological approaches, I will use these organoids to understand the development of the phenotypic characteristics of MOGHE: oligodendroglial hyperplasia, hypo-myelination, defective neuronal migration, and altered neuronal electrical activity. To better understand the mechanisms underpinning these phenotypes, I will use high-throughput approaches, including single-cell RNA sequencing and glycoproteomics to identify candidate conveyors. Findings from these experiments can then be validated on patient tissues available in the host laboratory. Beyond therapeutic perspectives, the mosaic nature of this model provides an unprecedented opportunity to gain insight into the cell autonomous and non-cell autonomous roles of glycans in cortical development and function. This project incorporates the state of the art in techniques used to study brain development and glycobiology and thus will expand on my existing skills as a researcher in a highly collaborative and open host environment and help me reach my goal of becoming an independent researcher.

Mots clés : malformations of cortical development glycosylation epilepsy cortical organoids glycoproteomics oligodendroglia

Participants :
- Institut du cerveau (France) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 226420.56 €
Projet BacTheRNA (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2021)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : TERMINATED

RNA therapeutics are a rapidly growing field of research, thanks to their enormous potential. However, production costs and delivery systems represents the major issues for their widespread use in clinics. BacTheRNA aims at overcoming these issues by developing novel circular RNA (circRNA)-based therapeutics using recombinant food-grade bacteria. CircRNAs are advantageous over their linear counterpart, for their stability due to their intrinsic resistance to nucleases (which cannot cut circular molecules without free ends). Their production costs are thus lower, as they do not need chemical or enzymatic modifications. Moreover, production in bacteria is simpler than chemical synthesis and it is scalable, with further reduced production costs. CircRNAs will be either purified as naked molecules or will be directly secreted by the bacteria in extracellular vesicles (EVs) embedding targeting moieties. Importantly, non-immunogenic circRNAs can be designed. Intriguingly, BacTheRNA will demonstrate that it is possible to include targeting moieties directly through programming of circRNAs natural packaging, i.e. by expressing appropriate surface ligands on recombinant EVs. Finally, the potential to reach increased efficiency thanks to the possibility of amplification through rolling circle mechanisms is yet another innovative aspect of these next-generation RNA therapeutics. As a proof-of-concept, circRNAs produced in BacTheRNA will be applied to Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) as a model target disease. Nevertheless, BacTheRNA will demonstrate a general strategy, which can potentially be exploited in several other pathologies that may benefit of RNA therapeutics approaches.

Mots clés : circrna, bacteria, rna therapeutics

Participants :
- University College Dublin (Irlande) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 143958.4 €
Projet TestGravity (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Physics
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Since 2015, gravitational waves have entered the realm of astronomy, providing a new channel to observe our universe. The groundbreaking measurements of gravitational waves have extended our knowledge of gravity, black holes, and neutron stars. Like all measurements probing new, extreme regimes, gravitational wave astronomy has the potential to uncover new fundamental physics.  Analysing gravitational wave signals requires accurate theoretical waveform models. Black hole perturbation theory (BHPT) has significantly contributed to waveform modelling and helped us understand the nature of black hole dynamics. The next generation of gravitational wave detectors will produce richer data requiring more precise models. The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) mission was recently adopted by the European Space Agency and is planned to launch in 2035. Producing precise measurements of binaries and testing gravity are two key science goals for the LISA mission, but such measurements will require precision waveform models beyond our current capabilities.  This proposal will advance waveform modelling to the required accuracy for future detectors by extending BHPT. I will extend BHPT models in General Relativity to second perturbative order for spinning black hole spacetimes—and create new models in alternative theories of gravity. The waveforms produced will help measure binaries and perform tests of gravity with LISA and ground-based detectors. UCD is the ideal sponsor for my fellowship because of its world-leading research group in BHPT. Combining my expertise in the theory of BHPT and alternative theories of gravity with UCD's expertise in practical BHPT waveform calculation will cultivate knowledge exchange and a successful project impact. An MSCA fellowship will result in my research testing our theory of gravity with gravitational wave astronomy.

Mots clés : gravity, gravitational waves, black hole perturbation theory, general relativity, alternative theories of gravity, self force, quasi normal modes

Participants :
- University College Dublin (Irlande) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 252728.64 €
Projet HUMANITY (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2024)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Social Sciences and Humanities
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Throughout the Syrian civil war, the Syrian government directly targeted aid workers and created bureaucratic and administrative obstacles in humanitarian action. This violence presents a dilemma for aid organizations, as they strive to provide humanitarian assistance and protection to those in need without inadvertently supporting oppressive regimes. In contrast, in Colombia, where 8 million people are displaced by conflict, humanitarian access is comparatively less restricted than in many other conflict-ridden countries. This variation in states’ responses raises the question: What explains the differing degrees of cooperation or conflict that host states demonstrate toward international humanitarian action? This research addresses this question. It develops a typology of responses that states adopt toward international humanitarian assistance in non-international armed conflicts. Then, it identifies the explanatory conditions that are expected to influence states’ behaviour towards international humanitarian actors. Lastly, it explores the interactions of explanatory conditions that determine a state’s specific response to international humanitarian assistance in non-international armed conflicts. It aims to conceptualize the diverse responses of states to international humanitarian assistance in non-international armed conflicts. This research will be the first study to develop a typology of state responses towards international humanitarian assistance and offer a configurational analysis explaining the variances in these responses through a qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) of 27 countries currently experiencing non-international armed conflicts. The findings of this research will deepen our understanding of the conditions influencing state behaviour toward international humanitarian assistance, providing substantive evidence for the global community, including the United Nations Security Council.

Mots clés : sovereignty humanitarian action international organizations humanitarian norms violence

Participants :
- Université de Manchester (Royaume-Uni) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 276187.92 €
Projet BICATC2 (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Chemistry
Statut du projet : CLOSED

The utilisation of CO2 as a chemical feedstock is a promising strategy for breaking the dependence of the chemical industry on oil and gas. To do this, it is necessary to go beyond the reduction of CO2 to one-carbon products such as carbon monoxide, and advance to multi-carbon ‘C2+ products’ including ethylene, ethanol and oxalate. These higher value chemicals are essential in materials manufacturing and fine chemical synthesis but are challenging to form, due to a difficult C–C coupling step which is not well understood in the state-of-the-art catalysts currently available. Inspired by the binuclear enzyme active sites found in nature, this project’s novel approach is to harness the cooperative reactivity of two metal sites, using molecular bimetallic electrocatalysts to promote C2+ product formation. Through a combination of electrochemistry, theory and complementary spectroscopic techniques, the poorly understood mechanisms of C–C bond formation will be elucidated at well defined molecular metal centres. The outcome of this project will be greater understanding of the pathways to C2+ products at two sites. This will lead to the future development of efficient catalysts for the electrochemical reduction of CO2 to valuable chemical feedstocks. The applicant brings a background in the synthetic inorganic chemistry of bimetallic complexes, and will receive world-class training from the hosts, who are experts in molecular electrochemistry and spectroscopy.

Mots clés : co2 reduction, bimetallic, electrochemistry, bioinspired catalysis

Participants :
- Commissariat à l’énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (France) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 195914.88 €
Projet COxEnzymes - AGs (Horizon Europe, appel à projets 2023)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Chemistry
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Carbohydrate-oxidising enzymes (COE) are a group of enzymes which are active on specific carbohydrates and can use molecular oxygen as a mild oxidant. Oxidation is typically directed towards specific positions of the sugar ring. Regioselectivity and substrate specificity relies on the architecture of active site, therefore the direct evolution approach in this project will allow to generate a toolbox of effective and regiospecific catalysts to modify various carbohydrate scaffolds. Our aim is to use this toolbox to generate a library of bioactive compounds: i) aminoglycoside derivatives starting with analogues of Kanamycin as candidates to help in the fight against the global problem of antimicrobial resistance. This process in combination with a further chemical step may lead to a large library of derivatives prepared in short time with only a two-step chemoenzymatic process; ii) rare monosaccharides and oligosaccharides as promising candidates with health benefits. Antimicrobial activities of prepared library of compounds will be measured and statistically evaluated. Furthermore, this project will advance the current knowledge of COE which is of utmost interest for fundamental biology and crucial for industrial biotechnology and chemistry applications. Biocatalysis will be applicable to the synthesis of a wide range of saccharide related compounds, solving one of the big challenges in carbohydrate chemistry, the regioselective differentiation of the OH groups, in a green, sustainable and very efficient way.

Mots clés : biocatalysis, carbohydrate oxidases, aminoglycoside antibiotics, rare sugars, regioselective synthesis, enzyme engineering, industrial biotechnology

Participants :
- Université nouvelle de Lisbonne (Portugal) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 172618.56 €