Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-actions-marie-curie-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet SWING (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2015)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
Panel : Physics
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Spin-waves, i.e. propagating perturbations in the spin arrangement of magnetic materials, are envisioned to revolutionize the way information is carried and processed due to their multiplexing capability and absence of Joule losses. By bringing together the complementary expertise of “CUNY Advanced Science Research Center” (USA) and “Politecnico di Milano (PoliMi)” (Italy), the ‘SWING’ project addresses two major issues of current nanoscale magnonics: the efficient guidance of spin-waves in nanostructured materials and the study of spin-waves at the nanoscale. At CUNY, “Thermally assisted magnetic scanning probe lithography” (tam-SPL), recently conceived and demonstrated by the applicant, will be further developed and employed for nanopatterning magnonic devices in magnetic multilayers grown at PoliMi. In such devices, spin-waves will be efficiently guided and manipulated by defining reconfigurable topological features, such as magnetic domain walls, in continuous films, avoiding any detrimental scattering due to the physical interfaces created by conventional lithography. Furthermore, a novel, versatile tool for the nanoscale study of magnons will be realized, by combining Nitrogen-Vacancy magnetometry and scanning probe microscopy. Advanced magnetic characterization via optical methods, experiments at Brookhaven Synchrotron and access to the cutting-edge CUNY NanoFab facility will be pivotal complements in view of the research objectives. During the incoming phase, the acquired expertise and technologies developed at CUNY will be transferred to PoliMi, aiming to realize fully reconfigurable nanoscale magnonic logic devices. ‘SWING’ project aims to push magnonics forward, by means of an interdisciplinary approach which combines the excellent competence of the host organizations in magnetism, nanoscience, photonics and entrepreneurship. The candidate will acquire key comprehensive skills towards becoming an independent scientific and technological leader in Europe.

Mots clés : scanning probe microscopy, spin wave, magnonics, nitrogen vacancy, scanning probe lithography, exchange bias

Participants :
- Politecnico di Milano (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 244269.0 €
- City University of New York (Etats-Unis) — Partner, organization partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
Projet QUANTUM LOOP (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2015)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
Panel : Physics
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Spontaneous coherence in quantum condensates due to strong exciton-photon coupling in materials can potentially drive energy efficient polariton lasers. With a long term perspective of creating industrially viable polariton lasers embodying perovskites, this project will develop the essential photo-physical knowledge-base through novel optical spectroscopies. The investigations will cover both perovskite photo-physics and complex polariton dynamics. Advanced multi-dimensional spectroscopies will be applied on selected organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites in order to unravel the many-body exciton physics and inherent non-linearities in these materials. This will enable us to classify the photo-physics of these novel materials and design the appropriate chemical and structural architecture of the perovskite to create a polariton laser. In parallel, new optical spectroscopies based on the “quantum” light will be developed and applied on micro-cavities with conventional semiconductors (GaAs quantum wells) to obtain a detailed and unambiguous comprehension of the dynamics of the polariton condensate. This will enable us to understand the various interactions of the condensate and the various competing channels for the lasing action. These fundamental studies will be carried out at Silva’s group (Monetréal) and the resultant knowledge will be transferred in the return phase to Petrozza’s group (Milano), where micro-cavities embodying perovskites will be fabricated and characterized to create room temperature polariton lasers.

Mots clés : hybrid perovskites, excitons, polariton lasers, bose einstein condensate, multi dimensional optical spectroscopy, ultrafast lasers, entangled photons

Participants :
- Université de Montréal (Canada) — Partner, organization partner, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 0.0 €
- Italian Institute of Technology (Italie) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 229761.0 €
Projet InteractomeMalMot (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2014)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Sporozoites are the motile forms of the malaria causing parasite Plasmodium and are injected into the vertebrate host by a mosquito. Their motility is powered by the parasites own actin-myosin motor, which is connected to transmembrane proteins of the TRAP (thrombospondin-related anonymous protein) family which serve as force transmitters. This substrate-dependent locomotion is a prerequisite for tissue penetration and host cell invasion. The glycolytic enzyme aldolase was thought to be the link between actin and surface adhesins (reported in Mol Cell). However, recent data revealed that aldolase does not fulfil this role hence it is now unclear how the force is transmitted. Additionally, lack of the main surface adhesin TRAP was also found (by the host lab) to not block motility as previously reported (in Cell). Additional recent findings are challenging the model of how gliding motility works and thus highlight the importance to focus on novel proteins. One such new protein, LIMP has recently been identified in the host lab. Therefore, the principal aim presented in this proposal is the identification of the molecular function of LIMP, which shows an identical phenotype to TRAP. To this end I will generate a series of parasites strains expressing different mutated versions of LIMP which will be investigated using biophysical approaches. Moreover, I attempt to identify the proteins interacting with LIMP.


Participants :
- University Hospital Heidelberg (Allemagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 159460.8 €
Projet SquaMem (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2017)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Squalene is a natural lipid precursor, which plays a crucial role in the biosynthesis of sterols in the cells . Squalene is 100% biocompatible, not toxic and is able to enter into the cells easily. This makes it very promising for creating highly efficient drugs and drug delivery systems. The so-called squalenoylation technology is based on fusing hydrophobic squalenic acid with the molecules of water-soluble drugs. Resulting conjugated molecules spontaneously self-assemble into nanoparticles, which deliver the drugs into the target cells efficiently. Currently anticancer (gemcitabine , doxorubicin ), antiviral (dideoxycytidine ) and neuroprotective (adenosine ) drugs were used in this technology with great success. This project is devoted to revealing mechanisms of interaction of novel and highly promising squalene-based anti-cancer and neuroprotective drugs with cell membranes by means of in silico ccomputer simulations. The main goals of the project are the following: 1. To reveal how squalene-based drugs incorporate into the cell membranes, interact with membrane components and are released from the membranes on atomistic level of details. 2. To propose the ways of improving translocation of squalene-based drugs through the membranes in order to increase their therapeutic efficacy. The practical impact of the project is improving translocation of squalene-based drugs through the membranes and making it selective, which is of great interest for therapeutic applications of existing drugs and for creation of new compounds with desirable properties.

Mots clés : cell membranes, squalene derivatives, molecular dynamics, anti cancer drugs, neuroprotective drugs

Participants :
- Université Marie et Louis Pasteur (France) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 173076.0 €
Projet TRIM MAGE complexes (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2020)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

TRIM family proteins are RING-type E3 ubiquitin ligases with important roles in immune responses, autophagy and cellular signalling. They are characterised by the presence of an N-terminal tripartite motif that harbours the catalytic RING domain and a C-terminal variable substrate-binding domain. TRIM28/KAP1 is a unique family member that is better known for its role in transcriptional repression, which is mediated via its C-terminal PHD-Bromo domains. Nevertheless, ubiquitination activity has been described for TRIM28, especially in cancer cells, in conjunction with Melanoma Antigen (MAGE) proteins. MAGE proteins are aberrantly expressed in many cancer types and have been proposed to regulate and activate TRIM28 E3 activity to mediate proteasomal degradation of prominent targets, including p53 and AMPK. Cellular and molecular details of TRIM28 MAGE-dependent ligase activity remain unknown. Furthermore, it is unclear, how the interplay between the two functions of TRIM28 is regulated and how the protein E3 ligase activity is supressed when recruited as part of transcriptional silencing complexes. I want to use a multi-disciplinary approach and combine unbiased proteomic studies with in vitro biochemical, biophysical and structural experiments to study MAGE-dependent regulation of TRIM28 E3 ligase activity. I aim to identify cellular signals such as posttranslational modifications and interaction partners that can both modulate MAGE-TRIM28 complexes and regulate the interplay between the transcriptional and the E3 ligase activity. By combining these findings with structural and mechanistic studies, I will uncover how MAGE proteins modulate substrate recognition, E2 recruitment and ligase activity of TRIM28, and create a model of MAGE-TRIM28 function.

Mots clés : ubiquitination, e3 ligases, trim family proteins, structural biology, cell signalling

Participants :
- The Francis Crick Institute (Royaume-Uni) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 212933.76 €
Projet MIGKNOW (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2019)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Social Sciences and Humanities
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Taking its lead from my pilot study in the ERC AdG project The Colour of Labour (no. 695573) on the international actors involved in labour migration to 19th-century Hawai‘i, this project researches the intersecting, transnational knowledge networks German medic, botanist and immigration commissioner Wilhelm Hillebrand used to direct the wide-scale migration of bodies, plants, creatures, medicines and techniques to the Hawaiian Islands. With the mentorship of Prof. Dr. Ulrike Linder (University of Cologne), an expert in the history of migration and comparative colonial history, I will gain training through research in the linked study of colonial migration and knowledge in the age of empire. Crossing the history of migration and the history of science, the project tackles the following issues: (i) how transnational scientific actors possessed and performed expertise as part of highly mobile careers in the 19th century; (ii) whether colonial migration was a type of colonial science; (iii) how to analyse the “colonial” in independent Hawai‘i; and (iv) the legacies of European global actor networks in the 19th-century Pacific. The research plan consists of 4 research-based work projects that use close study of Wilhelm Hillebrand’s networking practices to investigate different conjunctures between knowledge, labour and migration in the mid 19th century. Connected research on the careers, biographies, correspondence and ideas of Hillebrand’s global associates will develop insights about the porosity of emerging knowledge forms and scientific networks during the 19th century, and their role in plantation-focused labour migration regimes. Through high-quality mentoring from the supervisor and training in research and transferable skills at the UoC’s Institute of History and Global South Studies Centre, this project will prepare me for employment across Europe in midcareer, tenure-track positions in global history.

Mots clés : labour migration, colonial science, colonialism in hawai i, transnational history, networks, history of knowledge, historiography of colonialism, 19th century, contract labour, population

Participants :
- University of Cologne (Allemagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 174806.4 €
Projet LIGHTOPLEX (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2016)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Chemistry
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Target-specific and controlled drug delivery are nowadays integral and extremely promising parts of research and practice in modern medicine. It gives an option to reduce drug toxicity and increase bioavailability by delivering a drug to a specific site with defined concentration. During the last decade highly efficient non-viral gene delivery has been achieved by encapsulation of nucleic acids into complexes of liposomes and polycations - lipopolyplexes (LPP) - new generation gene delivery systems. The main challenge in liposome-based gene delivery is to achieve high level of control over gene release. The main aim of this project is to develop a new approach for non-invasive gene delivery while gene release is highly controlled in space and time. This will be achieved by the design of infra-red light sensitive LPPs. The project includes engineering of the tailor-made LPPs, detailed investigation of the light triggered release mechanism, and will eventually result in intracellular light triggered gene delivery. Expert knowledge of the researcher together with the knowledge to be contributed by the hosting institution and from collaborations established by the researcher worldwide will allow successful project implementation. Mutual knowledge transfer will strengthen scientific contacts within and outside the EU as well as will let the researcher to develop her own independent research career. Attraction of interest from industrial partners is expected in case of success. Collaboration with industrial partners will profit from an exceptional record of the host with successful industrial projects.

Mots clés : gene delivery, liposome, stimuli sensitive, multilayers, intracellular, controlled delivery, self assembly

Participants :
- Fraunhofer Society (Allemagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 171460.8 €
Projet ChemRAS (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2017)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Targeted therapies have been widely used in tumors driven by RAS oncogenes. Unfortunately, no effective RAS inhibitors have been translated to the clinic, and attempts to block other signaling nodes usually fail due to the emergence of drug resistance. Chromatin dependent signal transduction and transcription are a point of confluence of multiple signaling networks elicited by hyperactive RAS. Hence, pharmacologic disruption of gene-regulatory dependencies imposed by mutant RAS represents an attractive therapeutic interface less prone to the emergence of resistances. The urgent clinical need of RAS-related therapies is well exemplified by pancreatic cancer, one of the most aggressive and deadly cancers, which will be the disease background of my studies. Using the innovative approach of targeted protein degradation, I want to characterize and understand the consequences of acute mutant KRAS degradation on chromatin remodeling and transcription. Further engineering the models of acute KRAS degradation will enable to devise cellular reporters of KRAS-dependent chromatin regulation amenable to high-throughput phenotypic drug and genetic screens. Coupled to a facile readout via high-throughput microscopy, these screens will allow me to identify molecules and genetic perturbations that interfere with KRAS-dependent, transcriptionally active chromatin. Lead molecules will be characterized for the underpinning mechanism of action and assessed for therapeutic potential. Building on already existing experimental and computational pipelines in the Winter laboratory at CeMM-Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, this project will increase the understanding of transcriptional control elicited by oncogenic KRAS and could open new avenues for the treatment of RAS-driven tumors based on chemical modulation of critical chromatin and transcription regulators.

Mots clés : chemical genetics, targeted protein degradation, cancer, mutant ras signaling, drug screens, crispr, cas9 screens

Participants :
- Austrian Academy of Sciences (Autriche) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Organismes privés (hors enseignement), subvention : 178156.8 €
Projet REVERSING TAUOPATHY (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2016)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Life Sciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Tauopathies are a group of neurodegenerative diseases, the most common of them being Alzheimer’s disease, which are associated with the aggregation of protein Tau in the brain. Despite major research efforts world-wide, the mechanism of Tau aggregation and its pathogenesis giving rise to such neurodegenerative diseases is not yet understood. Therapeutics to cure these tauopathies, including Alzheimer’s disease, are urgently needed. We aim to identify the conditions, the cellular machinery responsible and the mechanism of disaggregation of intracellular prion-like Tau aggregates in HEK293 cell lines, with one condition already been identified (starvation). For identifying the conditions of disaggregation, high resolution confocal microscopy will be used for visualizing intracellular Tau aggregates tagged with yellow fluorescence protein (YFP). For deciphering the cellular components responsible for disaggregation, the proteins associated with the aggregates will be identified using quantitative mass spectrometry from SILAC (stable isotope labeling with amino acids in cell culture) labeled cells. Moreover, candidate factors will be downregulated by siRNA to establish their involvement in aggregate disassembly. Such components individually and in combination will then be analyzed for their disaggregation activity in vitro using filter trap assay for the quantification of disaggregation. Cryo-electron tomography of Tau aggregates under various conditions (e.g. during disaggregation) will be carried out in collaboration with Prof. Wolfgang Baumeister (MPIB). Besides contributing to the benefit of humankind, the proposed research work on neurodegenerative diseases will allow me to grow as a researcher and will help me in realizing my true potential as a scientist. The MPIB and the Hartl lab in particular will play an important role in this regard due the availability of state-of-the-art research facilities and an intellectually stimulating environment.

Mots clés : alzheimer s disease, tauopathies, dementia, prion, protein aggregation, disaggregation, proteostasis, cellular stress, heat shock, chaperones

Participants :
- Max Planck Society (Allemagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 171460.8 €
Projet ChEATAX (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2016)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Economic Sciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Tax evasion is a large and growing problem in almost all countries (Murphy’s 2012 report “Closing the European Tax Gap” estimated that “tax evasion in the European Union is approximatively € 860 billion a year”). This problem is particularly extreme in Southern European countries as Italy, Spain and Greece. Recent experimental and survey analyses revealed that individual’s intrinsic motivation to pay taxes is not only influenced by tax rates and audit probabilities, but also by social and cultural norms. Designing effective policies for reducing tax evasion thus requires understanding the behavioural aspects of tax compliance decisions. The previous experimental analyses on tax compliance were mainly carried out in the Centre-North of Italy (Milan, Bologna and Rome) and assumed the taxpayer as an isolated individual. My proposed research, entitled “Cross-Cultural Experimental Analyses of Tax Compliance” (ChEATAX) will innovate by taking a broader perspective on tax morale from the perspectives of both geography and level of analysis. In this way, ChEATAX can advance knowledge by addressing two long-standing gaps in the literature: the North-South discrepancies in Italian tax compliance, and the impact of social norms and social interactions on tax morale. To isolate cultural effects as a factor in tax compliance, this aim will be pursued by collecting survey and laboratory data in Italy and Denmark, respectively representing Southern and Northern European societies, and in the South and the North of Italy to capture disparities in Italian tax compliance. The outputs of this project will help understanding how different countries can establish and foster cooperation with taxpayers to enforce tax compliance.

Mots clés : tax compliance, tax evasion, cross cultural experiments

Participants :
- Copenhagen Business School (Danemark) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 200194.8 €
Projet TROPHY (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2017)
Action : Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
Panel : Environment and Geosciences
Statut du projet : CLOSED

Temperature, nutrients and light drive the growth of phytoplankton, aquatic photosynthetic microbes responsible for nearly half of global primary production. Because phytoplankton influence global biogeochemical cycles, carbon sequestration and climate, accurately modelling their growth is vital to forecasting our future. However, the models we use for global ecosystem forecasts do not consider how these factors interact, even though the interactions lead to qualitative and quantitative differences in outcomes. My goal is to therefore build a mechanistic understanding of how temperature and resources interact to influence phytoplankton growth, productivity and biogeochemical cycles. This project has three objectives (i) develop statistical models describing how phytoplankton growth changes as a joint function of temperature, nutrients and light, (ii) develop mechanistic models characterising how temperature and resources influence cellular processes in phytoplankton, and ultimately their growth, and (iii) implement dynamic versions of the mechanistic model to forecast how marine phytoplankton communities will respond to future changes in temperature, resources and predation. My work will involve applying machine learning techniques to published laboratory and field datasets to understand complex interactions between the three factors. By combining this understanding with insights from ecological theory, I will generate an accurate mechanistic model of growth, and then test the power of this model to predict patterns in the ocean using independent field datasets. Finally, I will use the validated mechanistic model to forecast changes to global patterns in phytoplankton growth and primary productivity. This project will enable us to generate credible forecasts of phytoplankton productivity and biogeochemical cycles in a warming ocean, and improve our understanding of fundamental ecological processes by uniting major fields of ecological theory.

Mots clés : phytoplankton, temperature, nutrients, light, predation, machine learning, statistics, ecological theory

Participants :
- Technical University of Denmark (Danemark) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 212194.8 €