Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-erc-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet ERC : NUTRISOIL (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : Université autonome de Barcelone — Pays : Espagne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 150000.0 €

Many policies promote urban and peri-urban agriculture (UA) through circularity of nutrients to increase food autonomy, minimize food losses, and reduce environmental impacts associated to transport, mineral fertilizer production, and waste management. Yet up to date most EU cities have low local crop production, and although they generate vast volumes of nutrient-rich waste, nutrient recovery through composting and wastewater treatment to substitute mineral fertilizer for application in UA is still anecdotal. What is hindering nutrient circularity for application in UA and what can be done to overcome the obstacles? The variability and quality of recovered nutrients is one key issue. However, there is a more important underlying problem that has not been addressed: the impoverished state and quality of the urban and peri-urban agricultural soil. Adding nutrients to a carbon-deficient soil is counter-productive, resulting in reduced rooting patterns, increased sensitivity to draughts, and ultimately lower yields. The solution to impoverished soils and poor local crop production lies in the cities themselves. A large proportion of urban residues are rich in decomposable organic carbon and can be used to enhance soil microbiota function, counteract acidification, and improve soil quality and nutrient cycling efficiency. The pathway towards UA is to preserve and increase soil OM, while increasing nutrient recovery in urban areas- and this can be achieved through resource circularity right within the city. The goal of NUTRISOIL is to clearly identify, address, and resolve these soil-related obstacles to the sustainable implementation of UA in cities by providing the technical expertise and creating a knowledge transfer exchange amongst farmers, composting facilities, WWTPs, administration, policy makers, and the various governing and coordinating associations implicated in the entire cycle of nutrients in the city: from waste to food.
Projet ERC : ALLENEDRUG (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : Université autonome de Madrid — Pays : Espagne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 150000.0 €

Type 2 Diabetes is a chronic disease affecting more than 450 million people world-wide and is still an unmet medical need. PPAR´s (Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors) and G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) FFARs (Free Fatty Acid Receptors) are well clinical validated targets for type-2 diabetes. Although selective GPR40 agonists have reached clinical phase III, the trials were recently terminated due to signs of liver toxicity in patients. ALLENEDRUG is designed to provide a new chemical series of GPR40 ligands aiming to bring a safer type-2 diabetes therapy. To achieve this goal, we will use a synthetic tool developed in our laboratory to prepare enantiomerically enriched allenes through a selective C-N bond cleavage. This ERC-PoC will allow us to test the new chemical series as potential GPR40 agonists and to get insight into a SAR (Structure Activity Relationship) correlation with liver toxicity in order to compare the new molecules prepared in this proposal with those currently in clinical phase III trials.
Projet ERC : CoMBi (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : Université de Vilnius — Pays : Lituanie — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 150000.0 €

Enzymatic addition of a methyl group (methylation) is the most prevalent natural modification in cells, serving a myriad of regulatory and structural functions. Abnormal methylation of DNA, RNA or histone proteins can lead to severe developmental defects and is associated with numerous human diseases. Selective methylation of biomolecular targets is carried out by dedicated methyltransferase enzymes, which use the cofactor S-adenosyl-L-methionine (AdoMet) as the source of methyl groups. Despite the high specificity and impressive diversity of MTases, the deposited methyl groups are poor reporters and hardly amenable to further derivatization. To unlock the biotechnological power of MTases, strategies for repurposing these enzymes into targeting vehicles for the transfer of useful extended groups from synthetic AdoMet analogs have been devised. However, despite substantial advances over the past decade, a widespread adoption of this enabling technology in scientific labs and clinical settings was grossly hindered by the poor availability of such synthetic cofactors. This proposal, footed on findings of our ERC-funded work, will seek to overcome the limitations of chemical synthesis and adapt our recently developed chemo-enzymatic protocols for low-cost industrial production of functionally competent AdoMet analogs. We will also seek the transfer of the technology to an industrial partner for its commercial exploitation and to ensure broad access of these valuable reagents to the scientific community and commercial stakeholders.

Mots-clés : s adenosyl l methionine analogs adomet dependent methyltransferases biocatalytic s alkylation chemo enzymatic production bio orthogonal labeling
Projet ERC : PKDcontrol (Horizon Europe, appel 2022, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : W 42 industrial biotechnology gmbh — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : Partner
Acronyme de l'entité : W42
Type d'entité : Organismes privés (hors enseignement)
Financement ERC de l'entité : 15000.0 €

PKDControl is aimed at validating the use of a recombinant protein to reduce the pathology and mortality produced by proliferative kidney disease (PKD) in salmonids. PKD is caused by the myxozoan parasite Tetracapsuloides bryosalmonae that affects both cultured and wild salmonids in North America and Europe. It can eventually lead to mortalities of up to 90%, generating great economic loses every year to the aquaculture industry. This problem may be aggravated by global warming since the incidence and severity of PKD are exacerbated by rising temperatures. During my ERC Consolidator Grant we have demonstrated that the cytokine BAFF (B cell activating factor) mediates the dysregulation of diverse B cell subsets present in the kidney during PKD. We have shown that the intramuscular injection of a plasmid coding for the extracellular domain of BAFF receptor (BAFF-R) led to secretion of this truncated BAFF-R (tBAFF-R) that, in turn sequestered circulating BAFF, blocking BAFF signalling. Preliminary field tests in Spain and USA demonstrated the potential of this approach in reducing the pathology and mortality of the infected stocks. In this project, we will recombinantly produce tBAFF-R in yeast to facilitate its uptake by the industry and test its bioactivity in both lab and field experiments. In parallel to these technical activities, we will reinforce the IPR position (based on a PCT - “international” - patent application that has received a very positive patentability report by the patent office). We will also design a long-term IPR strategy and develop a knowledge transfer strategy through the recently initiated collaboration with a fish health management company, willing to reach commercialization of tBAFF-R under a license and to contribute with their own funds to the activities carried out under this project. A business case will also be elaborated to support the commercialization of the recombinant tBAFF-R to ensure that the innovation potential of our results.
Projet ERC : AutoPractices (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : Université du Danemark du Sud — Pays : Danemark — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : SDU
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 150000.0 €

Autonomous and AI technologies have become integrated into the targeting functions of weapons. Algorithmic rather than human decision-making may therefore prevail in warfare, raising humanitarian, legal, ethical, and security concerns. Currently, there are no specific, legal rules to govern autonomy and AI in the military. In their absence, ERC AutoNorms has found that use of autonomous and AI technologies in weapon systems makes norms. Practices of design, of training personnel for, and of using such weapons shape a norm of what counts as the requisite form of human control over the use of force. AutoNorms has revealed that this emerging norm accepts a diminished, reduced form of human control when designing and using military autonomous/AI technologies as “normal”. This emerging norm is a societal challenge and a public policy problem because it undercuts the meaningful exercise of human agency over life and death decisions in war. The insight that practices make norms holds the potential for social innovation as a process of recontextualising norms through enacting different practices. Stakeholders could therefore shape a positive norm of human control through changing their practices from the bottom up. The ERC PoC project AutoPractices initiates and accompanies this social innovation process in three ways via multi-stakeholder collaboration: first, AutoPractices raises awareness among stakeholders about the differential effect of their practices on the emerging human control norm in the military domain via empirical mapping. Second, AutoPractices co-creates a set of best practices with stakeholders to sustain human control in weapon systems integrating autonomous and AI technologies at three workshops. Third, AutoPractices diffuses the co-created set of best practices via an operational toolkit and dissemination through multipliers. In this way, AutoPractices becomes a source of diffusing a positive norm of human control in weapon systems from the bottom-up.
Projet ERC : COMBINE (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek — Pays : Pays-Bas — Rôle : Partner
Acronyme de l'entité : CBS
Type d'entité : Organismes publics (hors enseignement & recherche)
Financement ERC de l'entité : 36700.0 €

Aim: To break new ground in the field of official statistics, COMBINE produces error-corrected figures on (1) the number of individuals receiving social assistance benefit at a given point in time and (2) the transition rate out of social assistance between two points in time. Background: Social assistance benefits are an important pillar of the welfare state. Policy making on social assistance benefits is based on official statistics that are produced by National Statistical Institutes with the use of register data. However, register data suffer from measurement error that can severely bias official statistics and, consequently, policy-making that uses these statistics. Innovation: COMBINE tests, applies and evaluates a novel model-based error-detection and correction method on social assistance benefits. This method does not require concrete knowledge of the causes of measurement error. With this method, we produce different and more reliable official statistics on social assistance benefits. Moreover, this method is more efficient than the practices of data-quality improvement that National Statistical Institutes currently apply. Plan: The project is carried out in collaboration with Statistics Netherlands and, in particular, with its Department of Demographic and Socioeconomic Statistics. Besides producing error-corrected official statistics on social assistance benefits, COMBINE delivers an implementation plan of the method to other official statistics (by Statistics Netherlands or other National Statistical Institutes) and a dissemination plan for approaching policymakers and other users of the statistics. Impact: COMBINE will encourage a cultural shift in official statistics by boosting the confidence of National Statistical Institutes in producing model-based error-corrected statistics. In the policy field, as the method is applicable to a wide range of topics, the project contributes to evidence-based policy-making.

Mots-clés : official statistics,social assistance benefits,hidden markov models,register data
Projet ERC : PoC4ProMis (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : Resq biotech idiotiki kefalaiouchiki etaireia — Pays : Grèce — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Organismes privés (hors enseignement)
Financement ERC de l'entité : 150000.0 €

Within the ERC Consolidator Grant ProMiDis, my team and I have developed genetically engineered bacteria that function as a stand-alone, living discovery platform for short, drug-like cyclic peptides rescuing the misfolding and aggregation of proteins associated with human diseases (protein misfolding diseases, PMDs). By applying this technology, we have discovered hundreds of new molecules-putative drugs against notorious PMDs, such as Alzheimer’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). We have filed patent applications for aspects of this technology and for the first set of bioactive molecules. In PoC4ProMis, we will demonstrate in vivo proof-of-concept for the most promising molecules targeting the devastating neurodegenerative disease ALS. To achieve this, we will first develop an optimized method for efficient delivery of cyclic peptides to the central nervous system (CNS) by utilizing a novel specialized CNS delivery vehicle. Then, we will evaluate the effectiveness of our lead molecules to reverse disease phenotypes in well-established ALS mouse models. Finally, we will explore opportunities to strengthen further our IP portfolio by patent-protecting our SOD1-targeting cyclic peptides with additional claims relating to method-of-use and mode of delivery. PoC4ProMis will demonstrate in vivo PoC and will provide a general approach for efficient CNS delivery of cyclic peptide drugs targeting additional neurodegenerative diseases of high priority for drug development.

Mots-clés : protein misfolding and aggregation,sod1,als,neurodegeneration,preclinical development
Projet ERC : SpikeZip (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : Université Érasme de Rotterdam — Pays : Pays-Bas — Rôle : Partner
Acronyme de l'entité : EUR
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 6000.0 €

In-vivo neural recording and transmission of a vast number of neurons is essential in comprehending the brain and nervous system. However, the core challenge in the field of high-channel-count in-vivo neural recording is the limitation in transferring data posed by the bandwidth and energy consumption, which currently lacks a viable telemetry solution to effectively address this challenge. This PoC project introduces a novel retinomorphic encoding method, SpikeZip, which offers several advantages over existing approaches for processing neural data, such as low information loss, minimal latency, and reduced hardware overhead. The technical advances demonstrated in this project will have significant impacts on various applications areas, such as neuroscience research with free-moving small animals, low-latency closed-loop neuromodulation, implantable brain-computer interfaces, and cognitive prosthetics. The proposed method has the potential to revolutionize the way we record and process neural data, enabling us to better understand the brain's cognitive functions and develop new therapies for various neurological disorders. This PoC project will develop a robust demonstration system and rigorously validate it in small animal studies, with settings that can be effectively applied and translated across a diverse range of neuroscience and neurotherapeutic applications. SpikeZip will develop a go-to-market strategy that highlights the technology's unique features and benefits, with a focus on IP and licensing opportunities, and engaging with industry partners to identify promising commercialization opportunities.

Mots-clés : brain computer interfaces,neural interfaces,neural data processing,compression,neural decoding,low latency,event based
Projet ERC : VERTEX (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : Cartago ventures sl — Pays : Espagne — Rôle : Partner
Acronyme de l'entité : INVENIAM
Type d'entité : Organismes privés (hors enseignement)
Financement ERC de l'entité : 30000.0 €

VERTEX is a proof of concept project that aims to use virtual reality (VR) to improve the well-being of older adults. The project is based on the idea that psychological factors play a key role in age-related deterioration and that older adults' attitudes towards aging may be a significant predictor of physical and cognitive frailty. Participants will experience scenarios and events from their youth, such as being in a 1970s living room. They will be transported to memorable historical events from the time of their youth, such as famous concerts. The project aims to evaluate the effects of this experience on aging and provide evidence for the benefits of such an intervention, with the goal of supporting a spin-off. The project will involve several stages: a further implementation of the VR application continuing from results of an experimental study in the associated Advanced Grant MoTIVE, the carrying out of a further experimental study based on the new application, the rollout of the application to community centres providing opportunities for many people to experience this in such institutional settings, and the rollout to individuals to use in their homes on a loan basis. Focus groups with stake holders such as community centre managers will be carried out to assess the potential of the introduction of the VERTEX system as part of what can be offered to clientele. The business opportunity and regulatory framework will be investigated. All this information will be used to create a business plan that will make the case for investment to take the project forward in a spin-off to make VERTEX available on a large scale.
Projet ERC : Soxradicate Relapse (Horizon Europe, appel 2022, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : Université d'Uppsala — Pays : Suède — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 110000.0 €

Emergence of therapy resistance is a major cause of death following conventional chemotherapy and radiation for children and adults with malignant brain tumors. It is imperative to find novel options to target therapy-resistant brain tumor populations to save lives. We propose a novel platform providing a prognostic tool and a suicide gene therapy tool using engineered viruses. It involves targeting freshly biopsied cells from brain tumor patients with our strategy in combination with standard therapy to predict risk of patients developing relapse and a gene therapy suicide tool to remove cells causing relapse. Previous suicide gene therapies have only used viruses hitting dividing tumor cells. Our strategy will use an enigneered virus targeting non-dividing tumor cells that we know escape standard therapy. After removing the tumor bulk using standard treatment, we propose to use our virus with a marker for diagnostic purposes or a with a suicide gene that will be activated by a prodrug to eradicate therapy-resistant cells. Prodrug administration before recurrence will eliminate relapsed cells once they start dividing and become dangerous.  The impact of our strategy will be high, providing health care professionals with a better tool to identify patients at high risk of developing recurrence. Such patients can receive a better, more tailored treatment that will not only increase their chance of survival but also reduce their time under hospital care and rehabilitation. We protected our strategy with a filed patent and assessed our regulatory needs. We completed a market analysis to evaluate market size and potential benefit for cancer patients. We have disclosed competitors but also potential collaborators that can cofinance and move our strategy forward to in vitro diagnostic device registration and initial clinical trials. In our proposal we will apply for funding covering lab work to test efficacy and safety, help with registration and negotitation strategies.
Projet ERC : SPINETRACER (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Proof of concept grants)
Entité participante : Centre for Cooperative Research in Biomaterials — Pays : Espagne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 110000.0 €

SPINETRACER aims to restore the lost functions of patients suffering from spinal cord injury (SCI) by providing a conductive scaffolding implant for the growth of severed nerve fibres. Not thicker than an inch, the spinal cord has no way to heal when severed. Our creative idea is to provide an artificial support that can mimic and stimulate neuronal electrical connections. This scaffold can bridge the gap created by SCI and enable the return of motor and sensitive function. We have previously demonstrated that carbon nanotube (CNT) implants in rats lead to the recovery of motor activity in very short times after an otherwise paralyzing lesion to the spinal cord. For the first time it was possible to observe the regrowth of nerve fibres leading to restoration of motor function (published on PNAS 2020, 117, 25212). In this innovative approach, it was also possible to show that the scaffolds, when inserted in the lesion, became filled with newly sprouted nerve fibres. The long-term objective of SPINETRACER is to take to clinical practice our novel solution for the restoration of motor functions in patients suffering from SCI. To this end, we will combine our proprietary technology, based on CNT-containing hydrogels, and our recently developed neuroanatomical magnetic resonance imaging tracer based on carbon nanodots, for precise in vivo imaging of the progression of the spinal cord regeneration, to complete our preclinical studies. We expect to take further steps into the demonstration of technical and economic viability of this initiative by improving implant design and production processes, restoring motor function in small mammals and designing an appealing business model to exploit the asset. By the end of this Proof of Concept we expect to have acquired all the necessary data to move into the next stage of the road towards clinical implementation of the solution.