Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-erc-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet ERC : OptoDBS (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Neuroscience and Disorders of the Nervous System
Entité participante : Université Érasme de Rotterdam — Pays : Pays-Bas — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : EUR
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1498729.75 €

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a promising neuromodulation technique for the treatment of neurological and psychiatric diseases. DBS electrically stimulates brain tissue via implanted electrodes. However, the biophysical and therapeutic mechanisms underlying DBS remain largely unknown. While long-standing theories suggest that DBS suppresses neurons, subsequent studies have shown that DBS activates neurons via direct axonal excitation modulating membrane dynamics, information transfer, and network synchronization. Unfortunately, this conundrum has been difficult to resolve experimentally because of (1) the electrical interference occurring in electrode-based recordings and (2) the challenge of measuring cellular-level membrane voltage dynamics in the awake brain. In this proposal, I will overcome for the first time both key challenges by using a novel in-vivo voltage fluorescence optical technique that permits the direct recording of the membrane voltage from identified neurons in awake animals, free of electrical interference. I will combine voltage fluorescence microscopy and electrical stimulation in a mouse model of epilepsy to optically dissect the cellular mechanisms underlying therapeutic DBS for reducing seizures in the limbic system. This innovative and comprehensive approach will provide novel insights into the cellular and circuit processes occurring during DBS in the awake epileptic brain. This research program will provide an unprecedented opportunity to build a mechanistic framework of DBS and stimulation parameter selection with the ultimate goal of identifying more effective and targeted DBS protocols for human patients.

Mots-clés : deep brain stimulation,voltage imaging,epilepsy
Projet ERC : MicroMechAthero (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Products and Processes Engineering
Entité participante : Université Érasme de Rotterdam — Pays : Pays-Bas — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : EUR
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1879625.0 €

Atherosclerotic plaque rupture in arteries is the primary cause of cardiovascular events such as heart infarct and stroke, which are responsible for 45% of deaths in Europe. Plaque rupture is a mechanical event, where the collagenous plaque tissue fails to withstand blood pressure loading. Identifying plaques at high risk of rupture is the key to prevent these fatal events. However, the current risk assessment strategy fails to achieve this as it lacks mechanistic insights into tissue failure. To address this unmet, urgent clinical need, I propose a paradigm shift to a biomechanistic risk assessment concept. I will achieve this with MicroMechAthero project, by revealing plaque failure mechanisms and developing a clinically applicable computational risk assessment framework. MicroMechAthero will combine ex-vivo, in-silico, and in-vivo research. Ex-vivo mechanical failure tests on post-mortem human plaque samples will involve tissue's collagen architecture imaging with recently developed polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography and full-field, local, 3D tissue deformation measurements with digital volume correlation technique. This frontier opto-mechanical approach will revolutionize soft tissue testing and coupled with the virtual fields method, will provide unprecedented data for local, heterogeneous (hyper)elastic and failure properties of fibrous plaque tissue, linked to the underlying collagen network. Furthermore, a microstructure-based, in-silico tissue failure framework will be developed, using eXtended Finite Element Modeling technique, for plaque-specific risk prediction. This computational framework will be validated and tested for its clinical potential in an in-vivo patient study. Overall, MicroMechAthero will provide a ground-breaking advance in our understanding of plaque rupture and develop a biomechanistic in-silico framework for patient-specific in-vivo risk analysis, leading to revolutionary changes in cardiovascular medicine.

Mots-clés : biomechanics,cardiovascular,arteries,finite element modeling,experimental mechanics
Projet ERC : LACRIDO (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Physical and Analytical Chemical Sciences
Entité participante : Université Paris-Est Créteil — Pays : France — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UPEC
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1500000.0 €

The goal of LACRIDO is to lock reactive intermediates of a fast reaction by freezing them through Joules-Thompson expansion in the molecular jet, then precisely determine their three-dimensional (3D) structures by chirped-pulse microwave spectroscopy to capture all species marking the reaction mechanism.  LACRIDO comprises two stages. The first stage focuses on the detection of van der Waals complexes of the educts through their 3D structures encoded in the microwave spectra. New results of the lower-risk first stage will pave the way to the higher risk-high gain second stage where reactive intermediates are formed by laser activation; adiabatically frozen and locked in the collision-free zone of the molecular jet where the rotational temperature is close to the absolute zero-point; then captured exploiting the strength of microwave spectroscopy in its specificity of conformation-sensitive detection unrivalled by any other type of spectroscopy and chemical methods.  The first reaction chosen as key target is Diels-Alder, one of the most classic and important reactions in chemistry. Backed up by the Hueckel theory, Diels-Alder is theoretically described to be a single-step reaction, but details on the reaction course through the van der Waals complex of the educts have never been demonstrated experimentally and will be explored by LACRIDO, giving the final answer for an old, traditional question. The second experimental stage targets the atmospherically important reaction of isoprene with hydroxyl (OH) radical. Its reaction mechanism is extremely diverse with many steps and possible pathways to different stable products. Though lacking experimental evidence, previous studies proposed that the reaction passes through two radical intermediates, each in a cis and a trans configuration. Capturing these short-lived intermediates and determining their 3D structures would give the decisive proof, directly extracted from experiments, on the reaction paths actually taken.

Mots-clés : microwave spectroscopy,chirped pulse,rotational spectroscopy
Projet ERC : DRITUCS (Horizon Europe, appel 2022, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Earth System Science
Entité participante : Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V. (DLR) — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : DLR
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1777525.0 €

Earth science benefits tremendously from spaceborne synthetic aperture radar. By combining multiple images taken from different angles, we can create accurate digital elevation models and high-resolution tomograms that unveil the three-dimensional structure of vegetation, ice, and dry soil. Whereas today such images are acquired sequentially with conventional satellites, compromising product quality and hindering the monitoring of fast dynamics, DRITUCS envisions distributed sensor concepts to acquire all data in a single pass, paving the way for effective and powerful monitoring of our planet. We exploit clusters of smallsats and build high-quality products from noisy and undersampled data. This makes a key contribution to multi-dimensional imaging theory and represents a paradigm shift from state-of-the-art techniques that demand expensive, high-quality imagery to create digital elevation models and tomograms. Smallsats can be mass-manufactured and lead to low-cost solutions. They are a disruptive NewSpace technology that needs to be complemented by novel distributed approaches to replace and enhance large aperture, high power radar systems. We are pursuing three scientific paths to lay the foundations of a) distributed multi-baseline interferometry, b) distributed tomography, and c) multiple-input multiple-output tomography that takes advantage of waveform diversity to infer unique information about different scattering mechanisms in natural and man-made environments. The elaboration of theoretical models and the development of signal processing algorithms will be complemented by experimental demonstrations with drones. DRITUCS is a giant leap for radar remote sensing with a significant impact on numerous applications. It will pose the basis for future advanced Earth observation missions that will offer remarkable societal benefits and boost European capabilities in the emerging NewSpace sector.

Mots-clés : synthetic aperture radar,interferometry,tomography,smallsats,drones,distributed concepts
Projet ERC : WHEP (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Social Sciences and Humanities
Panel : Human Mobility, Environment, and Space
Entité participante : Conseil supérieur de la recherche scientifique — Pays : Espagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : CSIC
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1336057.5 €

Food production covers the most basic human need, and simultaneously is the main driver of anthropogenic environmental impacts. These impacts have resulted in the transgression, during the brief period since the industrial revolution, of the planetary boundaries defining the safe operating space of humanity. A rich research literature quantifies the last 60 years’ fast, heterogeneous, and often unfair development in food supply and related environmental impacts, and how these depend on agro-climatic factors, technology, and trade flows, all of which have greatly changed but with different trajectories around the world. However, these developments lack an integrated approach, and are very poorly quantified before 1961. WHEP will bridge these knowledge gaps, assessing “who has eaten the planet” by answering the questions: “What are the environmental impacts of food production since 1850?”, “What is the role of trade in food supply and in displacing the responsibilities for these impacts?” “How are impacts related to planetary boundaries, food supply and inequality?” These highly ambitious goals are addressed by four objectives: 1) Constructing a consolidated global country-level annual database on agricultural production and management, using massive data collation in combination with modelling; 2) Estimating the environmental impacts: greenhouse gas emissions and carbon, land, water, nitrogen, and phosphorus through spatially explicit, integrated, dynamic modelling; 3) Calculating product footprints and tracing them along international trade chains; and 4) Analyzing the observed trajectories in the safe and just operating space, by assessing the drivers, and how impacts at the production and consumption levels are related to fair and healthy supply. This ground-breaking research will shed new light on the environmental history of food, opening up many new research frontiers, and providing necessary information to design fair and sustainable policies.

Mots-clés : planetary boundaries,diets,agro food system,land use change,greenhouse gas emissions,soil organic carbon,nitrogen,phosphorus,water,long term,life cycle assessment,environmental footprints,integrated modelling
Projet ERC : MEMLESSINTERFACE (Horizon Europe, appel 2022, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Molecules of Life: B iological  Mechanisms , Structures  and Functions
Entité participante : German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : DZNE
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499648.75 €

Liquid-liquid phase separation is a major mechanism for organizing macromolecules, particularly proteins with intrinsically disordered regions, in compartments not limited by a membrane. Many such compartments (also known as biomolecular condensates) have been described, and it is currently agreed that they take over several cellular functions. To do so, they need to interact with other compartments, just as the membrane-bound organelles interact with each other through well-defined contact sites. However, at present no concept exists explaining how membrane-less and membrane-bound organelles interact.  I propose here to address this question by determining the molecular mechanisms and functional impact of the interactions between liquid phases and membranes. I hypothesize that a novel type of contact sites between membrane-less organelles and membranes, which I termed dipping contacts, is critical for coupling of diffusion and material properties of condensates to biochemical processes occurring in the membrane-bound compartments.  To test this, I will capitalize on a prominent biomolecular condensate that I characterized a few years ago, and which has already been used widely in the literature: the synaptic vesicle (SV) condensate, which clusters SVs together with proteins such as synapsins and synucleins. For this, I have already developed advanced reconstitution tools, single-molecule tracking and genetic code expansion in living neurons, which will enable me to determine: i) how the material properties of SV condensates are regulated, ii) how they recruit specific organelles, while rejecting others, iii) the proteins that mediate signaling and interactions of SV condensates with mitochondria and the ER.  Overall, this project will lead to an understanding of the interface between condensates and classical organelles, which is extremely relevant in the context of aggregation-related diseases where faulty inclusions of membranes and proteins play a leading role.

Mots-clés : liquid liquid phase separation,membrane biochemistry,synaptic vesicles,intrinsically disordered proteins
Projet ERC : TOPOLOGIQ (Horizon Europe, appel 2025, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Materials Engineering
Entité participante : Conseil supérieur de la recherche scientifique — Pays : Espagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : CSIC
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499982.0 €

Topological magnons offer immense promise for the development of dissipation-less spintronic devices. However, the ability to control these spin excitations through electric fields remains a significant challenge due to the difficulty in stabilising systems that exhibit both topological and magnetoelectric properties within a single framework. TOPOLOGIQ aims to address this by creating a novel epitaxial platform based on pyrochlore oxides (A2B2O₇), with the final goal of combining topological and magnetoelectric properties in an oxide material for the first time. Bulk pyrochlore oxides host a rich variety of quantum phenomena due to the interplay between electron, spin, and orbital degrees of freedom in a geometrically-frustrated lattice. Recent advancements in epitaxial growth and related nanotechnology provide the tools to precisely control factors like strain, dimensionality, oxygen stoichiometry and interface proximity, offering a unique opportunity to manipulate these complex interactions in thin-film form. TOPOLOGIQ’s strategy encompasses four core objectives: 1) Growing high-quality magnetically-ordered pyrochlore heterostructures, 2) Inducing structural transitions by manipulating strain, confinement, periodicity, and oxygen non-stoichiometry, 3) Characterising the emerging topological and symmetry properties using resonant spectroscopic probes, and 4) Modulating these properties via external magnetic and electric fields. This ambitious approach extends the use of cutting-edge nanotechnology beyond the perovskite oxides (ABO3) commonly studied in this context, unlocking the potential of pyrochlore oxides as novel quantum materials. By achieving atomic-scale control over magnetoelectric coupling and magnon topology, TOPOLOGIQ will establish a new paradigm in material science, with broad implications for energy-efficient devices and quantum technologies.

Mots-clés : epitaxy,complex oxides,pyrochlores,topological magnons,magnetoelectrics,oxygen ion conductors
Projet ERC : LactIns-and-outs (Horizon Europe, appel 2021, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Prevention,  Diagnosis and T reatment of Human Diseases
Entité participante : Université de Twente — Pays : Pays-Bas — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1500000.0 €

Breastfeeding is important for infant and maternal health. However, 10-15% of breastfeeding women fail to produce enough milk, while 40-50% give up early because of perceived insufficiency. As a result, only a minority meet the WHO recommendation to exclusively breastfeed during the first six months. To address this public health challenge, two key questions need to be solved: What do nursing infants actually drink? And how is this milk transfer regulated by mammary physiology? My vision is to pioneer new, quantitative methods that allow to solve these fundamental questions. Building on my expertise in biophotonic innovations for neonatal care, I propose to develop non-invasive optical tools to quantify milk transfer in situ (WP1) and map the causes of lactation insufficiency from the largely unexplored perspective of mammary physiology (WP2). In WP1, the scientific challenge is to develop methods for inline monitoring of both the milk volume consumed and its varying composition during a breastfeed. I propose two novel optical methods based on light scattering by milk fat globules, building upon laser Doppler flowmetry (volumetric flow rate) and angular resolved light scattering spectroscopy (composition). The technological challenge is to integrate both methods into a safe, compact sensor prototype, engineered into a nipple shield. In WP2, I will translate the technology of Diffuse Optical Spectroscopic Imaging (DOSI) to lactation science. Here, the scientific challenge is to quantify mammary physiological parameters in real-time, using DOSI and my sensor from WP1 during live breastfeeds. In both WPs, I will use state-of-the-art (medical) ultrasound for validation. By engineering dedicated tools for lactation research, this project will enable a leap forward in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of both actual and perceived lactation insufficiency. In turn, this will lead to better breastfeeding support and improved individual and public health outcomes.

Mots-clés : breastfeeding,optics,light tissue interaction,laser doppler,fluid dynamics
Projet ERC : DECODE (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Prevention,  Diagnosis and T reatment of Human Diseases
Entité participante : Université de Twente — Pays : Pays-Bas — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1155400.0 €

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a surgical treatment for Parkinson’s disease and other neurological disorders. By applying pulsed, alternating electric currents to targets deep in the brain, DBS induces widespread changes in neural network activity. Although motor symptoms can be reduced by DBS in most patients, some patients suffer from severe side effects or insufficient symptom relief. Many attempts have been made to optimize the therapeutic effects of DBS, but these attempts have been restricted by a lack of understanding of how DBS exerts its therapeutic effects. Various therapeutic mechanisms have been proposed, but none have fully explained all of the complex effects of DBS. These theories have focused on direct and indirect effects of the strong electric fields near the stimulation contact. I propose a radically new hypothesis on the therapeutic mechanism of DBS that harnesses current insights from noninvasive brain stimulation. Weak electric fields during noninvasive brain stimulation have recently been shown to desynchronize neural activity from the surrounding network activity. I suggest that weak electric fields during DBS desynchronize cortical activity, which can, in combination with the effects of strong subcortical electric fields, reduce pathological synchrony in motor system networks and thereby restore motor control. DECODE will integrate large-scale volume conduction modeling to estimate and steer personalized electric fields, biophysical neural network modeling to understand the physiological consequences of weak fields and their interaction with strong field effects, and EEG measurements in humans to verify these models. Finally, based on the obtained knowledge and computational tools, DECODE will clinically test the hypothesis in patients with Parkinson’s disease. If successful, DECODE will start a new era in our understanding of the therapeutic network mechanisms of DBS and trigger clinical breakthroughs to optimize DBS therapy.

Mots-clés : deep brain stimulation transcranial alternating current stimulation biological neural networks plasticity
Projet ERC : CONCRETER (Horizon Europe, appel 2022, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Earth System Science
Entité participante : Université de Rennes — Pays : France — Rôle : Partner
Acronyme de l'entité : UNIVRENNES
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 110801.25 €

The foundations of modern hydrogeology have been built within the paradigm of quasi-equilibrium temperature distribution within groundwater systems. The presumed thermal stability of groundwater is vitally important for many groundwater and stream ecosystems which cannot tolerate a wide temperature range and face growing threats from climate and land-use changes. Yet, recent results evidenced the great impact of ongoing atmospheric warming on shallow groundwater temperatures. Groundwater flow is expected to strongly affect groundwater and stream warming trends. A major issue is that existing modeling frameworks have largely sidestepped (1) the complexities associated with the multi-scale heterogeneity in groundwater flow, and/or (2) the transient nature of groundwater fluxes and surface temperature. Furthermore, direct field evidences of the impact of climate and anthropogenic forcings on the temperature distribution are still rare. The CONCRETER will therefore assess the role of groundwater dynamics in shaping the thermal regime of the critical zone, the shallow subsurface where the water, element, energy and biological cycles interact. The focus on the interaction of subsurface heterogeneity with heat transport processes will require the development of original numerical models (WP1) and novel temperature imaging laboratory experiments (WP2). WP3 will bring critical in situ data to constrain these newly developed models. WP4 will further develop advanced numerical models to separate the effects of fluid flow and of surface warming. With the help of the developed numerical approaches, WP5 will study the evolution of temperature at field sites (characterized in WP3) chosen to isolate the role of different forcings (climatic, anthropogenic) on critical zone thermal regime. CONCRETER will provide new physical frameworks and modelling tools for multi-scale heat transport processes in the critical zone, with the potential to re-define their quantitative understanding.

Mots-clés : heat transport,fractured media,groundwater flow,flow channeling,thermal dynamics,borehole climatology,monitoring,sensing,modelling,geothermal energy