Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-erc-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet ERC : BARRIER BREAK (Horizon 2020, appel 2019, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Immunity, Infection and Immunotherapy
Entité participante : Universitätsklinikum Erlangen — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1487231.0 €

Physical barriers of the body and their immunological dysregulation are connected to a variety of inflammatory diseases and therefore an emerging area of interest in medicine. The gut and its microbiome gained center stage, whereas the skin as large primary immunological barrier to the environment is still less appreciated. Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a prototypic inflammatory disease which usually starts with skin lesions, before spreading to the musculoskeletal regions. To date, it is still obscure why the inflammatory process in some patients with psoriasis is restrained to the skin, whereas in other patients it extends to tendons and joints. Moreover, disease spreading to the joints associates with local tissue remodelling as evidenced by new bone formation at the insertion site of tendons into the bones. The molecular and cellular regulation of this “skin-joint axis” leading to development of PsA is still unclear but essential to understand organ communication in inflammatory diseases, the identification of potential biomarkers for early recognition of the disease and the development of preventive treatments. We will take advantage of a new model resembling PsA, which was established in our lab, with the aim of (1) studying disease spreading from the skin to musculoskeletal regions, (2) deciphering the molecular mechanisms that lead to uncontrolled local tissue remodeling, and finally (3) testing a new translational approach to prevent spreading of inflammation and tissue remodelling. We plan to adopt cutting-edge techniques to achieve our goals, which in turn will contribute to a better knowledge of the connection between epithelial surfaces and inflammation.

Mots-clés : spreading of inflammation
Projet ERC : MODEST (Horizon 2020, appel 2014, Consolidator grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Systems and communication engineering
Entité participante : Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : OvGU
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1998500.0 €

Physicians need to make many important decisions per day. One clinical example is the scheduling and dosage of chemotherapy treatments. A second example is the discrimination of atrial fibrillation from atypical atrial flutter, based on ECG data. Such important and complex decisions are usually based on expert knowledge, accumulated throughout the life of a physician and shaped by subjective (and sometimes unconscious) experience. It is not readily transferable and may be unavailable in rural areas. At the same time, the available imaging, laboratory, and basic clinical data is abundant and waits to be used. This data is not yet systematically integrated and often single data-points are used to make therapy decisions. More and more clinical decision making tasks will be modeled in terms of mathematical relations. I propose a systematic approach that supports and trains individual decision making. The developed ideas, mathematical models, and optimization algorithms will be generic and widely applicable in medicine and beyond, but also exploit specific structures, resulting in a patient- and circumstance-specific personalized medicine. This allows, e.g., a physician to first simulate the impact of his decisions on a computer and to consider optimized solutions. In the future, it will be the rare and unwanted exception that an important decision can not be backed up by consultation of a model-driven decision support system or based upon a systematic model-driven training. MODEST has a mathematical core. It builds on a comprehensive, interdisciplinary work program, based on disciplinary expertise in mixed-integer optimal control and existing collaborations with medical and educational experts. It is both timely, given the increasing availability of data and the maturity of mathematical methods, models, and software; as well as high-impact, due to the large number of clinical areas that may benefit from optimization-based decision support and training tools.

Mots-clés : decision support,decision training,transfer to clinical practice,cardiac arrhythmia,acute myeloid leukaemia,dynamic systems,mixed integer nonlinear optimization
Projet ERC : Origins (Horizon 2020, appel 2018, Advanced grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Universe sciences
Entité participante : Max Planck Society — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : MPG
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 2474252.0 €

Planet-forming disks around young stars display a large variety of spatial structures indicating pattern formation by gas-dust dynamics and planet-disk interactions. The diversity of planetary properties point to different physical and chemical conditions in their parental disks and a range of formation pathways. Currently, there is no unifying approach which connects disk physics and chemistry with exoplanet properties. The development of such a link remains a considerable challenge as long as fundamental disk properties are uncertain. The objective of this project is to close the gap between the conditions in planet-forming disks and the properties of giant planets and their atmospheres. We will constrain fundamental disk properties - mass, turbulent state, and molecular content - by dedicated infrared and (sub)millimetre observations combined with comprehensive modeling efforts and experimental studies of ice-grain surface chemistry. The second very demanding project goal is to discover young giant planets in their birth environments and to characterize their properties, applying innovative techniques to analyze the results of approved imaging surveys with AO instruments at the VLT/LBT. These data will be supplemented by ALMA observations tracing gas kinematic signatures induced by embedded planets. The results of these studies will lead to major progress in understanding the timescale for planet formation and will reveal the nature of planet-disk interactions. The most challenging objective of the project is to build a connection between disk properties and the atmospheres of giant planets. Planet formation and evolution models will be coupled with a description of the chemical and accretion history to predict planetary elemental abundances, setting the scene for the thermal and chemical structure of giant planet atmospheres. Synthetic spectra will be provided using state-of-the art atmospheric codes and will be compared to observed planet spectra.

Mots-clés : planet forming disks,formation of giant planets,planetary properties
Projet ERC : VapLoss (Horizon 2020, appel 2020, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Physical Sciences and Engineering
Panel : Earth system science
Entité participante : University of Bristol — Pays : Royaume-Uni — Rôle : Partner
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 28493.75 €

Planets have long been thought to be made from building blocks of primitive (chondritic) meteorites. Yet it has become increasingly clear that such models fail to reproduce the composition of the best constrained planet, Earth. Problematically, no combination of chondritic meteorites can simultaneously explain Earth’s major element composition and isotopic characteristics. This striking dilemma points to the need for a radical reassessment of the current paradigm of planet formation. A tacit assumption of most previous models has been growth with a chemically closed system. Recent work has pointed to the likelihood of significant vapour loss during energetic, collisional accretion. Substantial modifications of the composition of a planet could occur as a result of vapour loss during this accretion. However, there is a critical lack of data to establish whether this drastically different model of planet formation accounts for the apparently conflicting perspectives on planetary origins from isotopic and elemental data. In this proposal I will therefore quantify the consequences of such major vapour loss during violent planetary growth. In a multi-faceted approach, I will undertake i) pioneering, high-temperature experiments mimicking partial vaporisation of molten planetary bodies, combined with ii) analysis of critical elemental and isotopic distributions between the liquid and co-existing vapour from the experiments as well as in key meteorites and terrestrial samples, and iii) numerical modelling to trace the chemical evolution of a planetary body as vapour loss proceeds in various astrophysical scenarios. In combination, this work will allow me to assess rigorously the value of promising models of vapour loss in accounting for the long problematic volatile contents of planetary bodies as well as the unique abundances of Earth’s main constituents.

Mots-clés : planetary chemistry,formation of earth,experimental petrology
Projet ERC : CARDEVOL (Horizon 2020, appel 2020, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution
Entité participante : University of Zurich — Pays : Suisse — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UZH
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1500000.0 €

Plant chemical defences play a central role in mediating interactions between plants and their enemies. Phytochemical diversity may be advantageous to reduce herbivore pressure, and plants commonly produce vast numbers of chemicals. However, the diversity of functional classes of defensive chemicals is often more limited and subject to strong phylogenetic constraints. Such functional conservatism may accelerate the evolution of tolerance in specialized herbivores, resulting in plant-herbivore systems dominated by specialists resistant to host plant defences. This presents major challenges for the study of phytochemically-mediated coevolution, as most systems lack the early stages of coevolutionary interactions that are crucially important to predict evolutionary trajectories. Occasionally however, the gain of functionally novel traits allows plants to escape their coevolved herbivores. The genus Erysimum (Brassicaceae) has gained functionally novel cardenolides in addition to ancestral glucosinolate defences, allowing it to escape several glucosinolate-adapted specialists. Making use of the unique natural and emerging molecular resources in this system, CARDEVOL will comprehensively evaluate the ecological, physiological, and evolutionary consequences of novel defences for the plant and its herbivores. CARDEVOL has four main objectives: 1) to characterize the full extent of natural variation in defence of a widespread Erysimum species and to identify environmental drivers; 2) to manipulate both defences and evaluate their contributions to plant fitness in the field; 3) to evaluate tolerance and resistance mechanisms of a community of non-adapted specialist herbivores towards the new defence; and 4), to evolve herbivores under artificial selection for increased resistance. CARDEVOL thus aims at pushing the boundaries of chemical ecology and transforming the field by elucidating the causes and consequences of phytochemical diversification involving gains of function.

Mots-clés : phytochemical diversification,plant herbivore coevolution,toxin resistance
Projet ERC : LUPINROOTS (Horizon 2020, appel 2014, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Cellular, Developmental and Regenerative Biology
Entité participante : Centre national de la recherche scientifique — Pays : France — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : CNRS
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1997103.0 €

Plant development is continuous throughout their lifetime and reflects their ability to adapt to their environment. This developmental plasticity is very obvious in the development of the root system. Surprisingly, the fundamental mechanisms of root development have been studied into great detail but the effect of the environment on its plasticity is still largely unknown. I will use phosphate, since this nutrient has a very low mobility in soil, as a mean to study plant developmental adaptation in white lupin. This species has developed extreme adaptive mechanism to improve phosphate uptake by producing structures called “cluster roots”. They are dense clusters of lateral roots with determinate development and highly specific physiology. I will develop new tools to identify cluster root mutants in white lupin, sequence white lupin genome, perform tissues specific transcriptomics and perform full molecular characterization of selected genes. This project will also lead me to compare adaptive mechanisms between white lupin and narrow-leafed lupin, a closely related species that does not produce cluster roots. We will also test whether it is possible to transfer the ability to form cluster roots in this species. Altogether, this project will lead to a major advance in our capacity to understand how plants are able to sense and respond to their environment and how evolution has selected adaptive developmental mechanisms to improve their capacity to use limited resources. This project focuses on the most extreme developmental adaptation produced in response to phosphate starvation. It is ambitious, as it will necessitate the development of several tools. However, it is highly feasible since it builds on my previous experience and important outcome can be expected in term of crop improvement and means to reduce the use of phosphate fertilizers.

Mots-clés : plant development,root plasticity,phosphorus,lateral roots,white lupin
Projet ERC : SYMBIONIX (Horizon 2020, appel 2020, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution
Entité participante : University of Copenhagen — Pays : Danemark — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UCPH
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1451171.0 €

Plant productivity in pristine ecosystems like boreal and tropical cloud forests is limited by soil nutrients, primarily nitrogen (N). Mosses are major contributors to ecosystem productivity in these habitats, and most of them are colonized by N2-fixing cyanobacteria, thereby providing N to the ecosystem. Despite this key role, critical knowledge gaps exist. In particular, the climatic controls of moss-associated N2 fixation remain unclear, limiting our ability to quantify and project climate change effects on this fundamental ecosystem function. Further, it is unknown whether mosses and associated cyanobacteria share a mutualistic (both partners benefit) or parasitic (one partner benefits at the expense of the other) relationship. Yet, the balance of this association is crucial for maintaining ecosystem productivity. I will combine field, laboratory and modelling approaches to fill these knowledge gaps by addressing 4 objectives. I will (1) identify the climatic controls of N2 fixation in mosses from contrasting ecosystems: boreal forests and tropical cloud forests, (2) ascertain the degree of mutualism or parasitism between moss and cyanobacteria using transcriptomics, (3) determine nutrient exchange rates between moss and cyanobacteria using nanoSIMS. The ultimate goal is (4) to model ecosystem N input via N2 fixation in boreal and tropical ecosystems. In SYMBIONIX, I will uniquely combine biogeochemistry with ecology across scales, offering a break-through in ecosystem research. Application of cutting-edge methods will enable progress previously unachievable in ecosystem ecology. I will interlink a vital ecosystem function to its molecular and ecological foundation. A synthesis will be achieved via the parameterization and validation of global circulation models, resulting in improved predictions of ecosystem nutrient cycling in a future climate. Targeted combination of cross-scale approaches will make this initiative field-leading in ecosystem ecology.

Mots-clés : nitrogen fixation,cyanobacteria,mosses,arctic tundra,tropical forests
Projet ERC : RINFEC (Horizon 2020, appel 2018, Advanced grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Cellular, Developmental and Regenerative Biology
Entité participante : Aarhus University — Pays : Danemark — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : AU
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 2499999.0 €

Plant roots and soil microbes have been associated since the emergence of plants on land. Nevertheless the mechanisms that have coevolved to control these commensal and mutualistic associations are currently unknown. RINFEC will identify both plant and bacterial genes involved in root colonization by commensal and mutualistic bacteria with an approach that would be transformative in the field. The ambitious challenge is to identify and functionally characterize the central genes controlling root cells competence for infection. RINFEC´s central hypothesis is that key components of ancient pathways for bacterial colonization of the root surface (rhizosphere) and root interior (endosphere) were adapted during evolution of mechanism(s) controlling colonization of legume roots by symbiotic rhizobia. RINFEC will uncover the genetics and biochemistry of these shared mechanisms by characterizing a novel, unexplored intercellular infection mode observed for certain rhizobia that act as endophytes in non-legume plants and are able to infect the model legume Lotus japonicus. The unique biological feature exploited in RINFEC is the capacity of Lotus to support either intercellular entry (conserved mode) or legume specific infection thread entry, dependent on the rhizobia encountered. This allows comparative investigations of these two infection modes in simple binary interactions with the same host. Given the exceptional ability of different rhizobia for intercellular endophytic colonization of non-legume roots this provides an unprecedented platform to identify mechanisms by which plants selectively enable a subset of bacteria to infect roots. RINFEC will build on my considerable expertise with Lotus and pioneers novel plant and bacterial genetic methods, cell-layer transcriptomics, phospho-proteomics and advanced biochemistry to break new ground in understanding infection and soil microbe influences on plant performance under environmental stress conditions.

Mots-clés : rhizobial infection of roots and nodules,intercellular infection mechanisms,legume genetics,plant microbe interactions,endophyte colonization of roots
Projet ERC : MedPlant (Horizon 2020, appel 2017, Advanced grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Biotechnology and Biosystems Engineering
Entité participante : Max Planck Society — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : MPG
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 2399999.0 €

Plants, as sessile organisms, synthesize complex molecules for defense and signaling. Humans have long exploited the potent medicinal activities of these plant natural products: artemisinin from sweet wormwood is used to cure malaria, vincristine from Madagascar periwinkle is used to treat cancer, and morphine from poppy alleviates pain. Synthetic biology approaches are being used with increasing success to overproduce these expensive molecules, which are often present at low levels in the plant. However, to pursue such approaches effectively, we must fully understand the biosynthetic pathways that generate these molecules. This pathway discovery process has been a major bottleneck in harnessing the chemical power of plants. Recent advances in sequencing, bioinformatics and metabolomics have provided the tools to address plant natural product metabolism on an unprecedented scale: we can now use inexpensive RNA-seq data, in combination with bioinformatic analyses and metabolomic data, for rapid identification of pathway-specific biosynthetic gene candidates. Here we use these advances, along with our expertise in chemistry, to unlock the extraordinary chemical diversity that is found within the ca. 3000 members of the plant-derived monoterpene indole alkaloid metabolites. By strategically selecting a group of molecules that are chemically diverse, yet biosynthetically and evolutionarily related, the gene discovery process will be dramatically accelerated (Objective 1). Moreover, using this strategy, we will uncover new biochemical mechanisms by which chemical diversity is generated in plants (Objective 2). Understanding these mechanisms will allow us to generate “unnatural” chemical diversity in the laboratory by creating production platforms that produce new-to-nature molecules that may potentially have important applications (Objective 3).

Mots-clés : natural product,specialized metabolism,biosynthesis,alkaloid
Projet ERC : WallWatchers (Horizon 2020, appel 2016, Starting grants)
Domaine scientifique : Life Science
Panel : Integrative Biology: from Genes and Genomes to Systems
Entité participante : University of Lausanne — Pays : Suisse — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : UNIL
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1499966.0 €

Plants, just like animals are highly developed multicellular organisms. In contrast to animal cells however, plant cells are surrounded by a rigid, carbohydrate-rich extracellular layer, the cell wall. This cell wall provides plants with mechanic support and a dynamic chemical signalling and metabolic environment. To allow for cell expansion, cell division, coordinated tissue growth and interactions with the environment, the cell wall status constantly needs to be sensed and modified. How plant cells perceive and signal their cell wall status is poorly understood. Here, I propose an integrated approach to uncover ligands for cell wall sensing receptors as well as their downstream signalling components. Specifically, my project aims to identify the ligands for two genetically validated cell wall receptor families, using a chemical biology approach. Next, we will analyse and validate the mode of ligand-receptor interaction by combining protein X-ray crystallography, quantitative biochemistry and reverse genetics in Arabidopsis. A detailed ligand-binding and receptor activation mechanism will allow us to specifically interfere with cell wall receptor function in vivo, and to assess their biological relevance for cell wall structure and its chemical properties. Using atomic force microscopy, we will then test if the receptors are distributed uniformly at the membrane or whether they are arranged in complex 'sensosomes'. Finally, we will characterize if plant cell wall receptors can directly act as mechanosensors. With defined receptor-ligand pairs and clear phenotypes at hand, we will try to uncover downstream signalling components for plant cell wall receptors and to validate our atomic models in planta. My ultimate goal would be to design and test cell wall receptor agonists and antagonists, which will represent powerful tools to alter cell wall homoeostasis in Arabidopsis, and potentially in crops.

Mots-clés : cell wall,membrane receptor kinase,plant signalling,protein,receptor activation,protein structure