Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-erc-participations-et-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Projet ERC : RESYDE (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Synergy grants)
Entité participante : Université Humboldt de Berlin — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : CO-PI
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 2761047.25 €

Scientists have long sought to understand how complex multicellular organisms generate their final form. Yet despite considerable progress, demonstrating predictive knowledge sufficient to re-engineer development according to design, remains a grand challenge. Addressing this challenge is not only fundamentally important, but also critical to the future of regenerative medicine and agriculture. Development depends on coordinated symmetry breaking events resulting from diverse mechanisms, ranging from the asymmetric localisation of molecules and stochastic processes within cells to the formation of morphogen gradients across a tissue. A mechanistic understanding of complex patterning processes therefore requires gaining knowledge on the molecular basis of multiple types of symmetry breaking events occurring at different scales. RESYDE will address this challenge by integrating information from diverse approaches into a virtual, dynamic cellular template. Predictive modelling will then be used to explain symmetry breaking at different scales sufficient to re-engineer the system by design. We will use the Arabidopsis flower as a model system and apply an interdisciplinary approach that utilises fine-scale perturbation techniques together with in vivo live-imaging of key regulators along with spatially mapped multi omics data, hormonal gradients and tissue mechanics to monitor responses at multiple scales. To leverage these data we will establish a 4D virtual cell template together with multiscale models to generate and simulate hypotheses in silico on the precise molecular origins of symmetry breaking events within the flower. We will apply our knowledge using a re-engineering approach to alter multiple floral symmetry breaking processes to better understand evolutionary floral architectural changes. Ultimately, RESYDE will provide a fundamental step change in our understanding of concerted symmetry breaking events across scales in complex multicellular contexts.

Mots-clés : flower development,meristem patterning,organ polarity,evo devo
Projet ERC : AxoBrain (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Synergy grants)
Entité participante : École polytechnique fédérale de Zurich — Pays : Suisse — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : ETH Zurich
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 2996181.0 €

The Axolotl is an extraordinary model system to study regeneration in tetrapods. Remarkably, the axolotl is able to regenerate parts of the brain after major injury, however the molecular mechanisms that orchestrate regeneration are unclear, and the completeness of functional circuit and behavioral recovery is unknown. Our vision is to develop the axolotl model system to rigorously study central nervous system regeneration, and use discoveries from the axolotl to design novel strategies for regenerating mammalian tissues. The mapping of brain cell types and connections in the axolotl will also have a profound impact on the understanding of vertebrate brain organization and evolution. In AxoBrain, we will integrate scale-crossing technologies to map the axolotl brain at molecular, cellular and circuit resolution, and establish assays to understand how brain cells respond to damage and behavioral circuits regenerate. Our project will be achieved through the following objectives: 1) We will generate a spatiotemporal multiomic atlas of the axolotl brain at single cell resolution. 2) We will generate a connectome of the axolotl retino-tectal-hindbrain circuit and develop behavioral and circuit functional assays in response to visual stimulation. 3) We will establish injury assays and assess regeneration through behavioral, connectomic and single-cell multiomic analysis. 4) Finally, we will apply CRISPR perturbation screens with single-cell genomic readout in vivo and in vitro to identify modulators of regeneration. AxoBrain utilizes quantitative and state-of-the-art methods to explore how the axolotl can regenerate neural circuitry after injury. We have assembled a team with synergistic skill sets that will be required to achieve our vision. This project is a groundbreaking starting point to rigorously investigate how mammals have lost regeneration capabilities over evolution, and will serve as a springboard to design novel strategies for regenerating

Mots-clés : brain regeneration,salamander,single cell genomics,spatial transcriptomics,single cell crispr perturbation screen,organoids,connectomics
Projet ERC : INSIGHT (Horizon Europe, appel 2025, Synergy grants)
Entité participante : École polytechnique fédérale de Zurich — Pays : Suisse — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : ETH Zurich
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 2926867.5 €

Earth's growing population puts immense pressure on ecosystems due to increasing demands for natural resources, which are transformed into materials or energy for human use. Chemical catalysis is our primary tool for converting molecules, and advancements over the last century have made these processes more sustainable. While catalysis holds promise for addressing the urgent need for efficient, sustainable resource conversion, current discovery and optimization methods are too slow to meet global demands. The INSIGHT project, a collaboration between a synthetic chemist, mass spectrometry expert, and theoretical chemist, aims to accelerate this process. We are developing a workflow that rapidly generates knowledge in catalysis. Building on our discovery of adaptive dynamic catalysis, where the physical state of a metal ion is maintained in its active form by external stimuli (light or electrons), we integrate this approach with flow mass spectrometry. This enables us to explore an unprecedented number of parameter permutations, identify successful reactions, and gather kinetic data, which will inform theoretical models and provide deep insights into catalytic systems. Our project unfolds in three stages: First, we refine mass spectrometry techniques, generate data, and build models using well-established chemistry for cross-coupling carbon-halogen bonds. Next, we apply our discovery workflow to the underexplored area of carbon-oxygen bond activation, which holds significant potential for sustainable catalysis. Finally, we demonstrate the power of our method by tackling one of chemistry’s greatest challenges—carbon-carbon bond activation. By exploring a much larger chemical space for this transformation and using model-based knowledge generation, we aim to uncover innovative catalytic solutions that address some of the world’s most pressing resource challenges. This accelerated approach may revolutionize chemical catalysis, offering sustainable solutions.

Mots-clés : photoredox catalysis reaction monitoring in situ mass spectrometry
Projet ERC : GravNet (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Synergy grants)
Entité participante : Istituto nazionale di fisica nucleare — Pays : Italie — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : INFN
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 3756250.0 €

The overarching goal of the GravNet project is to develop, test and deploy a novel experimental platform that could enable the first detection of gravitational waves (GWs) in the frequency range of MHz to GHz, thereby providing a new and unique window into astrophysical processes that have so far eluded observation. The first detection of gravitational waves by LIGO in 2015 ushered in a new era of fundamental physics. Since then, a network of ground-based GW interferometers has probed the frequency range from 10 Hz to 10 kHz, detecting nearly a hundred mergers of black-hole and neutron-star binaries. In 2023, a signal at much lower frequency, in the nHz band, was detected by timing radio signals from pulsars. The race is now on to explore other bands. Of particular interest in this context is access to the MHz-GHz range, as in this range signals may be generated copiously by events such as primordial-black-hole-merger, by the dynamics of ultra-light dark matter overdensities or violent phenomena in primordial cosmological times - all processes related to some of the most pressing open questions about our Universe.  The use of cavities in strong magnetic fields has been identified as one of the most promising techniques to search for high-frequency gravitational waves. So far, efforts were focused on cavities with small volumes that are tuned to search for axion-like particles. By contrast, the GravNet scheme is based on combining different technologies and methodological approaches to measure synchronously cavity signals from multiple devices in magnetic fields operated as a network across Europe, increasing the sensitivity to high frequency GWs (HFGWs) by several orders of magnitude compared to current approaches. In this way, GravNet will open up a new, vast parameter space for gravitational-wave searches and might be the enabling step towards the first detection of HFGWs - with the potential to revolutionize our understanding of the Universe.

Mots-clés : high frequency gravitational waves,electromagnetic cavities,quantum sensors,sensor network,machine learning
Projet ERC : Host4Hypnozoites (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Synergy grants)
Entité participante : Amsterdam University Medical Centers — Pays : Pays-Bas — Rôle : PI
Type d'entité : Recherche
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1932076.25 €

What?  Hypnozoites are dormant liver stage malaria parasites that can reactivate and cause repeated blood-stage infections without the bite of an infectious mosquito. We will, for the first time: - characterize the cellular environment contributing to dormancy at systems level (WP1) - explore the reactivation kinetic and tissue environment of hypnozoites within the natural host (WP2) - functionally characterize host & parasite factors governing dormancy or reactivation (WP3)  Why? - Dormancy and reactivation of hypnozoites is an unresolved biological mystery since decades - Dormant parasites are a major obstacle to the curative treatment of malaria  The challenge: Tracking the in vivo development and understanding the biology of these rare, quiescent parasites that normally reside inside the liver of the host  The solution: A synergistic, multidisciplinary investigation, which is only possible if we combine the unique resources and complementary expertise of three leading laboratories in: - Radiopharmaceutical chemistry for the development of dedicated Positron Emission Tomography tracers for non-invasive investigation of the parasites in situ, as well as to capture infected tissue samples for systems level investigations - Systems biology for simultaneous multi-omics profiling of the parasite and the host cell at single-cell resolution and in the spatial context to be validated by parasitological assays - Parasitology for functional investigation through genetic engineering and manipulation of the parasites in vitro and validation within the natural host  Anticipated project outcomes: - Detailed insights into the relapse characteristics of the parasite in vivo - Understanding how host and parasite factors collectively determine the fate of infection - Novel imaging, transfection and omics methods for malaria research and beyond - Opportunities for novel therapeutic strategies for awakening and killing these vicious pathogens

Mots-clés : relapsing malaria,dormancy,in vivo imaging,host pathogen interaction,liver,radiopharmaceutical chemistry,genetic micro manipulation,multi omics,pet tracers,epigenetics,translational repression
Projet ERC : MANTRAMS (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Synergy grants)
Entité participante : École pratique des hautes études — Pays : France — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : EPHE PSL
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 779750.0 €

Over 4 million people in Europe, including Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh minorities and Yoga practitioners, use mantras—sacred utterances, formulas, or syllables—for the purposes of ritual, prayer, contemplation and wellness. The term “mantra” itself has entered the vocabulary of most modern European languages. But how do mantras work? Where do they come from, and how did they spread around the globe? Despite their ubiquity and relevance, mantras have seldom been studied in their own right. This project will produce an unprecedented global history and anthropology of mantras, grounded in the PIs’ expertise on the very places and traditions where mantras originate–southern Asia, where mantras have been used in rites, meditation, worship, and healing for more than 3000 years. As mantras have been transmitted through diasporic networks, new religious movements, yoga and the internet, they have become central to religion and culture worldwide, while they also play a key role in traditional medicine and identity politics. Most scholarship to date has approached mantras through language and philology, privileging Sanskrit texts from elite contexts. Yet mantras have always been diverse, multimodal and multisensory, manifesting in manuscripts, on stones, in the voice through chanting, in the mind through meditation, and on the body through amulets, tattoos, and clothing. Bringing together leading scholars working across disciplines and cultural regions, this 6-year project will create sonic, visual and digital textual archives on the transcultural and multisensory lives of mantras, together with an exceptional array of academic deliverables and a museum exhibition. Raising awareness of mantras’significance from their origins in ancient South Asia to their modern ramifications in the global North, the MANTRAMS project will produce the first-ever scientific project entirely dedicated to understanding the relevance of mantras at a global scale.

Mots-clés : asian studies indology sound studies cultural anthropology
Projet ERC : MEMELAND (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Synergy grants)
Entité participante : Université de Salzbourg — Pays : Autriche — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : PLUS
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 2447170.0 €

MEMELAND will pioneer the creation of Europe's first species-level ecological history, spanning the Roman era to the present day. Our research will unveil the persistent medieval influences in contemporary landscapes and biodiversity. This historical insight will inform proactive land management, conservation, and heritage-informed restoration, crucial for climate change mitigation. Our approach involves sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA), lipid biomarkers, multi-method chronologies, and archaeobotanical analysis at 50 strategically selected lake-pairs across northern and central Europe within three archaeological zones. Additionally, we will go deeper in time and investigate medieval landscape-lake interactions in 3 of the lake pairs. We'll reveal species-level biodiversity, for plants, animals (livestock, fish, birds and invertebrates) and plants-animal-soil pathogens (hologenomic level). Additionally, we'll explore sub-species and landraces within critical taxa (e.g. cereals and domestic livestock).  The geography of present biodiversity is a testament to medieval and early-modern agronomy, population, elite influence (lordship, ecclesiastical), cultivation systems (open-field system), technology (heavy plough) and natural ideologies. By using pairs of lakes, one associated with a high-status site and a nearby lakes with little archaeology, we'll generate geographically representative biodiversity data. This data will enable us to test hypotheses against archaeological, pollen and climate records, and reveal the geographic reality of the ‘medieval agricultural revolution’. Recent advances in sedaDNA analysis, and molecular preservation in temperate climates make MEMELAND a groundbreaking project in both Archaeology and European ecological history. Our work promises to reshape our understanding of the historical interplay between culture and nature and provide critical insights for sustainable land management and climate change mitigation in Europe.

Mots-clés : medieval archaeology,human ecodynamics,vegetation history,sedadna,biomarkers,landscape history,biodiversity,palaeolimnology,historical ecology,heritage management
Projet ERC : EndoTheranostics (Horizon Europe, appel 2023, Synergy grants)
Entité participante : Queen Mary University of London — Pays : Royaume-Uni — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : QMUL
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 2274450.0 €

Colorectal cancer (CRC) represents a significant proportion of malignant diseases. Interventions are often carried out during the latter stages of development, leading to low patient survival rates and poor quality of life. In 2022 a European Commission report stated that “colonoscopy-based screening has higher sensitivity than testing for blood in stool, but it is less acceptable to participants”. At the same time, effective methods to treat polyps in the colon are limited. Current approaches are often associated with unsafe oncological margins and high complication rates, requiring life-changing surgery. EndoTheranostics will usher in a new era for screening colonoscopy, advancing the frontiers of medical imaging and robotics. A tip-growing or eversion robot with a sleeve-like structure will be created to extend deep into hollow spaces while perceiving the environment through multimodal imaging and sensing. It will also act as a conduit to transfer miniaturised instruments to the remote site within the colon for diagnosis and therapy (theranostics). With these capabilities, the system will be able to offer: 1. painless colon cleansing in preparation for endoscopy; 2. real-time polyp detection and tissue characterisation through AI-assisted multimodal imaging; 3. effective removal of polyps by conveying a “miniature mobile operating chamber” equipped with microsurgical tools to the target through the lumen of the eversion robot. The unique technical and clinical challenges will be tackled by the PIs, each bringing complementary skills, backed by their institutions with wide expertise and exceptional facilities. The synergy and added value evident in this team will lead to breakthroughs not possible through independent research. The outcomes of EndoTheranostics will revolutionise the theranostics of CRC, impacting the quality of life of millions of individuals. Ultimately it will launch a new era for endoluminal intervention with applications beyond medicine.

Mots-clés : soft robotics,inflatable robots,medical imaging and perception,tissue characterisation and registration,microsurgery,natural orifices translumenal endoscopic surgery notes,autonomous control and manipulation,intervention shared control
Projet ERC : MicroClock (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Synergy grants)
Entité participante : Université Louis-et-Maximilien de Munich — Pays : Allemagne — Rôle : CO-PI
Acronyme de l'entité : LMU
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 2533009.0 €

Circadian clocks are biological timekeepers. They structure processes - from molecular pathways to behavioural attributes - over the 24h day. They are pervasive in eukaryotes yet remain almost completely unknown in bacteria. We propose to address this major knowledge gap by capitalising on our recent breakthrough discovery of a circadian clock in Bacillus subtilis. Our unpublished data reveal that robustness of the B. subtilis circadian clock increases when co-cultured with either the plant Arabidopsis, or the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We propose that the mutualistic interactions between microbes and other organisms in their environment utilise circadian clocks, allowing us to propose the new concept of “temporal mutualism”. Within this project, we will identify and understand the molecular structure and function of the B. subtilis circadian clock (WP1), which will be the first detailed characterisation of a circadian clock in a non-photosynthetic bacterium. We will exploit the interactions that occur between B. subtilis and plant circadian clocks to define this new concept of temporal mutualism (WP2 and 3). Co-culture of B. subtilis with S. cerevisiae will identify regulatory nodes that are common to plant/bacterium and fungus/bacterium temporal mutualism (WP3). We will probe the novel hypothesis that biofilm enables intra-species temporal mutualism via differentiated cell populations within the matrix-bound structure (WP3). We will use circadian formalisms (behaviour), molecular systems analysis and state of the art technological approaches (e.g., combinations of microfluidics, microscopy, reporter gene technology and optogenetics), which is only possible through our interdisciplinary collaboration. This work will drive a paradigm shift, to open a completely new field that will change current thinking by bridging chronobiology with microbiology and ecology.

Mots-clés : circadian rhythm,circadian clock,chronobiology,bacillus subtilis,arabidopsis,saccharomyces cerevisiae
Projet ERC : UnMySt (Horizon Europe, appel 2024, Synergy grants)
Entité participante : Université de Pennsylvanie — Pays : Etats-Unis — Rôle : PI
Acronyme de l'entité : Penn
Type d'entité : Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire
Financement ERC de l'entité : 1819125.0 €

Polaritonic Chemistry is a new and exciting field that has emerged from the fusion of chemistry and cavity quantum electrodynamics. In this innovative realm, and specifically under Vibrational Strong Coupling (VSC), hybridizing molecular vibrations with electromagnetic cavity modes has been shown to modify the rate and yield of reactions, solvent polarity and other molecular properties, in the absence of any illumination. The prospects for VSC as a versatile tool for chemistry and materials science have sparked a worldwide surge of interest, leading to substantial advances in recent years. Nevertheless, deciphering the underlying mechanisms by which VSC affects material properties still poses formidable challenges, impeding the utilization of VSC to its full potential. The goal of UnMySt is to construct a complete framework for cavity-controlled chemistry, built upon a comprehensive mechanistic understanding of VSC on both the molecular and supramolecular levels. As leading scientists in the field, we will pursue this goal by joining our forces in seeking answers to these pivotal questions: 1. What is the mechanism that links the local character of molecular reactivity with the collective nature of VSC? 2. Do the thermal equilibrium properties of materials change under VSC and how are such modifications expressed in polaritonic chemistry? 3. What are the manifestations of VSC on non-equilibrium dynamics such as solvent reorganization or charge transfer? 4. Can symmetry considerations provide intuitive guidelines for cavity-controlled chemistry? Can symmetries imposed or broken by the cavity be used to tailor its impact on reactivity? Our synergistic experimental and theoretical efforts will reveal novel physical mechanisms and will lay the qualitative and quantitative foundations for the rational design of strongly coupled molecular systems. The results of UnMyST will unleash the potential of polaritonic chemistry as a new tool for synthesis and materials science.

Mots-clés : cavity polaritons,polaritonic chemistry,vibrational strong coupling,spectroscopy,electronic structure,molecular dynamics,electronic structure methods,quantum electrodynamics density functional theory