Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
MycoProScale – Creating global markets with a unique large-scale Mycorrhiza production method (MycoProScale)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Industrial Leadership
Programme: Innovation in SMEs
Action type: SME instrument
Countries involved: Austria
Call: SME instrument (H2020-SMEInst-2018-2020-2, 2019)
Start date: 2020-01-01
End date: 2023-09-30
Duration (months): 45.0
Total project cost (EUR): 3422125.0
EU funding (EUR): 2387612.5
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Feeding the ever-growing global population more sustainably is one of the main challenges for current and future generations. Yield increases by conventional means (fertilizer) have come to a maximum. Scientific studies show that conventional agricultural methods won't be able to fulfill the food demand of future generations. Biostimulants have the potential to close this yield gap and to secure the food supply in a sustainable manner. Arbuscular Endomycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) is one of the most promising biostimulants currently available on the market. In over 170 field trials AMF has increased yields by 16% on average. However, existing AMF spore production methods are unable to deliver high quality products at an economically feasible price point hindering the adoption of AMF in commercial food production. Evologic is going to change this. Evologic has developed a novel bioreactor design, allowing the production of high-quality AMF spores at disruptively low cost. This novel large-scale production process for AMF allows an unprecedented pricing strategy for AMF-coated crop seeds. These coated seeds will permit AMF usage at an economically attractive cost-benefit ratio for the farmer. Thereby, Evologic’s process innovation and the correlated biostimulant product (AMF) provides farmers with a veritably sustainable and economically feasible alternative to excessive fertilizer usage. The MycoProScale project is a fundamental part of Evologic’s development path towards being a European leader in the field of AMF production for agricultural applications. By the end of MycoProScale, Evologic will be producing AMF at a 30 000 times larger scale than the currently described state-of-the-art for AMF production.

Keywords: biostimulant,bioreactor,agriculture,sustainability,food production
Development of a connexon-proteoliposome delivery system to ameliorate inflammatory and mechanical stress responses in the regeneration of osteoarthritic cartilage (ChondroCONNECT)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Standard European Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Life Sciences
Countries involved: Ireland
Call: Individual Fellowships (H2020-MSCA-IF-2019, 2019)
Start date: 2020-09-01
End date: 2022-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 196590.72
EU funding (EUR): 196590.72
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Regenerative medicine strategies using engineered scaffolds have shown promise to regenerate cartilage in degenerative conditions (e.g. osteoarthritis, OA). However, it is clear further cues are required to control repair in situ. Small interfering (si)RNA can control protein expression but current cell delivery methods require endosome escape, limiting efficacy. Cell delivery of small molecules through connexons (Cx) bypasses the endosome and can be achieved by gap junction formation between cells and engineered Cx-containing proteoliposomes (Cx-PL). The most abundant connexin (Cx43) in cartilage cells (chondrocytes) is also a promising OA therapeutic target. It is highly upregulated in OA and is linked to inflammation, senescence, metabolic shifts and gene regulation. However, many questions remain on its mechanistic role in the disease. This project focuses on Cx43 as a therapeutic target and a delivery mechanism and aims to i) Investigate Cx43 roles in response to OA-associated proinflammatory and mechanical stimuli ii) Develop a Cx-PL delivery platform to knockdown Cx43 and restore healthy metabolism in OA. To study this I will assess chondrocyte responses to proinflammatory and mechanical signalling while controlling Cx43 expression and activity in culture. Using untargeted metabolomics, I will identify key responsive metabolic pathways and perform in vitro screens of the effects of supplementing these to promote healthy phenotypes. Finally, I will encapsulate Cx43-siRNA and a selected bioactive metabolite in Cx43-PLs, incorporate these into a collagen I-hyaluronic acid scaffold and test this delivery platform in vitro. This fellowship conducted with Prof. O’Brien at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland will enable me to build on my existing skills in two emerging fields- siRNA therapy and PL-delivery, while the exceptional training environment at RCSI will allow me to refine complementary skills that will expedite my research independence.
Genomic hotspots of adaptation to whole genome duplication (HOTSPOT)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Environmental Biology, Ecology and Evolution
Panel description: Ecology, biodiversity, environmental change, evolutionary biology, behavioural ecology, microbial ecology, marine biology, ecophysiology, theoretical developments and modelling
Countries involved: United Kingdom,United Kingdom
Call: ERC Starting Grant (ERC-2015-STG, 2015)
Start date: 2016-01-01
End date: 2021-12-31
Duration (months): 72.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1490329.0
EU funding (EUR): 672894.93
Participants: 2
Project status: CLOSED

Whole genome duplication (WGD) occurs in all eukaryotic kingdoms and is implicated in organismal complexity, adaptation and speciation. WGD is an especially important force in plant evolution and domestication. Nevertheless, despite the evolutionary potential of WGD, a sudden duplication of all chromosomes poses challenges to key processes, especially the reliable segregation of chromosomes at meiosis. Nonetheless, nature reveals solutions: the many polyploid species with diploid-like meiosis show that difficulties can be overcome. However, the molecular basis of this is mysterious: only one causal gene has been cloned to date. Our work in autotetraploid Arabidopsis arenosa revealed clear WGD-associated selective sweeps on meiosis genes with roles in crossover regulation. Natural variation in at least one of these genes has a dramatic effect on meiotic chromosome pairing. Here we assess whether species that independently adapted to the challenges attending WGD evolved similar solutions, whether crossover regulation is a common target of WGD-associated adaptation and whether standing variation in diploid populations contributes to adaptation to WGD. Aims of this programme are to: 1) produce quality reference genome assemblies for Cardamine amara and Arabis pumila, both of which harbor extant intraspecific ploidy variation; 2) test for the repeatability of adaptation mechanisms to WGD by genome scanning both species as well as three other independent WGDs in Arabidopsis lyrata and Mimulus guttatus; and 3) determine the causes and consequences of divergence of meiosis genes using functional analyses. We will utilize diverse genetic, genomic, and cytological approaches to understand repeatability and constraint in the context of intense selection on a conserved process. Further, this will provide insight into how organisms adapt to the altered cellular environment following WGD, a prevalent ongoing force in evolution and in the domestication of globally important crops.
Insertional mutagenesis to identify molecular mechanisms of breast cancer dormancy and metastasis (PB_dormancy)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Reintegration panel
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Life Sciences
Countries involved: Spain
Call: Individual Fellowships (H2020-MSCA-IF-2018, 2018)
Start date: 2020-03-01
End date: 2022-02-28
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 172932.48
EU funding (EUR): 172932.48
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Metastatic disease is the leading cause of cancer deaths, yet our understanding of this process and therapeutic choices are extremely limited. The recent explosive development of high-throughput technologies in genomics and proteomics has begun to unravel the complexity of cancer biology, highlighting the need to approach the study of cancer from a systems biology perspective. Results of recent studies have underscored the crucial roles of the tumor microenvironment as well as cell-intrinsic processes, such as autophagy, in cancer cell survival and dissemination. These surviving cells may lay dormant or be triggered to proliferate and establish active metastatic lesions after a variable period of time. I propose an innovative project in which I will exploit the unique opportunity to dissect molecular mechanisms controlling breast cancer dormancy and metastasis employing cutting-edge technologies in the field of functional genomics. This technology includes several state-of-the-art technical advances in the fields of in vitro and in vivo modeling of tumor cell dormancy, functional forward genomics using the PiggyBac transposon-based system for insertional mutagenesis screens, next generation sequencing, advanced bioinformatics and in vitro and in vivo functional validation studies. This project will identify critical molecular processes involved in breast cancer progression and potential therapeutic targets against breast cancers at high risk for recurrence and poor prognosis. Thus, it is expected that this project will provide future translational research avenues, enhance my position to be at the forefront of cancer research and provide the opportunity to establish myself as an independent researcher following the completion of this fellowship.

Keywords: tumor cell dormancy,breast cancer,metastasis,insertional mutagenesis,piggybac,forward functional genomics,tumor modelling,in vivo cell imaging,genetic engineered mouse models
Diadenosine Polyphosphate Alarmones as Drivers for Protein AMPylation (AMP-Alarm)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Advanced grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Synthetic Chemistry and Materials
Panel description: New materials and new synthetic approaches, structure-properties relations, solid state chemistry, molecular architecture, organic chemistry
Countries involved: Germany
Call: ERC ADVANCED GRANT (ERC-2020-ADG, 2020)
Start date: 2021-07-01
End date: 2026-06-30
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 2496235.0
EU funding (EUR): 2491235.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

It is puzzling that the human genome has only slightly more genes than the fruit fly and only half the number of cauliflower. Obviously, the sheer number of genes alone cannot determine the complexity of human development and the sophisticated signalling systems that maintain homeostasis. In fact, the complexity of information from genome to proteome is greatly increased. Drivers for the complexity of the proteome are posttranslational modifications (PTMs), i.e. covalent modifications of polypeptides after translation. The aim of this project is to shine light on a scientific mystery known for decades. We will elucidate the cellular roles and functions of diadenosine polyphosphates (ApnAs), which are formed in response to stress and are therefore called "alarmones", and their interactions with the PTM processes "AMPylation", i.e. the covalent modification of the target protein by adenosine monophosphate. Although both topics are known for more than 60 years, their molecular mechanism and functions are poorly understood. Based on our preliminary results, which unambiguously show the interplay of ApnAs and AMPylation for the first time, we will search for, identify and characterize new protagonists of AMPylation and clarify their interactions with ApnAs. Therefore, new chemical tools will be developed and applied in the proteome-wide studies in living cells. We will also investigate the molecular function of a protein that we have already identified with ApnA-based probes. We have discovered that this protein is a "5'-3' RNA ligase", the first one found in human cells! The available data indicates the involvement of this RNA ligase in cancer and neurodegeneration, and we will therefore elucidate the molecular mechanisms and functions of this protein in detail. Overall, this project will bring significant new and previously unexplored advances and will provide a guideline for future translational research in the fight against diseases.

Keywords: chemical biology,nucleotide,post translational modifications,chemical proteomics,rna ligase
Acting on the Margins: Arts as Social Sculpture (AMASS)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Societal Challenges
Programme: Europe in a changing world - inclusive, innovative and reflective societies
Theme: Innovative societies
Action type: Research and Innovation actions
Countries involved: Italy,Malta,Hungary,Sweden,Finland,Czechia,Portugal,United Kingdom
Call: Societal challenges and the arts (H2020-SC6-TRANSFORMATIONS-2019, 2019)
Start date: 2020-02-01
End date: 2023-01-31
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 2980330.0
EU funding (EUR): 2977330.0
Participants: 8
Project status: SIGNED

The central problem AMASS addresses is that the arts has not been harnessed to address societal challenges through comparative and European-wide Research Innovation Action (RIA), analysis, synthesis and policy development. This untapped potential of the arts undermines joint action between different artistic genres and geographic locations, and thus the advancement of the EU as a stronger global actor, the fostering of fundamental rights based on mutual trust and democratic change within the EU. The overall objective of the project is to address this European-wide lack of synthesis of the potential of the arts that can lead to generating alternative or unconventional solutions to societal challenges and policy development. The aims thus will be to discover and analyse the underpinning structures that influence the functioning of arts in societal challenges (specifically SC6) through arts-based RIA. The challenges addressed by AMASS are geopolitically oriented: the future of work in creative, cultural and other sectors; radical ideologies and extremism; societal polarisation and stratification; lack of civil society participation; populism; migration. Thus, this project will identify, explore, collate, evaluate and analyse existing and new innovative productions, experiments and case studies from the perspective and the physical positioning of the European countries “on the margins”. AMASS, which is located in Europe’s culturally often underserved Northern, Southern, Western and Eastern regions, will set up 5 experiments in these peripheries to investigate the educational effects of the STEAM model in integrating the arts with science through participatory and multidisciplinary approaches. This will be accomplished through technologically enabled visual expression and problem-based learning that will offer solutions to the geopolitical challenges, and policy recommendations and development that will foster inclusive, innovative and reflective societies.

Keywords: visual art,design,artistic research,co creation
The Race, Class and Gender of Transnational Urban Labour: Romanian Workers in the Cities of London and NYC (MigrWorkers)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Standard European Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Social Sciences and Humanities
Countries involved: United Kingdom,United Kingdom
Call: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF-EF) (H2020-MSCA-IF-2014, 2014)
Start date: 2015-09-01
End date: 2017-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 183454.8
EU funding (EUR): 183454.8
Participants: 2
Project status: CLOSED

The workings of globalization depend on international labor migration, a phenomenon that is hardly recent but that is, instead, embedded in histories of colonialism, decolonization and neocolonization, divergent conditions of democracy, totalitarianism, militarism and exploitation, as well as in persistent structures of economic disparity among the formal colonial powers and the decolonized world. Contemporary labor migration—the flows of people in search of labor crossing national boundaries, deeply impacts and transforms the social, economic, political, cognitive and affective landscapes of contemporary life. This project will consider these transformations by examining the transnational migrant labor of workers from Romania such as it unfolds at two central sites of global capitalism, London-U.K. and New York-U.S. The research will feature an historical analysis of the immigrant Romanian labor presence at these sites, while its time frame covers the interval starting in 1989 up to the present day. While labor migration has been a subject of interest for economists, political theorists, geographers, anthropologists and cultural theorists alike, its relevance to affective theory and neoliberal critiques have only recently been addressed. My project seeks to address an analytic gap that refers to the affective dimension of migrational labor by considering not only the economic, political, and historical contexts, but also the impact that immigrants’ transnational journeys in search for work and their landing in new spaces have on their intimate lives alongside co-nationals as well as alongside other dwellers in the global city. The research project will draw upon recent global changes, more precisely on the global economic crisis, the continued neoliberalization of economies and the pressures towards securitization that affect the cities of London and New York and thus implicitly impact on the lives of immigrant laborers.

Keywords: work migration,gender,race,class,transnational,affect,social change,immigration justice,labor justice
Search for a new form of matter: the sterile neutrino (SOLID)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Consolidator grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Fundamental constituents of matter
Panel description: Particle, nuclear, plasma, atomic, molecular, gas, and optical physics
Countries involved: United Kingdom,United Kingdom,United Kingdom
Call: ERC Consolidator Grant (ERC-2015-CoG, 2015)
Start date: 2016-06-01
End date: 2021-11-30
Duration (months): 66.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1818553.0
EU funding (EUR): 1559347.95
Participants: 3
Project status: CLOSED

The goal of this proposal is to search for an entirely new kind of matter. This type of matter called a sterile neutrino doesn’t interact with known particles and can only manifest itself through quantum mixing with the three neutrinos of the standard model, the prevailing theory of particle physics. The known neutrinos are by far the most abundant massive particles in the Universe. More than 70 years after the postulation of the existence of the neutrino, its nature and fundamental properties remain, paradoxically, poorly known. The discovery of the quantum mixing of neutrinos: neutrino oscillations, was a major surprise as it implied that neutrinos have mass which they do not have in the standard model. In this context the existence of a sterile neutrino is a natural extension but the discovery of this new state of matter would a profound challenge for the theory to explain. Several new anomalous experimental results have appeared which could be accounted for by the presence of a light sterile neutrino but each result taken separately is not statistically significant. New oscillation patterns in the neutrino energy spectrum would be a clear signature of the new state but are difficult to measure due to experimental and background limitations. We propose the most sensitive search to date for this oscillation signature using two key assets: The SCK•CEN BR2 reactor which offers a unique low background environment combined with a novel detector technology invented by the PI capable of discriminating signal and background with greater sensitivity that any previous technique. We present an experimental program that includes the construction of a detector module and its precise calibration, the programming of a new type of electronic trigger and implementation of state of the art reconstruction techniques and analysis. The results that this proposal will deliver are far reaching both in science and in the development of a new technology for detecting anti-neutrinos.

Keywords: sterile neutrino,antineutrinos,scintillator detector
Tracking Of Plastic In Our Seas (TOPIOS)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Earth system science
Panel description: Physical geography, geology, geophysics, atmospheric sciences, oceanography, climatology, cryology, ecology, global environmental change, biogeochemical cycles, natural resources management
Countries involved: Spain,Netherlands,United Kingdom
Call: ERC Starting Grant (ERC-2016-STG, 2016)
Start date: 2017-04-01
End date: 2022-03-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1484760.0
EU funding (EUR): 1276792.5
Participants: 3
Project status: CLOSED

The amount of plastic in our ocean is exponentially growing, with recent estimates of more than 5 million metric tonnes of plastic reaching the ocean each year. This plastic infiltrates the ocean food chain and thus poses a major threat to marine life. However, understanding of plastic movement and its budget in the ocean is inadequate to fully establish its environmental impact, prompting the EU and G7 to recently make marine litter a top science priority. It is now recognised that the amount of plastic entering our ocean is several orders of magnitude larger than the estimates of floating plastic on the surface of the ocean. More than 99% of plastic within our ocean is therefore ‘missing’. This project will make breakthroughs towards closing the plastic budget by creating a novel comprehensive modelling framework that tracks plastic movement through the ocean. Building on well-established previous work to follow generic water parcels through hydrodynamic ocean models, this project will modify these ‘virtual’ parcels to represent pieces of plastic by, for the first time, simulating fragmentation, sinking, beaching, wave-mixing and ingestion by biota. The new parameterisations that underpin this modelling will be based on field data and new coastal flume wave tank lab experiments. The simulated plastic particles will be tracked within state-of-the-art hydrodynamic ocean models, in order to compute maps of pathways and transports around our oceans and on coastlines and in biota. This numerical modelling will be used to evaluate a broad suite of scenarios and test hypotheses, including where the risk to marine biota is greatest. The results from this project will inform policymakers and the public on which countries, for example, are responsible for which part of the plastic problem, crucial for mitigation and legal frameworks. It will also inform engineers on where and how to best invest resources in mitigating the problem of plastic in our ocean.

Keywords: marine plastic,ocean pathways