Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Cell-type-specific identification of mRNAs translated by cannabinoids in the hippocampus: from signaling to behavior (CANCELLTRANS)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: France
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IEF, 2012)
Start date: 2014-06-24
End date: 2016-06-23
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 194046.6
EU funding (EUR): 194046.6
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The hippocampal region is critically involved in memory formation and cannabinoids including delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive compound of marijuana, are known to impair hippocampus-dependent memories. Previous findings uncover the role of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway and protein synthesis underlying the long-term amnesic-like effects of THC. Thus, the regulation of mTOR-dependent mRNA translation after THC exposure could be an important process that elicits the distortion of hippocampal plasticity leading to memory impairment. The aim of this proposal is to characterize cell-type-specific mRNAs following THC treatment and evaluate the functional implication of such events on THC-induced memory impairment. To do so, we propose 1) to isolate and analyze actively translating mRNAs following THC exposure. This will be achieved by performing cell-type-specific isolation of ribosome-associated mRNA from CA1 hipocampal pyramidal neurons followed by standard genomic profiling technologies such as RNA-sequencing, 2) to evaluate the functional implication of some identified mRNAs on THC-induced memory impairment. This research project will allow not only to address the scientific issue in vivo at an integrated level, but also to yield important insights into the distortion of mechanisms involved in memory formation. The project should allow the fellow to learn new techniques by using powerful state-of-the-art technologies and the host institution will provide the best environment and knowledge, offering all the necessary equipment and qualified experts in the field.

Keywords: neurobiology,memory,hippocampus,cannabis,mrna translation,cell-type selectivity,mtor
Electrocatalysis of greenhouse gases to fuels or chemical feedstocks on well-characterized materials (GHGELCAT)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: International Outgoing Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Netherlands
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IOF, 2012)
Start date: 2013-09-02
End date: 2016-09-01
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 259745.1
EU funding (EUR): 259745.1
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The project aims to generate a fundamental understanding of electrochemical processes that will enable the conversion of excess electrical energy produced by renewable sources to chemical energy, and store it in the form of fuels or useful chemical feedstocks. This can be realized by conversions of greenhouse gas molecules within the carbon- or nitrogen-cycle. The mechanisms of the reduction of such gases, as for example CO2 and NOx, are overall very complex and not well understood. The bottleneck in both cases is that our state-of-the-art understanding of the C-C or N-N bond-making reactions is not sufficiently developed. The reason for this lack of fundamental understanding is that the vast majority of research in the field has not been carried out on well-characterized surfaces, making the interpretation of experimental data very difficult. In this project, model surfaces will be utilized following a surface science approach, to obtain the necessary insights and breakthroughs related to the important C-C or N-N bond-making steps. This understanding is essential before considering any potential applications. This approach has been pioneered by the outgoing host group for fuel cell reactions and has established them as world-leaders in the field of electrocatalysis. This eminently successful approach will be used in this project as a basis for understanding the reactions of greenhouse gases. The strength of this project lies on the wide range of ex-situ and in-situ characterization methods that will be employed, in which the outgoing host has world-class expertise and facilities which are the best of the state of the art at an international level. The applicant will receive world-class training which will be a massive boost for his European career development. Moreover, the return host is determined to absorb the unique knowledge that will be gained. The applicant and the return host aim to a long-term collaboration after the completion of this fellowship.

Keywords: electrochemistry,electrocatalysis,surface science,interfaces,structure-property relationships,surface-sensitive probes,energy conversion and storage,greenhouse gases,renewable energy sources
Using sponges as a model to examine the evolution of the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway (SPONGE SIGNALING)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: International Outgoing Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Switzerland
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IOF, 2012)
Start date: 2013-09-09
End date: 2016-09-08
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 264112.5
EU funding (EUR): 264112.5
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The central concept of the field of evolutionary developmental biology (evo-devo) is that changes in development give rise to changes in form. While recent advances in both comparative genomics and experimental biology have greatly accelerated the rate of discovery in evo-devo by facilitating the study of non-traditional experimental models, we have only begun to understand how developmental mechanisms themselves first evolved, and how these ancient evolutionary events shaped the morphological evolution of lineages that persists today. The focus of this proposal is on the evolution of the Wnt/beta-catenin developmental signaling pathway and its role in modern sponges, one of the earliest branching metazoan lineages. In bilaterians, the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway plays a critical role during animal development, as it controls cell differentiation, proliferation and apoptosis by regulating the expression of a high number of target genes. In addition to its normal functions, misregulation of this pathway can lead to serious diseases in humans, such as cancer. The discovery of conserved homologs of the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway in sponges raises questions about whether a functional Wnt/beta-catenin pathway is present in sponges and what its role may be in organisms of such simplicity – they lack many features of bilaterians, such as muscles, nerves and a gut. The specific aims of this study are to (1) test whether the sponge homologs of Wnt/beta-catenin components interact (2) identify the tissue-specific and subcellular localization patterns of beta-catenin and TCF (these proteins form the transcriptional complex downstream of the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway) (3) identify which target genes are regulated by the beta-catenin/TCF transcriptional complex and (4) develop techniques for studying gene function in vivo in sponges. The overall goal of the proposed research is to learn more about how metazoan morphology evolves, and about how signaling pathways themselves evolve.

Keywords: l101 molecular biology and interactions,l307 cell signalling and cellular interactions,l309 developmental genetics - embryology in animals
Analysing the Impact of Global Climate Change on Ecosystems: A Cross-Scale Metatranscriptomics Approach (METAECO)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: International Outgoing Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Denmark
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IOF, 2012)
Start date: 2013-03-01
End date: 2016-02-29
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 278045.1
EU funding (EUR): 278045.1
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Some of the most pressing problems facing mankind today relate to the consequences of global climate change (GCC). To date, most studies of GCC have focused on plants and animals while downplaying the role of microorganisms. However, microbial activity in the soil is responsible for some of the most fundamental processes such as decomposition and nitrogen fixation. It is not known if the composition of microorganisms in the ecosystem is altered by GCC, or how the functionality of the ecosystem is affected. It is obvious, however, that this can have huge consequences. We propose to take a more fundamental look at the effects of GCC by including the microbial ecosystem component. We will investigate the effects of three important factors on microbial ecosystems: Rising temperatures, use of nitrogen containing fertilisers, and plant invasion. Through state-of-the-art sequencing technologies combined with cutting edge bioinformatics tools, we will investigate transcription under varying conditions. From this we will not only describe the composition of organisms but the actual metabolic activities. This will be combined with data on plants and herbivores in the same systems, leading to a whole new understanding of GCC and move the field from the descriptive to the quantifiable. The group has unique access to an existing field study measuring the effects of temperature, nitrogen addition and plant invasion. We will perform metatranscriptomics analysis on the RNA present in the soil using next generation sequencing. This will yield massive datasets describing the ecosystems under different conditions. Through the use of bioinformatics we will be able to infer the diversity of organisms, describe transcription activity, and combine these novel findings with higher level interactions involving plants, herbivores and parasites. This study will be important both scientifically, politically, and economically. Thus, it is of great benefit for the EU to be involved.

Keywords: l211 computational biology,l201 genomics - comparative genomics - functional genomics,l202 transcriptomics,l210 bioinformatics,v201 climatology and climate change,l816 environmental biotechnology
Immune Recognition of Xeno-Glycans (XENO-AUTOANTIBODIES)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: International Incoming Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Israel
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IIF, 2012)
Start date: 2013-03-01
End date: 2015-02-28
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 227231.2
EU funding (EUR): 227231.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

‘xeno-autoantibodies’ recognize a dietary immunogenic non-self sugar that is metabolized by cells as self and presented on the cell surface. N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac) and its hydroxylated form, N-glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc) are the two major Sia forms in most mammals. Humans are deficient in the enzyme CMP-Neu5Ac hydroxylase (CMAH) that can synthesize Neu5Gc, however dietary Neu5Gc accumulates in epithelial tumors and become immunogenic. Our previous research recognized dual and opposing roles of IgG isotype xeno-autoantibodies in cancer progression, diagnosis and immunotherapy: they facilitate tumor progression via chronic inflammation at low doses, but mediate tumor inhibition at higher doses in a ‘human-like’ Cmah-/- Neu5Gc-deficient mouse model. Furthermore, we developed a novel sialoglycan microarray that lead to the discovery of a specific xeno-auto-IgG that is novel human serum carcinoma biomarker and potential immunotherapeutic. However, our early studies also revealed that some human sera show high levels of anti-Neu5Gc IgAs that could even be affinity-purified from human serum (7). IgA is the most abundantly produced antibody isotype in the body and the main isotype in mucosal surfaces; It is also present in serum, where IgG is the predominant isotype. I propose a multidisciplinary approach to investigate the biology of IgA xeno-autoantibodies against these unique glycans and their potential involvement in cancer. I will combine glycobiology, immunology, biochemistry, molecular biology, nanotechnology and advanced array techniques to address these lines of investigation both in vitro and in vivo in a relevant mouse model (Cmah-/-).

Keywords: sialic acid,neu5gc,autoantibodies,cancer,glycan microarray,nanotechnology,l205 glycomics,l406 cancer and its biological basis,l604 immunosignalling
An Optimised Genetic Algorithm to Computationally Predict a Metal-Organic Framework to Separate Helium from Methane (GA MOF)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: International Incoming Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Germany
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IIF, 2012)
Start date: 2013-03-01
End date: 2015-02-28
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 161968.8
EU funding (EUR): 161968.8
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) are a class of inorganic-organic crystalline material with extremely high porosity, making them ideal substrates for the separation of gas mixtures by selective adsorption. The most significant barrier to the bottom-up design of a MOF for a given application is the combinatorial explosion of possible MOFs as the sheer number of chemical environments it is possible to create makes it highly unlikely that any naïve approach will locate a suitable one in any reasonable timeframe. The overall aim of this project is to develop a method to efficiently search the space of possible metal-organic framework structures and to use this to design a framework structure with user specified properties. To this end, we propose an optimised genetic algorithm for the guided computational design of a metal-organic framework to separate helium from methane.

Keywords: genetic algorithm,metal-organic framework,gas separation,high-throughput calculations
Category theory for meaning assembly and the semantics-pragmatics interface (MEANCATS)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: United Kingdom
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IEF, 2012)
Start date: 2013-09-01
End date: 2015-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 221606.4
EU funding (EUR): 221606.4
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The project investigates the interaction between semantic and pragmatic factors in determining the meaning of an utterance, particularly how the factors can be unified in a single account of meaning. Addressing this question is important for two reasons. First, semantic and pragmatic approaches to natural language meaning have diverged into two separate fields, with independent sets of assumptions. While this has been useful in uncovering a number of phenomena, many scholars have pointed out that the division is artificial and prevents linguistic theory from properly exploring a large number of central phenomena in natural language at the intersection of the two dimensions of meaning. Second, a better integration of semantics and pragmatics will have significant practical consequences both for linguistics and for applications in industry. Currently, any attempt at combining semantic and pragmatic approaches is a daunting task, as the interactions between the two aspects are poorly understood. This also has the effect of limiting computational systems for deep understanding of linguistic input. Given the increasing ubiquity of voice interface systems, improving our understanding of these interactions is a priority. The project will have three goals. The first is to investigate the viability of the mathematical framework of category theory for richer formal models of meaning. I have already obtained promising initial results with this method for some phenomena. I intend to study its applicability to a wider range of phenomena. The second goal will be the implementation of a prototype computational system based on the results of the first goal. The formal system will be implemented as an extension of the Xerox Linguistic Environment and made available to the research and industrial community. Finally, I will test some predictions of the proposal with behavioural experiments. This will provide solid experimental data that will allow wider testing of the theory.

Keywords: semantics,pragmatics,semantics-pragmatics interface,category theory,computational semantics,psycholinguistics
Advanced SuperConducting devices for ENhanced infrared Detection (ASCEND) (ASCEND)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: United Kingdom
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IEF, 2012)
Start date: 2013-05-01
End date: 2015-04-30
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 221606.4
EU funding (EUR): 221606.4
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

This Marie Curie Fellowship proposal is aimed at developing a novel type of infrared single photon detector to meet the stringent requirements of advanced imaging, quantum communications and remote sensing applications. This will be achieved by exploiting the potential of superconducting nanowire single photon detectors (SNSPDs) when detecting infrared photons of energy below 1eV. Excellent signal-to-noise ratio and timing resolution can currently be achieved in small single pixel SNSPDs of typical area 10 x 10 square micrometres. This small area is a severe practical limitation for real applications and my proposal is targeted at addressing this central challenge. I aim to realize single pixel SNSPD having both large active area and high performance, via a parallel nanowire design, and to use them in an array configuration to cover active areas hundreds of micrometres across. This Fellowship will be a decisive step forward in my own career as an independent scientist. This programme has multidisciplinary applications in single photon detection and is certainly of strong interest to end-users in both academia and industry. The objectives of this plan can be summarized as follows: 1. To develop next generation single pixel SNSPDs with large active area and high quantum efficiency via optical cavity and parallel nanowire designs. 2. To integrate, for the first time, multiple detectors into a practical arrayed infrared receiver system with large active area for use in advanced imaging, communication, and remote sensing applications. This programme will be supported by the excellent research environment provided by the host, ‘This programme will supported by the excellent research environment provided by the host, Professor Robert Hadfield, at the University of Glasgow, UK, with state-of-the-art facilities for single photon detector development and testing. This programme also will benefit from the strong links between the host group and leading UK and international research groups who have a strong stake in this future technology.

Keywords: superconducting detectors,superconducting electronics,single-photon detectors,photon counting,infrared detectors,superconducting materials,optical detectors,optoelectronic devices
Exploring the evolution of protein-protein interactions and their networks using biophysical models (EEPPIBM)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Intra-European Fellowships
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Spain
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2012-IEF, 2012)
Start date: 2013-03-01
End date: 2015-02-28
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 166336.2
EU funding (EUR): 166336.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The evolution of protein interactions has produced interaction networks and much biological complexity. Although molecular phylogenetics reveals the end points of evolutionary searches, little is known about the trajectories of interacting proteins through sequence space over evolutionary time. A major bottleneck is the inability to extensively map how binding affinity changes with sequence. A previously developed affinity prediction model will be modified to predict affinity changes upon mutation. Preliminary results show that this method has unprecedented speed and accuracy. In the proposed research, the preliminary models will be improved and thoroughly validated. Subsequently, they shall be used to assess millions of combinations of interface mutations in structurally annotated interaction networks. The mutational robustness of interactions will be determined, compared with theoretical models, and its relationships with observed evolutionary rates investigated at the amino acid, interface, protein and network levels. Then, paths connecting orthologs to each other and to ancestral protein reconstructions will be determined and characterised. The positions on the phylogenetic trees where the affinity imbuing contacts are gained will be determined, as well as the positions where interactions are lost, revealing network rewiring. This will illuminate the changes in interactions over time, and show how interface biophysics constrains the functionally viable paths available for interaction evolution. The relationships between extent of constraint, evolutionary rates and network properties will be investigated. We hypothesise that the inherent ability to form interactions and modulate specificity can explain a number of observations garnered from network evolution studies. Finally, the human-virus exogenous interaction network will be investigated, potentially revealing strategies and counterstrategies employed as viruses vie to hijack regulatory mechanisms.

Keywords: l211 computational biology,c113 physical chemistry of biological systems,l107 structural biology,l106 biophysics,l213 systems biology,l210 bioinformatics,l101 molecular biology and interactions