Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
The significance of stable isotopes as dietary indicators in ancient terrestrial ecosystems (SSIDIATE)

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-2010-IEF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-09-01
End date: 2013-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 200049.6
EU funding (EUR): 200049.6
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Paleodietary reconstruction is an important component of palaeoecology, but evidence for diet of ancient organisms is very rare and mostly limited to indirect inference. Besides, our knowledge related to the trophic organization of extinct communities mostly relies on assumptions from morphofunctional studies. Contrary to living communities, quantitative assessment of the trophic relationships within a given extinct ecosystem remains virtually unexplored and represents a key to discuss ecosystem dynamics across major events that affected the biosphere through time. The current proposal will determine the diet of unstudied ancient organisms through chemical isotopic systems. Biological processes such as digestion, cell growth or enzyme production involve important isotopic fractionations of various elements assimilated through food consumption or water uptake. This observed shift between a food source (plants for example) and the consumer's organs is linked to the fractionation of stable isotopes during nutrient uptake into the intestinal cells. Here, the study will focus on the trophic chain hierarchy of large Cretaceous and extant terrestrial vertebrates involving : carbon, a consituent of mineralized tissue used for trophic inference, mostly in mammals; calcium, constituting up to half the apatite (the key mineralised constituent of bones and teeth) and for which preliminary investigations suggest a fractionation; magnesium, one of the most abundant element involved in metabolism and for which fractionation remains unexplored. The analyses will focus on tooth enamel apatite, the most susceptible body part to be preserved in the fossil record and to retain its pristine signal. The following project therefore intends to define appropriate proxies in living organisms that will serve as a basis to explore isotopic variability among the succession of ancient communities through time.

Keywords: natural sciences,biogeochemistry,paleontology
Auditory Processing in Insect Brains (AUDITORYFLY)

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: Germany
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IOF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-07-01
End date: 2014-06-30
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 228277.6
EU funding (EUR): 228277.6
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Acoustic signals are used to communicate in many species. It is found from insects to humans to, for example, locate preys, in courtship behaviour or to transmit more complex information to other individuals. To use auditory cues efficiently animals must be able to recognise species-specific sounds. This means that the auditory system is tuned to these sound patterns. Current models assume that sound recognition occurs through matched sensory filters along the auditory pathways, but the identification of neurons with these properties has proved challenging. A characterisation of the auditory system, from sensory input to behavioural output, is currently missing in any animal. Here we proposed to study these mechanisms in simple model systems: the brain of Drosophila fruit flies and honeybees. We will first take advantage of the small brain and of the powerful genetic tools in Drosophila to identify single neurons in the auditory brain centres. Drosophila use auditory signals during their very robust courtship behaviour. We will first record in vivo from neurons and characterise their auditory responses using whole-cell patch clamp recordings while playing natural courtship sounds. With these experiments we will identify neurons responding to species-specific sound features. Second, to identify new neurons in the auditory centres of Drosophila we will use a new tracing methods based on photoactivatable green fluorescent proteins. Here we will discover the higher order targets of auditory neurons in the brain. Finally, we will use intracellular and optical imaging methods to identify neurons in the auditory centres of the honeybee. We will take advantage of studying brain structures involved in a sophisticated communication mode (waggle dance) but in a simple organism. Our results will shed light on circuits underlying sound processing in the brain and will contribute to the understanding of fundamental principles of communication.

Keywords: audition,drosophila,courtship,ammc,vlpr,patch clamp
Spatio-temporal Control of Cell Division in Fission Yeast (SPTPCDR2)

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-2010-IEF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-10-01
End date: 2013-09-30
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 186248.0
EU funding (EUR): 186248.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Cytokinesis is a critical and irreversible step of cell cycle, which eventually separates daughter cells. This event is consequently subject to strict spatial and temporal regulations. Spatial integration of the DNA distribution and the global geometry of the cell are necessary to determine the proper division plane and ensure the successful genome and cytoplasmic segregation. Additionally, cells of a given cell type usually grow to a similar size, suggesting that cell dimensions can be monitored and controlled. Consequently, coordination of cell growth and cell division is essential for an appropriate cell size homeostasis. The fission yeast SAD kinase Cdr2 assembles a novel structure termed “midsome”, which is organized as medial cortical nodes. This structure includes a variety of proteins, including the anillin-like protein Mid1, a key factor in division plane positioning, and Wee1, which inhibits the entry into mitosis by phosphorylating Cdk. Two recent articles have demonstrated that the DYRK kinase Pom1 phosphorylates Cdr2, inhibiting it and excluding it from the cell tips. A gradient of Pom1 from the cell tips allows a differential inhibition of Cdr2 depending on its distance to the cell tips, thus, coupling cell size to the determination of the division plane and the cell cycle progression. Therefore, I propose to study the assembly and maintenance of the “midsome” analysing Cdr2 anchorage to the membrane, the molecular mechanism underlying the phosphorylaton of Cdr2 by Pom1, and the importance of membrane lipid composition on the localization of the “midsome”. Defining the role of the Cdr2 kinase in reading the spatial cues given by the cell tip protein Pom1 will also contribute to a better understanding of intracellular signals that trigger entry into mitosis.

Keywords: cell biology,cell cycle,cytokinesis,cell size,cell polarity,fission yeast
Molecular mechanisms underlying the lineage establishment in the early mouse embryo (MM OF LE IN EME)

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-2010-IIF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-07-01
End date: 2013-06-30
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 170363.2
EU funding (EUR): 170363.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Early mammalian development is characterized by formation of the blastocyst, composed of the pluripotent inner cell mass surrounded by a one-cell layer of epithelial cells, the trophectoderm. Despite its importance for understanding mammalian development and for stem cell research, the mechanism of blastocyst morphogenesis and patterning has long been elusive and a subject of controversy. The ultimate goal of this project is to understand the molecular mechanism of the lineage establishment in the mouse blastocyst. To this end, functional screens will be performed to identify players essential for the lineage specification. Those gene sets specifically expressed in each cell lineage will be characterized by single-cell gene expression profiling methods. Functional screens will be performed using a subset of siRNA libraries directed against each gene set in order to identify key molecules for the blastocyst differentiation. Here, fluorescent reporter lines established in the host laboratory will serve as a unique reference for the read-out of molecular dynamics during embryonic patterning. Alternatively, among those gene sets, potential candidate molecules will be first identified by focusing to the upstream players and small RNAs in signaling cascades in the lineage specification. Their function will then be analyzed by siRNA-mediated knock-down. Thus, these findings will provide a mechanistic model underlying the lineage establishment in the early mouse embryo. Taken together, the project will provide not only an insight into the pluripotency in vivo but a basis for an interdisciplinary approach for stem cell research and regenerative medicine. It is likely that the techniques established in the project will serve as a unique tool for embryonic development research and will result in a long lasting fruitful collaboration.

Keywords: developmental biology,molecular biology,lineage establishment,differentiation,inner cell mass,trophectoderm,gene expression profiling,venus-trap line,functional genetic screen,small rnas
Synthesis and Application of Block Copolymers for Interfacial Stability in Organic Solar Cells (SYNABCO)

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-2010-IEF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-09-01
End date: 2013-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 209092.8
EU funding (EUR): 209092.8
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

SYNABCO will increase the efficiency and lifetime of organic solar cells (OSCs) by creating a highly original and industrially viable polymer layer which will bind critical components together within the device. Finding an inexpensive, clean and completely renewable energy source is the most pressing challenge of current times. OSCs offer superb potential to meet this challenge but are currently not able to do so because they are inefficient and lack long term stability. It is critical that the technological break-through required to bring solar energy to every household across the world is explored while we are still in a position to do so. The scientific goal of SYNABCO is to provide just such a step-change technology platform. SYNABCOs multidisciplinary solution will exploit polymer nanotechnology and so although it will be ‘smart’ it will also be cheap and readily scaleable. Moreover, as it will be developed in concert with Konarka, the largest manufacturer of OSCs in the world, it will be immediately applicable in a global marketplace. The IP, papers and seminars that result from SYNABCO will also help maintain the EU as a leading centre for both academic and industrial research into OSCs. SYNABCO will also provide a unique training opportunity to develop a highly skilled fellow with broad OSC-relevant scientific skill and knowledge sets. The SYNABCO fellow will additionally receive training in a broad range of complementary skills. The training, skills and knowledge base with which SYNABCO will imbue the fellow will ensure that upon successfully completing the project he will be capable of becoming a leading research figure in OSCs within the EU. The ERA will thus reap considerable benefit from the development of an independent and mature researcher with a truly transnational background who will be able to contribute a significant and long term research effort into a pivotal area of research in which it is vital that the EU remains at the forefront.

Keywords: polymer chemistry,materials engineering,organic solar cells,interfacial polymer physics,block copolymer chemistry
Involvement of the endoplasmic reticulum stress response in lung dendritic cell function and inflammatory lung diseases. (LUNG DCS UNFOLD)

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: Belgium
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IEF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-10-14
End date: 2013-10-13
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 163300.0
EU funding (EUR): 163300.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Dendritic cells (DCs) are essential for the instruction of adaptive immunity and for the pathogenesis of many inflammatory lung diseases. These cells sense the presence of exogenous and endogenous signals and initiate an immune response that is matched to the nature of the offending insult. Many environmental triggers of inflammatory lung diseases including allergens, cigarette smoke, fine dust particles or microbes induce signs of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in lung cells. ER stress is characterized by an accumulation of unfolded proteins in the ER, which leads to an intracellular signalling cascade named unfolded protein response (UPR). Although it has been recently shown that the UPR is a constitutively active signalling pathway in DCs, it is unknown whether activation of the ER stress pathways in DCs contributes to the regulation of immune responses at mucosal sites. The foundations of this project lie in three crucial aspects of DCs: 1) DCs are important sensors of exogenous and endogenous danger signals in the lung, 2) DCs are active targets of the ER stress response, and 3) DCs are central coordinators of the immune response that leads to asthma. Based on these three aspects, we hypothesize that the presence of unfolded proteins in the ER acts as an endogenous danger signal that plays a fundamental role in the function of lung DCs and their involvement in inflammatory lung diseases. With this project, we will gain firm knowledge about the cellular events that coordinate the ER stress response to environmental triggers in DCs. By using innovative approaches, we will analyze the relevance of the UPR signalling in lung DC subsets in vivo. In addition, in light of previous findings reporting the genetic association between polymorphisms in the ER stress regulator ORMDL3 and asthma, we will formally evaluate the role of ORMDL3 in the development of lung inflammation.

Keywords: natural sciences,health sciences,dendritic cells,er stress,inflammatory lung diseases,unfolded protein response,asthma,adaptive immunity
Analysis of the cellular origin of breast cancer (BREAST CANCER ORIGIN)

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-2010-IEF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-08-01
End date: 2013-07-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 200049.6
EU funding (EUR): 200049.6
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Breast cancer is a heterogeneous disease, which includes many different types of cancers with diverse histopathologies, genetic and genomic variations, and clinical outcomes. Pathological states of the breast, such as pre-neoplastic lesions and carcinomas, retain aspects of cellular composition observed in the normal breast. It is not clear if the heterogeneity of breast cancer reflects the same hierarchical pattern of the normal tissue. In particular, the question remains as to whether specific molecular pathways establish the subtype of breast cancer or whether different cell types within the breast hierarchy become transformed and give rise to each tumour subtype. Currently, one of the major limitations in the field consists of a lack of experimental model systems that correctly recapitulate the pathogenesis of human breast tumours. The main aim of this project is to study the cellular origin of breast cancer. In order to use a model which more closely recapitulates the human pathogenesis of breast cancer in a relatively short time frame as compared to traditional transgenic mice models, we will develop a novel system which will be used to address several important questions. The model will provide a powerful tool to dissect the contribution of oncogenes and targeted cells to the development of specific types of cancer. The system generated will also provide a relatively rapid breast cancer model which will allow us to study the contribution of selected factors, already described in the host laboratory to be important in mammary gland development and possibly tumourigenesis.

Keywords: oncology,breast cancer,stem cell,progenitor cell,roma,gata3,breast cancer model
Cohesin functions and mechanisms in higher eukaryotes (CFMHE)

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-2010-IEF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-03-01
End date: 2013-02-28
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 209592.8
EU funding (EUR): 209592.8
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Cohesin has numerous fundamental roles in eukaryotic chromosome biology. It promotes sister chromatid cohesion during cell division and is therefore essential for faithful duplication and segregation of genomic information, a fundamental processes for life. In addition to its canonical role in holding sister chromatids together during mitosis and meiosis, cohesin plays a role in the repair of double strand breaks and in regulating transcription. These are key processes that are often malfunctioning in cancer cells and in ageing oocytes. Defective cohesin function during meiosis may further contribute to human trisomy and age-related female infertility. Two developmental disorders, namely Cornelia de Lange and Roberts syndrome, are caused respectively by haplo-insufficiency of NIPBL (a cohesin loading factor), and homozygous loss of the acetyltransferase ESCO2 (a cohesin modifying enzyme). This proposal aims to study functions and mechanisms of cohesin in higher eukaryotes using the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster as a model system. This organism has major advantages for the here proposed questions: high quality imaging of chromosomes during early embryonic divisions, the possibility of microinjecting chemically modified proteins or mRNAs into early embryos or salivary glands, the existence of Rad21TEV flies created in the host laboratory whose cohesin can be rapidly removed from chromosomes by expression of TEV protease, and the existence of huge polytene chromosomes on which expression of individual genes and cohesin association can be visualized cytologically. These advantages are essential in allowing me to address the following questions: Is the hinge heterodimerisation domain the entry gate for cohesin’s loading onto chromatids? What is the mechanism and function of cohesin’s dissociation during prophase? Which roles do the prophase pathway and the cohesin-associated prophase regulator WAPL have during embryonic divisions and in regulating transcription?

Keywords: cell biology,developmental biology,cohesin,sister chromatid cohesion,non-canonical cohesin functions,drosophila,prophase pathway,transcriptional regulation,developmental diseases
The Earth in Transition: from Earliest Crust to Earliest Preserved Rocks (HADEAN)

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: Sweden
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IOF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-08-15
End date: 2014-08-14
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 374907.5
EU funding (EUR): 374907.5
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Current knowledge of the nature and origin of the earliest crust on Earth comes largely from studies of the mineral zircon. The oldest zircon crystals from Jack Hills in Australia provide a wealth of information and represent a time capsule of what the Earth was like from 4.4 to 4.0 Ga during the Hadean. These zircons are detrital grains preserved in much younger rocks, and no known rocks of this age have survived on Earth. By applying the most up–to-date technologies to various isotopic systems in these zircons, it has been possible to deduce that continental crust and oceans formed early in Earth`s history and that the planet cooled more quickly than was previously realised. The aim of this proposal is to compare the information acquired from these detrital grains with comparable new data to be obtained from the earliest known rocks on Earth. These ancient rocks are preserved in Antarctica, Canada, China, Greenland, Western Australia and Swaziland. Extensive investigation of these rocks will allow us to characterize further the nature of the earliest preserved crust and, more importantly, to document what changes took place from the formation of the earliest zircons (4.4 Ga) to the oldest preserved crust (4.03 Ga) and to evaluate why so few Hadean rocks survived on Earth. This period represents the ‘dark ages’ in terms of Earth history and marks the onset of stable conditions on the Earth that set the stage for a habitable planet.

Keywords: natural sciences,earth science,hadean,geochronology,geochemistry