Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Microglia and Neuropathic Pain: The role of calcium activated chloride channels (CACCINNP)

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: Germany
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IEF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-04-01
End date: 2013-03-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 181084.0
EU funding (EUR): 181084.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Neuropathic pain is a significant worldwide health problem that is poorly understood and often untreatable. A major factor in the pathogenesis of neuropathic pain is an activation of microglial cells in the spinal cord. Following damage to peripheral nerves, these activated cells release factors that increase excitability in spinal pain circuitry. Using expression profiling studies of microglial cells the host laboratory discovered a putative chloride channel transcript that is highly upregulated in these cells: Anoctamin-6 (Ano6). Although the functions of chloride currents in microglia are already known the underlying molecular entity of these currents is not known. The aims of this project are twofold. Firstly I will continue with expression profiling of microglia in a mouse model of neuropathic pain. Secondly I will perform a full characterization of Ano6. Initially I will analyze its activation mechanisms and pore properties in heterologous cells. Subsequently, I will examine its function in vivo using a mouse knockout model, determining its involvement in microglial physiology and in neuropathic pain. Results originated in this study will contribute to a better understanding of neuron-microglia communication in neuropathic states with the possibility to further uncover novel targets for treating human neuropathic pain. EMBL Monterotondo would offer me the possibility to gain specific skills in molecular biology, electrophysiology and in vivo mouse genetics thanks to the on-site Core Facilities and to the collaboration with EMBL Heidelberg and La Sapienza Rome. The skills acquired will greatly benefit my scientific career leading to maturity and independence, allowing me to interact with many research fields and to use powerful tools. Collaborations with other research groups will also improve my independent thinking. Finally, such a research experience would facilitate the ultimate achievement of an independent leading position in the Neuroimmunology research

Keywords: health sciences,neuropathic pain,microglia,spinal cord,calcium activated chloride channels,anoctamin
Deformation Theory and Moduli Spaces in Algebraic Geometry (DEFORMATIONTHEORYAG)

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: 2012-01-01
End date: 2014-03-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 193349.6
EU funding (EUR): 193349.6
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

We will look for proving a number of different results in Deformation Theory and Moduli Spaces in algebraic geometry. In our project, we will mainly use the modern language of algebraic geometry, based on DGLAs and L-infinity algebras. As first objective, we seek to give an explicit description of the DGLA controlling infinitesimal deformations of morphisms of schemes. We will also try to extend this construction to the case of morphisms of stacks. In particular, we will be dealing with the key case of morphisms from a singular curve in a smooth variety (like the case of stable maps). Once we have the DGLA for this problem, we will attempt to define a semiregularity map. By semi-regularity map we mean a map whose kernel contains all obstructions to deformations. This map will allow us to handle the problem of obstructions, providing a technical tool to understand the local behavior of the associated moduli space (in particular the one of stable maps). Moreover, we will try to apply these techniques to construct new examples of dg-schemes and dg- manifolds. Finally, we will seek to use all these new tools for computing new Gromov-Witten invariants. Mainly, we will be dealing with the cases in which the classical theory fails, working out new examples of reduced Gromov-Witten invariants.

Keywords: algebraic geometry
A comparative genomic study of the contribution of epigenetic mechanisms to regulatory evolution in primates. (PRIMATE_REG_EVOL)

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-2010-IOF, 2010)
Start date: 2012-09-01
End date: 2015-08-31
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 235535.2
EU funding (EUR): 235535.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

I propose to take first steps towards understanding the evolutionary processes that shape gene regulation in primates, and in particular, to study the mechanisms of regulatory change in humans and our close evolutionary relatives. By using RNA sequencing, I propose to study and compare gene expression phenotypes in multiple tissues and across species at unprecedented resolution, as well as to characterize exon usage and alternative splicing patterns. Subsequently, by using a combination of genomic approaches that will allow me to characterize histone modification marks and methylation profiles at genome-wide scale, I propose to move beyond simple inter-species comparisons of gene expression levels to the study of underlying regulatory mechanisms such as chromatin state and epigenetic markers. At the conclusion of this work I will have high-resolution gene expression data, methylation state, and histone modification profiles from a set of five tissues from multiple human, chimpanzee, and rhesus macaque individuals. These data will allow me to explore conserved inter-tissue regulatory differences, as well as to identify genes and pathways whose regulation evolved under natural selection in primates. In addition, my data will allow me to determine the mechanisms that explain, at least in part, regulatory differences between the species.

Keywords: genomics,transcriptomics,evolution,epigenetics,population genetics,bioinformatics,statistics,human diseases,high-throughput sequencing
From CERamic RESidues to the economic and social context of early pottery use in North Eastern North America (CERES)

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: United Kingdom
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IIF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-09-01
End date: 2013-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 201049.6
EU funding (EUR): 201049.6
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

It is not known why people started to produce pottery. Once associated with the advent of agriculture and village life, ceramic vessels are now known to have been produced well before any evidence for food production in many parts of the world. This project will identify patterns of early pottery uses in North Eastern North America, one region where pre-agricultural pottery has emerged as a problem with broad social and economic implications. Focusing on ceramic assemblages selected from a diversity of ecological and cultural contexts, the hypotheses that nuts, seeds, terrestrial mammals, aquatic resources, and/or early cultigens were processed in these pots will be tested using state-of-the-art methods in organic residue analysis. As no facilities for the organic residue analysis are available in Canada, the candidate seeks to carry out the project at the University of York which has facilities for lipid analysis and plant microfossil characterization of organic residues within BioArCh, an inter-disciplinary research centre dedicated to work on ancient biomolecules. Furthermore, the candidate will join the Early Pottery Research Group which is already pursing the question of the use of Early Pottery in Europe and Asia. The mobility of the candidate will allow the group to address the question of pottery innovation and look for common motivations across three continents and create the conditions for an enduring partnership beyond the end of the fellowship. The candidate’s expertise in pottery analysis and her extensive existing collaborative network are essential to achieve these aims. As well as the long term benefits, the project has the potential to make an immediate impact by addressing a major question in North American prehistory and thereby showcasing European excellence in this field.

Keywords: social sciences,north american prehistory,comparative archaeology,technological innovations,early pottery,paleodiet,biogeochemistry,organic residue analysis,stable isotope analysis
Metabolomics and contest behaviour in parasitoid wasps (WASP FIGHTS)

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: 2011-09-05
End date: 2013-09-04
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 201049.6
EU funding (EUR): 201049.6
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Animal contests are widely studied by animal behaviourists and behavioural ecologists and there is a well developed framework for evaluating their functional significance. Parasitoid wasps in the family Bethylidae have proven ideal organisms to test predictive models (all of the predicted major influences on contest outcome-fighting ability, prior ownership and the way that individuals value possession of the contested resource - have now been successfully explored) and also in linking contests to other areas of basic (e.g. clutch size) and applied (e.g. biological pest control) areas of animal behaviour study. The link between nutritional/physiological state and contest behaviour has rarely been fully explored. The purpose of this proposal is to evaluate a range of nutrients derived from diverse food sources (nectar and the parasitoid’s host) and their influences on contest behaviours and outcomes. It is expected that particular nutrients may affect contest ability (termed Resource Holding Potential) whereas others may influence the value of the resource to a contestant. The relative importance, and interactions between these contrasting effects, will be explored. Identification and manipulation of key nutrients (proteins, lipids, carbohydrates and other metabolites) will be achieved by metabolomic analysis and other analytical and biochemical methods. The influence of nutritional state on contest behaviour will be assessed by behavioral observations. The cost of fighting behavior as influenced by nutritional state will be evaluated by real–time respirometry. The interdisciplinary approach of the proposed project will provide training opportunities in a range of modern techniques new to the researcher (metabolomics, NMR spectroscopy, biochemical methods) whereas will provide a new dimension to the understanding of dyadic animal contests by investigating the effect of variation in nutritional state between competing individuals

Keywords: natural sciences
Archaeometric investigation of ancient glass – identification of the sources of Cu, Sb and Ti via isotopic analysis using (laser ablation) multi-collector ICP – mass spectrometry (ISOGLASS)

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: 2011-04-01
End date: 2013-03-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 164300.0
EU funding (EUR): 164300.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

As a first approximation, the isotopic compositions of the elements can be considered as constant in nature. However, small variations do occur and isotopic analysis of the elements showing such variations can provide very valuable information in several domains of science, e.g., archaeometry, forensics or environmental research. Whereas isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) is traditionally used to investigate the isotopic composition of light elements, for a long time, thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) was the only technique providing sufficient precision (RSD = 0.005%) to detect slight variations in the isotopic composition of the heavier elements. Nowadays, multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICPMS) is an even more powerful tool for highly precise isotope ratio determination as it provides information on the small variations (often  1‰) shown by some elements that are not or hardly accessible by means of TIMS (e.g., elements with high ionization potential) and, therefore, the importance of MC-ICPMS is currently growing, also in the field of provenance determination. The main goals of this research project will be the development of analytical methods for measuring the isotopic composition of Cu (colorizer), Sb (decolorizer) and Ti (introduced via sand) in glass and subsequent use of the methods developed for provenance determination of ancient glass objects. First, optimization studies will be performed using conventional solution nebulization as a means of sample introduction. The work will comprise the development of isolation methods for each of the target elements, as well as the validation of the methodology proposed in terms of analyte purity, recovery and absence of fractionation. In a second phase, it will be evaluated whether laser ablation can be used as an alternate method of sample introduction, to render the approach quasi non-destructive, self-evidently an important asset for studying valuable objects.

Keywords: isotope ratio,inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (icp-ms),multi-collector,ancient glass,laser ablation,provenancing
Democratic Peace Theory. A Philosophical Reconsideration (DPTPR)

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: Italy
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IOF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-06-06
End date: 2014-06-05
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 306598.5
EU funding (EUR): 306598.5
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

In the last three decades political philosophers, historians, and international relations scholars have widely debated the so called Democratic Peace Theory (DPT), i.e. the fact that liberal democracies have rarely, if ever, fought wars against each other, and the explanation of this fact. The root of this thesis is to be found in the essay To Perpetual Peace (1795) where Kant argued that the main cause of war is the injustice of some political institutions. Despite the impressive amount of work carried out by contemporary researchers, there is still no agreed upon definition of the thesis, no clarity on the factors relevant to explain the democratic “separate peace,” no common terrain of argumentation. We hold that a superficial knowledge of Kant's political thought led at times DPT scholars to misapprehensions that set the contemporary discussion on the wrong path. As a result, the debate seems to be deteriorating into a Lakatosian regressive research programme. The present project intends to improve this state of affairs by trying out a new methodological approach at the intersection of philosophy and social sciences. We aim at: 1) a better understanding of Kant's view of the causal factors leading to perpetual peace; 2) the identification of the causal apparatus assumed in the recent DPT literature; 3) the comparison of such apparatus with Kant's original theory; 4) the identification of those assumptions that set the contemporary debate on the wrong path, 5) a modified and improved definition of DPT, 6) an empirical check of this new defintition.

Keywords: philosophy,international relations,peace studies
Intergenomic Relationships during plant-pathogen interactions (SMALLRNATRANSFER)

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: Spain
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2010-IOF, 2010)
Start date: 2011-11-18
End date: 2015-11-17
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 301843.8
EU funding (EUR): 301843.8
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Genomes of higher eukaryotes encode small regulatory RNAs that direct transcriptional and post-transcriptional gene silencing.Two major classes of small RNA occur in plants, microRNAs (miRNAs) and small interfering RNAs (siRNAs), with the major difference being their biogenesis pathways. Most small RNAs are generated through a series of maturation steps and incorporated into RNA-induced silencing complexes (RISC), which invariably contains a member of the Argonaute (AGO) protein family. The AGO protein forms the core effector component, while the small RNA functions and serves as a guide to direct RISC to target RNAs through base complementarity. The roles of small RNA during plant pathogenesis have recently come to light. In plants, inducible defence responses are triggered by the recognition of conserved microbial molecules referred to pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs), via pattern recognition receptors (PRRs). This layer of defence has been termed PAMP-triggered immunity (PTI), which in some cases can be suppressed by successful pathogens that secret effectors that suppress PTI, leading to susceptibility. However, some plant cultivars have evolved resistance proteins to recognise particular effectors, leading to an effector-triggered immunity (ETI). The mechanisms by which pathogens suppress the PTI are of special interest.Bacterial pathogens overcome PTI by delivering effector proteins through the Type III secretion system. In biotrophic and hemi-biotrophic pathogens, secretion of fungal effector proteins involves the formation of haustoria within living plant cells. This proposal will test the new hypothesis that small RNAs (or their precursors), as do effector proteins, can move and function across the plant-pathogen interface. While it is known that transfer of silencing signals occurs between interacting species in different kingdoms, this project will shed light on the functional roles of small RNA transfer during host-pathogen interactions.

Keywords: plant resistance,plant genetics,fungal pathogens of plants,downy mildew,arabidopsis,high-throughput sequencing,illumina,rna silencing,argonaute
The contribution of Civil Society Organizations to representative democracy in the EU (CIVDEMO)

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): 192849.6
EU funding (EUR): 192849.6
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The proposed study will address how Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) contribute to non-electoral representation in the EU. The theoretical perspective chosen is based on the assumption that representation is a sine qua non for the legitimacy of any democratic political system. This constitutes a novel research area for which there is to date no theoretical discourse and no empirical research. We don't know who is actually represented (and who is not) through CSOs in European governance, on the ground of which mandate and with which forms of accountability, how claims-making by CSOs works across governance levels, and thereby how we can think of democratic representation in the context of undefined constituencies beyond the nation state. The topic is highly relevant given the attention that CSOs have received in the context of the widely perceived “democratic deficit” of the EU as a means of democratization of EU politics and given the increasing influence that non-electoral actors exert in contemporary politics. The fellowship will allow the applicant to close this important research gap in a theoretically highly innovative way, with the help and regular feedback of two very renowned scholars and the larger, international research group that work at Exeter (UK). Placed in an ideal institutional environment, through regular supervision, presentations, both local and at international conferences, and skill courses offered at the host institution, it will allow the applicant to make a decisive step in her career and towards professional independence (professorship) by offering the opportunity to a) fine-tune her theoretical approach, complete her research and draft a monographic study both of which could not be achieved in a reasonable time frame in her present situation, b) improve her complementary skills, particularly successful project management, development of larger collaborative research projects, drafting of funding proposals, and mastery of English

Keywords: social sciences,civil society organizations,democracy,democratic theory,democratic representation,european governance,social policy,agricultural policy