Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
The cosmic evolution of massive black holes (MBHG)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Life-long training and career development
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: France
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG, 2011)
Start date: 2012-03-01
End date: 2016-02-29
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 100000.0
EU funding (EUR): 100000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Massive black holes populate the centers of today's galaxies, including the Milky Way, and shone as quasars in the past; the massive black holes that we detect now in nearby bulges are the remnants of this fiery past. The masses of black holes in local galaxies also define clear correlations with the properties of their hosts, showing that the growth of black holes is intimately linked to the one of their hosts, however, little is known about how they form and interact with their hosts in different environments, especially in at early cosmic epochs. We propose to undertake a theoretical investigation on the formation of massive black holes and their growth inside galaxies using cosmological hydrodynamical simulations and semi analytical models. Using numerical simulations we can explore out-of-equilibrium conditions that cannot be studied analytically, while at the same time analytical models guide the simulations we run. We will use semi-analytical models to create statistical samples in an inexpensive way. The simulations will follow the evolution of the galaxy+black hole system from the epoch of black hole formation to today, in different types of galaxies. We will also explore the evolution of massive black holes during galaxy mergers, which in Cold Dark Matter cosmologies are an integral part of galaxy evolution. The simulations provide information on the evolution of MBHs, that we will parameterize into our semi-analytical models to calculate properties of quasars at different redshifts and wavebands that can be directly compared to observational samples. Observational predictions, such as luminosity functions, redshift distributions, mass functions, and merger rates will be assessed by taking into consideration both currently available facilities and planned new technology.

Keywords: physical sciences,astronomy,astrophysics
Determination of the sensing and transcription mechanisms of bacterial metal sensors using pulsed EPR (METAL ION SENSORS)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Life-long training and career development
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Israel
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG, 2011)
Start date: 2012-05-01
End date: 2016-04-30
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 100000.0
EU funding (EUR): 100000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

In this proposal, Dr. Ruthstein and her new group at the chemistry department in Bar-Ilan University, Israel, will determine the sensing and transcription mechanisms of metal ion sensors in bacteria. Metals are commonly found as natural constituents of proteins; however, many metal ions can be toxic when free in biological fluids. Hence, microorganisms have evolved considerable regulatory machinery to control the intracellular and extracellular concentrations and types of metal ions encountered in their microenvironments. Gene regulatory proteins, called metal sensor proteins mediate this metal traffic control. These proteins have evolved metal coordination sites that “sense” specific metal ion and activate or inhibit DNA binding or transcription activation, thereby controlling the expression of genes that mediate what must be an exquisitely selective adaptive response. In order to understand how the sensor senses a specific metal and by this initiates a biological process, one has to be able to probe strutuctural changes that occur in the protein as a function of binding of the correct and wrong metal ion, and the binding of the DNA. This work will use site-directed spin labeling together with pulsed electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR) to shed light on such processes. EPR is an excellent tool to resolve systems that evolve protein-protein interaction and protein-DNA interaction. Distances up to 80 Å between two paramagnetic spin labels can be measured by pulsed EPR. In some cases, the measurement of one distance (or a few) is sufficient to establish the plausibility of a mechanism or corroborate a proposed structure. This work will initially focus on two Cu+ sensors (CsoR, CueR) from CsoR and MerR families. The first family inhibits DNA binding upon metal binding and the second activates transcription, but the research will extend in the future to other metal sensors from each of the families.

Keywords: protein metal sensor,protein-dna interaction,copper,epr,distance measurements,transcription mechanism,sensing mechanism
Parametric fiber-based Mid-IR Swept-Source (MIRSS)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Life-long training and career development
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Switzerland
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG, 2011)
Start date: 2012-05-01
End date: 2015-04-30
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 75000.0
EU funding (EUR): 75000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The middle infrared (mid-IR) wavelength region between 2-5um is of great interest due to a wide variety of applications such as spectroscopy, or free-space communications and demand for high quality mid-IR lasers has significantly increased over the last decades. In conjunction, the ability to rapidly sweep wavelength has fueled many major developments such as real-time fiber sensor examination and chemical sensing. While significant research efforts are being funneled in the design of mid-IR sources, the need for compact and robust mid-IR wavelength swept source is ever present. The present proposal is aimed at fulfilling this need by designing a novel fiber based mid-IR wavelength swept source. A typical swept source is divided into two distinct components (gain medium and tunable filter) which hinders the tunablity and speed of the device. We thus propose to combine the two in a single element, eliminating these limitations. Combining gain and filtering is a concept supported by narrowband fiber optic parametric amplifier which has the definitive advantage that its gain spectrum is only limited by the transparency of the waveguide used. We therefore propose the use of heavy metal fluoride glass ZBLAN, with transparency up to 5um, inside a parametric oscillator pumped by a near-IR source. This constitutes a novel and promising approach which will combine mature near-IR devices with mid-IR materials in order to transfer near-IR performances to the region of interest. Mid-IR wavelength sweep will be directly controlled by the wavelength-swept near-IR pump for ease of use. A speed up inherent to four wave mixing will enable high sweeping speeds while maintaining high quality light generation. The proposal will thus explore phase matching in ZBLAN based narrow band parametric amplifiers while simulation and experimental characterization will be performed. The performance of the designed mid-IR source and potential for spectroscopic application will be assessed.

Keywords: middle infrared light,four wave mixing,parametric processes,parametric oscillator,fluoride fiber,narrowband parametric gain
Marine microbial interactions – physiology, genomics and ecological modeling. (MICROBES-2-MODEL)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Life-long training and career development
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Israel
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG, 2011)
Start date: 2012-03-01
End date: 2016-02-29
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 100000.0
EU funding (EUR): 100000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Interactions between marine microorganisms such as symbiosis, competition, and allelopathy determine the structure and function of microbial communities, yet are relatively unstudied. We must understand these interactions at multiple levels in order to predict how marine microbial communities will evolve in a changing world. Here, I propose to study interactions between Prochlorococcus, the most abundant photosynthetic organism in the oceans, and heterotrophic marine bacteria, utilizing a cross-scale approach combining physiology, chemical ecology, functional genomics and ecological modeling. We will: 1) Determine the general mechanism of interaction and the physiological response of two Prochlorococcus and five heterotrophic strains to liquid batch co-culture; 2) Elucidate genes and pathways responding to and mediating these interactions through comparative transcriptomic experiments; 3) Formulate, constrain and test mathematical models of these co-cultures, utilizing the physiological and genomic observations to explore the complexity needed to mathematically represent microbial interactions. The proposed interdisciplinary study will, for the first time, link multiple mechanisms of interaction between marine microorganisms to the genes and pathways involved. The experimentally-informed and tested mathematical models will provide a critical stepping stone towards explicitly representing microbial interactions in global biogeochemical models. Our results will be of special interest given the dominance of Prochlorococcus as a primary producer in the open ocean, and may shed light on the paradox of how microbial interactions can occur in such a diffuse environment. This interdisciplinary study will promote my integration into the EU research community and facilitate ongoing and future collaborations with EU and American scientists studying microbial communities and their dynamics in the changing oceans.

Keywords: prochlorococcus,heterotrophic bacteria,primary producer,interactions,chemical ecology,mathematical model,transcriptome,next generation sequencing,microbial oceanography
The role of the ubiquitin-like molecule NEDD8 in nucleolar signalling (ND8-NOS)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Life-long training and career development
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: France
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG, 2011)
Start date: 2012-06-01
End date: 2016-05-31
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 100000.0
EU funding (EUR): 100000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Ubiquitin and ubiquitin-like molecules (Ubls) such as SUMO and NEDD8 regulate myriad of biological processes. NEDD8 was discovered as one of 10 genes that are down regulated in mice brains during development. Amongst the family of Ubls, NEDD8 has the highest homology and identity to ubiquitin, but a distinct conjugation pathway exists that leads to the covalent conjugation of NEDD8 to substrate proteins. Genetic experiments in plants, S. pombe, Drosophila, C. elegans, and mice, have demonstrated a vital role for NEDD8 in cell growth, viability and development. However, compared to ubiquitination or SUMO conjugation much less is known about molecular targets and pathways controlled by NEDD8. We established proteomic methods to identify NEDDylated proteins, which showed that the NEDD8 proteome is more diverse than previously thought. Following on the proteomic studies we discovered a new role for NEDD8 in controlling the function of the nucleolus as a sensor of perturbations in cell growth. Additional proteomic studies defined the molecular changes in the nucleolar proteome caused by inhibition of NEDDylation, establishing the nucleolus as key target for the NEDD8 pathway. Recently, we developed a genetic model system (C. elegans) for components of the NEDD8 machinery. Our goal is to capitalize on these discoveries and further develop an internationally competitive research program in: The role of NEDD8 in controlling the nucleolus and to establish genetic model systems for nucleolar signalling. As inhibitors of NEDDylation are in clinical trials for the treatment of cancer, we believe our studies will also identify targets and mechanisms for the action of these potential chemotherapeutics.

Keywords: health sciences,oncology,ubiquitin-like molecules,nedd8,nucleolus,proteomics
Tubular organ remodelling during development, homeostasis and disease (TUBEREMODELLING)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Life-long training and career development
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Cyprus
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG, 2011)
Start date: 2012-04-01
End date: 2016-03-31
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 100000.0
EU funding (EUR): 100000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Remodelling of tubular organs, like the lungs or blood vessels, encompasses the changes in both cell number and cell shape that lead to an altered organ form adapted to changes in developmental timing, injury or environmental cues. To understand how tubular organs are remodelled during development and disease, I will use as a model the Drosophila tracheal system, which is an extensive tubular network that functions as the lungs and blood vessels. Moreover, the similarity of the fly trachea with mammalian tubular organs extends to the cellular and molecular levels of tube formation, making findings in Drosophila applicable to mammalian biology. To study developmental remodelling, I characterized a set of multipotent progenitors, which respond to evolutionarily-conserved signals that coordinate cellular proliferation and differentiation to generate anew the tracheal system of the adult. In addition, I established in adult Drosophila an intestinal infection and tumorigenesis model. Strikingly, in this model the trachea that surrounds and oxygenates the diseased gut is extensively remodelled, sharing parallels with mammalian angiogenesis. By combining my knowledge of tracheal development and intestinal homeostasis, I aim to understand how signalling pathways interact to remodel epithelial tubular organs during development and disease. Understanding how tubular organs are formed and remodelled in a genetically-amenable model system like Drosophila will aid our understanding of the cause of developmental anomalies and diseases of tubular organs like dysplasias, polycystic kidney disease and tumor angiogenesis. Specifically, I will: Aim 1: Characterize the signalling network that coordinates proliferation and differentiation of tracheal progenitors during developmental remodelling. Aim 2: Identify novel molecules involved in tube remodelling during physiological and regenerative homeostasis as well as during tumorigenesis.

Keywords: cell biology,developmental biology,cancer,angiogenesis,infection,inflammation
A Foundation for Engineering Decentralized Self-Adaptive Software Systems (FEDERATES)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Life-long training and career development
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Sweden
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG, 2011)
Start date: 2012-04-01
End date: 2016-03-31
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 100000.0
EU funding (EUR): 100000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Software has a vital role in our society and the qualities of many software systems are of crucial importance. Examples are the availability of software for media and the robustness of software for manufacturing. Due to the ever-growing complexity of software, ensuring the required qualities constitutes a tremendous challenge. Self-adaptation has been widely recognized as an effective approach to manage the complexity and dynamicity of modern software systems. Self-adaptation endows a system with the capability to adapt itself autonomously to changes in its environment to achieve particular quality objectives. Despite substantial achievements in the field, major scientific and technical gaps must be addressed to deal with the progressing distribution and integration of software systems. In particular, existing approaches only support centralized or hierarchical control of adaptation. In a growing class of software systems, central control is not an option, e.g., large-scale sensor networks, integrated supply chains, and federated cloud infrastructures. The overall goal of this project is to study and develop a scientific foundation for engineering decentralized self-adaptive systems. Concretely, the project will study and develop: (1) a set of formally founded high-level design models for decentralized self-adaptation, (2) a set of supporting coordination mechanisms, and (3) an approach for formal analysis of decentralized self-adaptation that combines static with runtime verification. The focus will be on support for two important qualities of modern software systems: robustness and openness. To fundamentals will be applied to concrete applications in the robotics domain, and the research results will be validated in an empirical study. The applicant’s objective is to establish a research team with three Ph.D students. The grant would support the integration of the applicant, who recently started to work at Linnaeus University, Sweden, with establishing this team.

Keywords: software technology,software architecture,self-adaptive systems,decentralized control
Rational and Combinatorial Engineering of Antagonistic Angiopoietin Variants as Tools for Cancer Imaging and Therapy (ANGIOPOIETINS)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Life-long training and career development
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: Israel
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG, 2011)
Start date: 2012-04-01
End date: 2016-03-31
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 100000.0
EU funding (EUR): 100000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The dysregulation of cell signaling pathways that mediate proliferation, survival, and migration is an underlying cause of many cancers. Dysregulation and over-expression of the Tie2 tyrosine kinase receptor, in particular, correlates to a poor prognosis for many human tumors, making Tie2 an attractive target for therapeutic intervention. Currently no FDA-approved therapeutics targeting the Tie2 receptor exist, and only a few candidate molecules are in early stage clinical trials. Moreover, development of Tie2-targeted molecular imaging agents for non-invasive visualization of Tie2 expression in vivo has been extremely limited compared to other cancer targets. Such imaging agents could help identify the best patient candidates for Tie2-targeted anti cancer therapies. Although ligand-based antagonists have opened up new research directions for generating new cancer biologics, limitations in ligand binding affinity, expression yield, and stability have prevented all but a few from advancing to clinical trials. The limited success of ligand-based antagonists motivates me to use modified Tie2-receptor agonists, i.e. angiopoietins, as a starting point from which to develop ligand-based antagonists. Angiopoietin antagonists will be created by introducing mutations into an angiopoietin that retains Tie2 binding but that prevents ligand multimerization and receptor dimerization and activation. Yeast-displayed angiopoietin mutant libraries will then be created and screened by high-throughput flow cytometric sorting to identify variants with increased expression and stability and affinity to Tie2. We will perform pre-clinical studies on the high affinity angiopoietin variants to determine their potential as in vivo molecular imaging agents and cancer therapeutics. In addition, we will fully characterize the binding and biological properties of the variants in both cell culture and pre-clinical solid and metastatic tumor models.

Keywords: directed evolution,protein engineering,angiopoietins,tie2 receptor,angiogenesis,antagonists,in vivo imaging
Characterization of the role of Scrib1 and Vangl2 in neuronal migration (MIGPCP)

Framework: FP7 — People
Programme: Marie-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Life-long training and career development
Action type: Support for training and career development of researchers (Marie Curie)
Countries involved: France
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2011-CIG, 2011)
Start date: 2012-03-01
End date: 2015-02-28
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 75000.0
EU funding (EUR): 75000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Although the cerebral cortex is responsible for all the intellectual life that makes us human, we know remarkably little about how this amazing structure is formed. We do know, however, that genetic conditions in which the cortex is not formed properly have devastating consequences. Neurological disorders are frequently associated with developmental brain malformations. Progress toward understanding the pathologic basis of these diseases has so far come from research on animal models of cortical malformation and from molecular genetic approaches to human neuronal migration disorders. The aim of this 3-year project is to elucidate the molecular and cellular mechanisms of one of the Planar Cell Polarity (PCP) genes,Scribble 1 (Scrib1) and Vangl2, in shaping the mammalian cortex. More specifically, the fellow applicant will analyze the role of these genes in neuronal polarity and migration. He plans to use conditional knockout mice combined with advanced cell imaging analysis and in vitro experiments that will synergize to provide a powerful approach to address this goal. We believe that the experiments from this proposal should bring novel insight into the mechanism by which PCP genes can regulate neuronal migration and cortical development. Results from proposed experiments will bridge our knowledge from molecular mechanism of cortical neuronal migration to the formation of human brain, and will also provide important insight into the pathogenesis of human neurogenetic disorders. The candidate has a background in biomedical science, and has had intensive training in molecular approaches during Ph.D. and postdoctoral training. He now seeks further training in mouse genetics and neuroanatomy under the mentorship of Drs. Mireille Montcouquiol. With help of CIG grant, this training will greatly enhance the candidate's potential in conducting independent scientific research and reaching permanent position.

Keywords: neurobiology,genetically modified organisms,cell biology,animal embryology,molecular biology