Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Structure and Function-based Design of Vaccine Antigens and Antiviral Immunotherapies (VaxVision)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Immunity, Infection and I mmunotherapy
Panel description: The immune system , related disorders  and their mechanisms , biology of infectious agents and infection, biological basis of prevention and treatment of infectious diseases , innovative imm unological tools and approaches , including  therapies
Countries involved: Sweden
Call: ERC STARTING GRANTS (ERC-2024-STG, 2024)
Start date: 2025-01-01
End date: 2029-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1499525.0
EU funding (EUR): 1499525.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Vaccines are critical in preventing viral diseases, and recent advances in vaccine development and delivery platforms have enhanced their reach and efficacy. Viral glycoproteins that mediate host cell entry are the primary target of the humoral immune response and thus the main antigenic component of vaccines. However, for many viruses, we lack fundamental biological insights that would easily allow transforming their glycoproteins into highly effective vaccine antigens. In this proposal, I introduce a completely novel approach to thoroughly extract structural and functional insights of viral glycoproteins for rational design of superior antigens. By conducting nanobody repertoire screens, I will bypass common constraints encountered in antibody screening, such as immunodominance bias and redundancy. Contrasting with conventional techniques that narrowly target a limited selection of epitopes, my approach promises an exhaustive mapping of glycoprotein surfaces and epitopes. This paradigm shift enables antigen rather than antibody or nanobody characterization. By determining high-resolution cryoEM structures of nanobodies bound to glycoproteins in transitional states, we will understand their structural dynamics. Equipped with these unparalleled insights, we will harness pioneering deep learning methods to computationally design glycoproteins with enhanced antigenic form and exposed neutralizing surfaces. I will showcase this method for viruses with high case fatality rates, including Hendra, Nipah, Lassa, Tick-borne encephalitis, and Borna disease viruses. VaxVision is set to offer a comprehensive framework for the antigen design of these and genetically or structurally related viruses. My work aims to capitalize on the unused potential for vaccine antigen improvement and will provide an innovative workflow for extracting mechanistic insights and leveraging them for vaccine antigen design, with the potential to drive vaccine innovations beyond just viral pathogens.

Keywords: structure based vaccine design,viral glycoproteins,nanobodies,protein design,virus entry,re emerging viruses
Investigating Subjective Structure for Objective Presence (I-STOP)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Social Sciences and Humanities
Countries involved: Denmark,Germany
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2024 (HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01, 2024)
Start date: 2026-02-01
End date: 2028-01-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 247553.28
EU funding (EUR): 247553.28
Participants: 2
Project status: SIGNED

While presenting us with the external world, our perceptual experiences also give us information about ourselves as perceivers. For instance, we always see the world from a perspective: when we look outward, we are not only aware of the objects and people populating our surroundings, but we are also aware of our own position relative to them. Another example is touch: when we touch an object with our hand, we perceive the object’s texture and shape, but we are also aware of our own fingers against the surface of the object. The phenomenology of many of our perceptual experiences involves, thus, subjective traces. However, perceptual experiences involve yet another dimension: what philosophers have called a “sense of presence,” namely the fact that, in them, the objects, and the external environment in general, are given as existing out there, independently of our perception. How these subjective and objective dimensions of perception fit together is one of the most puzzling aspects of our perceptual relationship with the world. I-STOP investigates this puzzle. The project will demonstrate how subjectivity structures perceptual experiences, in particular in the visual and the tactile modalities, through the involvement of a sensory field; and will identify the specific contribution that sensory fields make to the sense of presence. I-STOP will generate a systematic comparative analysis of the phenomenologies of vision and touch in order to inquire into the following hypothesis: sensory fields, while having a subjective character, structure our perceptual access to objects and, if transparent to the right amount, actually make presence possible. The project will generate a questionnaire to empirically test this conceptual framework in virtual reality settings, where the transparency of interfaces is essential to our sense that the virtual environment is real.

Keywords: subjectivity,perception,phenomenology of perception,vision,touch,sensory fields,sense of mineness,transparency,bodily transparency,objectivity,sense of presence,virtual reality
Verb valency in Germanic: diachronic analysis and reconstruction of protolinguistic scenario (VALGER)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Social Sciences and Humanities
Countries involved: Italy
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2023 (HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01, 2023)
Start date: 2025-09-01
End date: 2027-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 172750.08
EU funding (EUR): 172750.08
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Verbal valency is the number of core arguments a verb can take, hence instantiating a particular valency frame. There are for instance zero-valent verbs e.g. to rain (Eng. it rains); monovalent verbs e.g. to sleep (Eng. I sleep); bivalent verbs e.g. to kiss (Eng. the girl kisses the boy); trivalent verbs e.g. to give (Eng. the boy gives a present to the girl); etc. The present project’s overarching aim is to map out and analyze the valency patterns of Germanic. This is done by selecting a number of representative language varieties within Germanic (= Gmc), and by tracing the evolution and variation of valency patterns for a selection of verb meanings, following the methodological golden standard set out by the ValPaL project. The to-be-researched languages are: Gothic (East Gmc); English, German, Dutch, and Frisian (West Gmc); Icelandic and Swedish (North Gmc). The present project contributes to advancing that methodology and it is inscribed in the research activity carried out by the Pavia Linguistics Team within the Pavia Verbs Database project (PaVeDa). The overarching aim of my project is made up of the following objectives: 1) gather all elicited data in a digital resource; 2) pursue a diachronic analysis of valency patterns within the history of single languages; 3) carry out a synchronic analysis of valency patterns in the Germanic languages at different language stages; and hence 4) reconstruct valency patterns of Germanic in prehistoric times. The most relevant direct outcomes of the project are: 1) make the data available to other researchers; 2) contribute to the actual research in diachronic morphosyntax; 3) expand the PaVeDa database with diachronic data for Germanic; and hence 4) establish a well-defined benchmark within the addressed research area, by implementing a standard tool designed at the host institution.

Keywords: morphosyntax,germanic comparative linguistics,language reconstruction,corpus linguistics,computational methods in historical linguistic analysis
Design, characterization, and evaluation of biofilm eradicating hybrid liquid crystalline nano-coatings for new 3D porous orthopedic implants (LC-NanoCoat)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Chemistry
Countries involved: Denmark,Netherlands,United Kingdom
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2022 (HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01, 2022)
Start date: 2023-08-07
End date: 2025-08-06
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 214934.4
EU funding (EUR): 214934.4
Participants: 3
Project status: CLOSED

Orthopedic implant-associated biofilm infections represent a major public health and socioeconomic burden due the intrinsic tolerance of biofilms that behave as protective and immobile scaffolds to conventional antibiotics and immune system. Further, their long-term and repeated antibiotic treatments lead to an increased potential of antibiotic resistance development. Here, this interdisciplinary proposed project integrates innovative aspects of surface chemistry, 3D morphological characterization of coated implants, and precision engineering with attributes for production of much needed biofilm-targeting nanostructural implant coatings. It also considers the urgent societal needs for introducing an effective, flexible, and universal approach in orthopedic implant patterning and functionalization for combatting and preventing implant-associated biofilms. This core approach is based on controlled patterning with inverse non-lamellar lyotropic liquid crystalline phases having unique nanostructural versatility through prior precision priming of new 3D porous implant surfaces with tailor-made coating method, and their thorough characterization by using different modalities including GISAXS, neutron reflection, high-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and X-ray micro-computed tomography. This is in combination with in vitro profiling on model implant-associated biofilm infections. The project provides an environment with independent research activities for building my professional skills in a research topic at the interface of nanoscience, surface chemistry, and experimental medicine. In addition to training at different synchrotron facilities, my research career will be certainly advanced owing to the gained experience with state-of-art biophysical tools and supervision of Master students.

Keywords: antimicrobial coatings,biofilm infections,inverse non lamellar liquid crystalline phases,in vitro evaluations,orthopedic implants,surface modification,x ray micro computed tomography
Trustworthy Efficient AI for Cloud-Edge Computing (MANOLO)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness
Programme: Digital, Industry and Space
Theme: Digital
Destination: A human-centred and ethical development of digital and industrial technologies
Action type: Research and Innovation actions
Partnership: AI-DATA-ROBOTICS (co-programmed)
Countries involved: Ireland,Spain,Belgium,Finland,Greece,Romania,Germany,France
Call: Efficient trustworthy AI - making the best of data (AI, Data and Robotics Partnership) (RIA) (HORIZON-CL4-2023-HUMAN-01-CNECT, 2023)
Start date: 2024-01-01
End date: 2026-12-31
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 8605772.5
EU funding (EUR): 8605772.5
Participants: 19
Project status: SIGNED

MANOLO will deliver a complete stack of trustworthy algorithms and tools to help AI systems reach better efficiency and seamless optimization in their operations, resources and data required to train, deploy and run high-quality and lighter AI models in both centralised and cloud-edge distributed environments. It will push the state of the art in the development of a collection of complementary algorithms for training, understanding, compressing and optimising machine learning models by advancing research in the areas of: model compression, meta-learning (few-shot learning), domain adaptation, frugal neural network search and growth and neuromorphic models. Novel dynamic algorithms for data/energy efficient and policy-compliance allocation of AI tasks to assets and resources in the cloud-edge continuum will be designed, allowing for trustworthy widespread deployment. To support these activities a data management framework for distributed tracking of assets and their provenance (data, models, algorithms) and a benchmark system to monitor, evaluate and compare new AI algorithms and model deployments will be developed. Trustworthiness evaluation mechanisms will be embedded at its core for explainability, robustness and security of models while using the Z-Inspection methodology for TrustworthyAI assesment, helping AI systems conform to the new AI Act regulation. MANOLO will be deployed as a toolset and tested in lab environments via Use Cases with different distributed AI paradigms within cloud-edge continuum settings; it will be validated in verticals such as health, manufacturing, and telecommunications aligned with ADRA identified market opportunities, and with a granular set of embedded devices covering robotics, smartphones, IoT as well as using Neuromorphic chips. MANOLO will integrate with ongoing projects at EU level developing the next operating system for cloud-edge continuum, while promoting its sustainability via the AI-on-demand platform and EU portals.

Keywords: efficient ai,trustworthy ai,cloud edge continuum,dynamic allocation,meta learning,neural network search and growth,ml model compression,multi task optimisation,neuromorphic,robotics,iot
Effect of linguistic experience on metacognition in language tasks and transfer to non-linguistic behaviour (TypoMetaLing)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: The Human Mind and Its Compl exity
Panel description: Cognitive science, psychology, linguistics
Countries involved: Portugal
Call: ERC STARTING GRANTS (ERC-2021-STG, 2021)
Start date: 2022-10-01
End date: 2027-09-30
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1499058.0
EU funding (EUR): 1499058.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SUSPENDED

This project explores metacognitive monitoring: the ability of individuals to track decisions, cognitive states, and behavior in uncertain situations. In earlier studies, I showed that Basque-Spanish bilinguals outperform monolinguals in metacognitive efficiency in tasks that engage cognitive processes activated when we hear natural speech. I suggested that bilinguals estimate the likelihood of making an error in language tasks better than monolinguals, i.e., they have enhanced error-monitoring skills in language tasks. However, bilinguals do not represent a homogeneous population. They differ in age of acquisition, relative proficiency in their languages, switching behavior, and also in typological distance between languages in their inventory. Basque and Spanish are typologically different languages. I hypothesize the variety of typologically different structures presents additional cognitive challenges and increases speech processing load, enhancing metacognition. I will test that the modulatory effect of bilingualism should be more modest in those bilingual populations where languages are typologically closer and the variety of language structures to be processed is narrower. I predict that exposure to more diverse phonological cues will enhance monitoring phonological tasks of any type, irrespective of phonological properties in bilinguals' native languages. I will also explore whether this metacognitive enhancement will be transferred from phonological to syntactic tasks, even if bilinguals' languages have typologically different phonology but similar syntax. Finally, I will explore if metacognitive enhancement in language tasks is transferred to non-linguistic behavior. In contemporary society, where bilingualism is a norm rather than exception, it is important to be aware to what extent metacognitive enhancement due to individual linguistic experience is transferred to non-language behavior and influences decision making both at individual and group levels.

Keywords: metacognition,bilingualism,typological difference
Self-healing screen-printed perovskite photovoltaics beyond Shockley–Queisser Limit (SHERPA)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Information Science and Engineering
Countries involved: Italy
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2021 (HORIZON-MSCA-2021-PF-01, 2021)
Start date: 2022-10-03
End date: 2025-07-02
Duration (months): 33.0
Total project cost (EUR): 188590.08
EU funding (EUR): 188590.08
Participants: 2
Project status: SIGNED

Due to environmental benefits, scalability, competitive cost and limited maintenance, photovoltaic (PV) systems are the fastest-growing renewable energy technology enabling large-scale carbon-free electricity production. Within the family of PV systems, Metal Halide perovskite (MHPs) solar cells are the most performant at converting sunlight to electricity, due to their excellent optoelectronic properties and cheap fabrication process. MHP based on hybrid organic–inorganic lead halides are the most effective perovskite solar cells. Yet, there are two major challenges to widespread adoption of lead based LHP PV: (i) Instability, especially against moisture and ii) High level of lead (Pb) and lead leakage which are toxic to humans and wildlife; according to EU’s “Restriction of Hazardous Substances” (RoHS) directive. This proposal will develop for the first-time perovskite photovoltaics with self-healing capabilities while decreasing lead leakage to near zero, by transferring the microconcentrator PV concept to MHP. Such a configuration enables to save 90 to 99% raw materials compared to a planar device. More importantly, it increases the theorical efficiency and reduces the Pb content and leakage. So, the main goal of this proposal is to boost the stability of lead halide perovskite PV systems by introducing microconentrator PV concept and concentrated light to MHP in addition to taking advantages of microconcentrator PV i.e., physical separation and embedding of each microcell, to enable the PV system to theoretically exceed the Shockley–Queisser limit and reduce toxic lead levels to below RoHS requirements. SHERPA’s achievements will make advancements on cutting edge MHP solar cells that are pivotal to reach EU’s environmental targets for a reliable and green energy transition at low-cost.

Keywords: solar cells,microconcentrator photovoltaics,perovskite,ink jet printing
Traitor-virus-guided discovery of antiviral factors (Traitor-Viruses)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Advanced grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Immunity, Infection and I mmunotherapy
Panel description: The immune system , related disorders  and their mechanisms , biology of infectious agents and infection, biological basis of prevention and treatment of infectious diseases , innovative imm unological tools and approaches , including  therapies
Countries involved: Germany
Call: ERC ADVANCED GRANTS (ERC-2021-ADG, 2021)
Start date: 2022-07-01
End date: 2027-06-30
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 2339875.0
EU funding (EUR): 2339875.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Viruses may seem smart since they rapidly develop new skills to spread in humans. However, they are actually just masters of trial and error. Their short generation time, enormous reproduction and high variability allows viruses to try countless variations. A few of these will enhance viral spread and, in the worst case, enable viral pandemics. It is conceivable that viruses evolve to counteract those defence mechanisms that would otherwise be most effective against them. Usually, it is hard to assess why specific changes are advantageous. This is especially true for adaptations enabling viral pathogens to counteract innate antiviral factors because these cellular proteins and their viral antagonists are numerous and highly versatile. Here, I propose to combine the advantages of the revolutionary CRISPR/Cas9 technology with the enormous adaptive power of viruses to develop a novel approach allowing robust, specific and genome-wide unmasking of antiviral mechanisms. In principle, we will equip HIV-1 with genetic scissors to convert them into “traitor viruses” revealing their cellular opponents. To achieve this, we will generate libraries of replication-competent HIV-1 constructs expressing guide RNAs as genetic tools with the potential to inactivate every human gene in Cas9 expressing cells. Virus variants expressing guide RNAs eliminating antiviral genes will be selected by in vitro passaging and identified by next generation sequencing. Utilization of different viral backbones will allow the discovery of key defence factors against viral zoonoses and spread in humans. Finally, we will determine the antiviral spectrum and inducibility of innate antiviral factors to identify vulnerabilities of viral pathogens that can be exploited in preventive and therapeutic approaches. The project will establish and apply an innovative, highly versatile approach to uncover our antiviral defence mechanisms with the ultimate goal is to achieve better control of viral pathogens.