Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Exploring New Phenomena through Flavour Changing Neutral Currents with LHCb (NP IN FCNCS AT LHCB)

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-2013-IEF, 2013)
Start date: 2014-05-01
End date: 2016-04-30
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 221606.4
EU funding (EUR): 221606.4
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The Standard Model (SM) of particle physics has been very successful in describing phenomena at the smallest scales, yet we know that it is incomplete. It does not, for example, explain the matter-antimatter asymmetry in the universe or provide a dark matter candidate. Attempts to solve these open questions do so by introducing as yet undiscovered particles. If these particles exist, they will appear as virtual particles in quantum loops, where they can affect the rate and angular distributions of particle decays. The main objective of this proposal is the study of rare flavour changing neutral current transitions in b-hadrons, where a b-quark decays to an s- or d-quark and a pair of muons. These processes are highly suppressed in the SM and the presence of new virtual particles can therefore have a comparably large effect. In particular the decay of a B-meson to a K* meson and a muon pair provides many observables that have excellent sensitivity to particles beyond the SM. I propose a direct fit of the generalised couplings in this decay using the full data sample recorded by the LHCb collaboration. To achieve optimal sensitivity to possible contributions beyond the SM the fit algorithm will use the full available information of the final state (decay angles, decay flavour and invariant mass of the dimuon system). A benefit of this approach is that the fit can help to constrain sources of theoretical uncertainty that can otherwise limit the sensitivity. In addition, I propose to perform a first three-dimensional angular fit of the decay of a Bs meson to a phi meson and a muon pair. This fit will determine several interesting CP-asymmetries with high sensitivity to contributions beyond the SM. To complete the picture of semileptonic B-decays, I will study b-quark to d-quark transitions. These decays are further suppressed in the SM and allow to test the flavour structure of nature.

Keywords: flavour physics,rare decays,flavour changing neutral currents,physics beyond the standard model,electroweak penguins,semileptonic b decays
The influence of DNA sequence on the epigenome (ATRUN)

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-2013-IEF, 2013)
Start date: 2014-04-01
End date: 2016-03-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 221606.4
EU funding (EUR): 221606.4
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Epigenetic regulation of transcription has emerged as a fundamental mechanism in developmental biology, stem cell biology and reprogramming and is frequently impaired in disease. Owing to recent advances in sequencing technology the genome wide distribution of epigenetic marks in different biological settings is being defined in unprecedented detail. Functional chromatin domains display distinct epigenetic marks and a variety of enzymatic activities depositing these marks has been identified. However, the mechanisms that determine locus specific setup of chromatin domains and their significance are incompletely understood. The proposed project is designed to shed light on the molecular mechanisms directing DNA methylation and histone modifications to specific loci. Using locus-specific integration of foreign DNA sequences with different base compositions and lengths, coupled to state of the art chromatin immunoprecipitation assays, DNA sequence determinants of de novo methylation and histone modifications will be explored. In a complementary approach, DNA pulldown assays coupled to mass spectrometry will be used to identify binding proteins of the respective sequences. In particular, I will analyze sequence motifs containing runs of A/T base pairs that are bound by AT-hook domains. AT-runs are a widespread sequence motif and a large number of DNA/chromatin binding proteins contain AT-hook domains, but their role in shaping the epigenome remains largely elusive to date. Our approach will not only identify new factors that contribute to the setup of the epigenome, but also yield valuable insights into the interplay between DNA binding proteins and chromatin modifiers that results in the specificity of the epigenomic landscape.

Keywords: epigenetics,gene regulation,cpg islands,dna methylation,histone modifications,at-hook,dna pulldown,mass spectometry
Reduced GREENhouse gas emissions and sustainable wastewater treatment by integrated Control and Operational STrategies. (GREENCOST)

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-2013-IEF, 2013)
Start date: 2014-11-07
End date: 2016-11-06
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 166336.2
EU funding (EUR): 166336.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

In order to ensure the supply of quality water for human consumption, irrigation and industrial operations, the number of wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) is expected to increase, simultaneously becoming ever more complex. One of the negative impacts that would involve the proliferation of WWTP is the emission of greenhouse gases, responsible for global warming. The main scientific objective of this project is to produce a generic methodology to design a control structure intended to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases from wastewater treatment. To demonstrate the methodology, an advanced control system aimed at low greenhouse gases emission will be instrumented in a novel and complex WWTP pilot plant at the hosting group featuring an anaerobic stage, an aerobic/anoxic stage and a filtration stage. To achieve the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and the control of the plant, the use of incomplete knowledge and models will be considered in the control system. The success of the methodology and control system will be evaluated on the operation of the pilot plant. The reduction of greenhouse gas emissions will be also tackled with an operational approach as a secondary objective. Guidelines and alternatives to run anaerobic-aerobic systems will be explored, in order to improve their efficiency and reducing GHG emissions. This project has also been planned with objectives to enhance the applicant’s career integration. It will serve to complete his training on process control with the practical set-up of a control system and to specialise in an important field as the control and modelling of bioreactors/WWTP. Transversal skills will also be cultivated with responsibility on student supervision, project management and cooperation with the industrial sector helping to achieve a position of professional maturity.

Keywords: chemical engineering,modelling,wastewater treatment,greenhouse gas emission,anaerobic treatment,methane stripping,control engineering,hybrid model,fuzzy control
Benjamini-Schramm approximation of Groups and Graphings (BAG)

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: Hungary
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2013-IIF, 2013)
Start date: 2014-03-01
End date: 2016-03-30
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 184411.2
EU funding (EUR): 184411.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Large graphs have become central objects in many fields in the last couple of decades: in neural sciences, network sciences (WWW, graph of webpages), social sciences (Facebook) and molecular biology. The standard way to handle large networks is Property Testing: We check only a small number of vertices picked randomly, and we try to learn the properties of the huge graph from this random sample. The general questions of the proposal are the basic problems in all of these fields: Which properties of a large graph are testable? How can we approximate large graphs by small ones? The proposal is at the crossroads of the following three fields: 1. Sparse graphs and computer science 2. Dynamics and measured group theory 3. Graph limit theory We expect a boom in the fields of this proposal similarly to the fields related to Szemeredi's theorem. We expect more applications, since sparse graphs appear more often in real life. Recent breakthrough results in computer science play an important role in the methodology. The proposal focuses on three problems in the research frontier addressing the above phenomena: 1. The construction of a nonsofic group 2. The measurable version of the Lovasz Local Lemma 3. The dynamical von Neumann problem Kun is an expert in the fields of the proposal. After completing his PhD at the Eotvos University he moved to the USA. He plans to return to Europe after six years at top institutions in North America. The Alfred Renyi Institute is a well-known center in the fields of the proposal, and one of the leading institutions in discrete mathematics. Kun plans to work with Tardos, the scientist in charge, and Abert, Pyber, Szegedy and Szemeredi at the host. The project would enrich the mathematical culture of Hungary and the ERA, and lead to mutually beneficial, long-term cooperation between the USA and many European countries. If funded Kun would join the host permanently, so the proposal would help to reverse the brain drain phenomenon.

Keywords: graph,group,graphing,benjamini-schramm,constraint satisfaction problem,amenable,sofic,lovasz local lemma,von neumann problem,property testing,random regular graph,regularity lemma
Three-Photon Entanglement (THREEPLE)

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-2013-IIF, 2013)
Start date: 2014-07-01
End date: 2017-01-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 231283.2
EU funding (EUR): 231283.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Quantum information and computing, mainly relying upon photonics processes, are now starting to be a commercial reality. Harnessing the full potential of quantum processes is hence one of the top-priorities from a technological point of view, as well as a strategic area for fundamental research. This motivates the current quest for developing novel sources of quantum states of light on chip, and in particular entangled photons, i.e. the building block of quantum technologies. So far, entangled photons had been generated in pairs, since couple generation is the most straightforward nonlinear optical process. However, it has been shown that the entanglement shared among many parties (multipartite) has a richer phenomenology, and its comprehension may also boost developments in diverse fields, as it is the case for energy transfer in biological systems. Here we propose to investigate the generation of entangled photon triplets. To date, such states have only been obtained by combining two different entangled-pair generation processes. This in turn also requires complex recombination procedures. Differently, we propose to exploit third-order nonlinearities for the direct generation of entangled photon triplets. The underlying process is a direct splitting of a single pump photon in three daughter photons, giving birth to entangled triplets from a single quantum event. We shall exploit innovative approaches for addressing the issue of phase matching, which has hindered so far the observation of the direct three-photon splitting process. Our approach is twofold: in the realm of free-space optics we shall investigate both Bessel beam shaping and THz fields for tailoring the phase-matching. On the other hand, we shall seek for three-photon entanglement in guided-wave geometries by exploiting e.g. tapered optical fibres and integrated microring structures. This last objective targets the development of a practical, application-oriented, three-photon entanglement source.

Keywords: quantum optics,multipartite entanglement,parametric processes,integrated optics,thz photonics
Identifying crucial functions in E. coli metabolism for the re-routing of carbon source from cell growth to product formation (RE-ROUTE)

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: Switzerland
Call:  (FP7-PEOPLE-2013-IEF, 2013)
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 199317.6
EU funding (EUR): 199317.6
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

In every biotechnological production process, the ultimately crucial question is how much of the invested nutrient resources such as carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, or phosphate sources goes into the product and how much goes into production of cell mass. Even though in selected cases other considerations might be similarly important (such as product formation per time), this fundamental question determines whether a process will be successful or not. In this proposal, we suggest a completely novel approach of identifying genes and networks of central importance for allocating increasing fractions of a substrate flux to an industrial model product, vitamin B2 (riboflavin). Specifically, we propose to systematically vary, one by one and in combination, the translation levels of proteins belonging to the core metabolism of Escherichia coli as a model production organism and subsequently to evaluate the (millions of) resulting different strains for channeling steadily increasing substrate fluxes to product formation instead of growth. Due to the application of a novel nanoliter reactor technology, the evaluation of variant strains can be performed in ultra-high throughput mode (several millions per week) under substrate-limiting conditions, which is the most accurate reflection of the physiological challenges of producer cells in industrially relevant settings. This ability to screen large numbers of variant strains under substrate limiting conditions is fundamentally different from most other screening procedures and certainly unique at this level of throughput.

Keywords: molecular engineering,metabolic engineering,synthetic biology,microfluidics,riboflavin,substrate limitation,systems biology
The Teacher of Righteousness and Religious Experience in the Dead Sea Scrolls (RELEXDSS)

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-2013-IIF, 2013)
Start date: 2014-04-01
End date: 2016-03-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 309235.2
EU funding (EUR): 309235.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The proposed project is a comprehensive assessment of the evidence for the figure known as the ‘Teacher of Righteousness’ in the Dead Sea Scrolls discovered at Khirbet Qumran. It is the first such study based on the entirety of the corpus which has only recently become completely accessible. The project will construct a model for how the memory of the Teacher operated within the ancient socio-religious context of communities behind the Scrolls and provide answers to questions previously overlooked within a strictly historical-critical approach. The methodological approach used for this study is based on recent research on the body and emotion which crosses multiple disciplinary boundaries and applies them to key texts that mention the Teacher of Righteousness. Traditional historical-critical methods grounded in both literary and historical concerns are complemented by rhetorical approaches and recent scholarship on the body and its experiences. Key fields of study include theories of embodiment and subjectivity from post-structuralism, performance studies, and ritual studies. A critical component of the approach taken in this project builds on the social and biological processes of emotion which allow for the recovery of a bio-cultural understanding of the experience of religion at this time. While emotion’s role in the construction and reconstruction of memory has been long acknowledged, this study examines how the strategic arousal of affect generated by texts that mention the Teacher serves to reinvigorate and intensify his memory among his followers. This innovative study is part of an emerging field of research known as ‘Religious Experience’ that seeks to recover the phenomenal experience of religion.

Keywords: judaism,qumran,dead sea scrolls,religious experience,subjectivity,embodiment,emotion,memory,ritual studies,performance studies,rhetorical studies,interpretation,revelation
Asynchronous Networks (ASYNCNET)

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-2013-IIF, 2013)
Start date: 2014-09-15
End date: 2016-09-14
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 309235.2
EU funding (EUR): 309235.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Complex systems of interest in contemporary science and technology can often be viewed as networks of interacting subsystems or subnetworks. In the simplest, and so far most studied cases, subnetworks all run on the same clock, are updated simultaneously, and dynamics is governed by a fixed set of dynamical equations. In biology, especially neuroscience, and technology, for example large distributed systems, these assumptions often do not hold: components may run on different clocks, there may be switching between between different sets of network dynamical equations and, most significantly, components of the network may run independently of the rest of the network for periods of time. We say networks of this type are asynchronous. The project will develop a theory of dynamics on adaptive asynchronous networks with a focus on finding conditions imply predictability and functionality of the network, notably the avoidance of deadlock and race conditions. Methods will use techniques from the statistical theory of dynamical systems, networks, and stochastic analysis as well as ideas coming from correlation based learning and computational neuroscience. Among many applications, we remark the potential for significantly improved understanding of large distributed networks (both technological and biological), as well as dynamical system based models for qualitative computing, learning and pattern recognition.

Keywords: dynamics,dynamical systems,networks,asynchronous network,adaptive,stochastic,hybrid dynamics,synaptic plasticity (stdp),computational neuroscience,deadlock
Keeping ready for battle: understanding fundamental mechanisms of establishment and maintenance of epigenetic marks underlying abiotic stress memory in plants. (EPIPRIMING)

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-2013-IEF, 2013)
Start date: 2014-08-01
End date: 2016-07-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 231283.2
EU funding (EUR): 231283.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Drought and salt stress threaten crop production worldwide. Evidence from the field that pre-exposure of plants to transient mild stress (priming) enhances their tolerance to subsequent harsher stress indicates that plants maintain a ‘memory’ of environmental events that allows them to respond more efficiently to subsequent stress. However, systematic studies on the molecular processes underlying abiotic stress priming are scarce. The proposed project takes advantage of an effective salt-priming protocol for the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana developed by the host group, and builds on recently published evidence from the host that epigenetic marks consisting of a decrease of tri-methylated lysine 27 in histone 3 (H3K27me3) underlie somatic stress memory of the primed plants. The work will focus on elucidating the molecular mechanisms for the establishment, maintenance and fading of the epigenetic memory and the role it plays for improved stress tolerance. The main objectives are the following: (1) testing the role of REF6 (a plant histone demethylase), SWI3B (a component of a chromatin-remodeling complex) and nucleosome repositioning in priming-induced H3K27me3 loss, (2) investigating the mechanisms of H3K27me3 spreading after priming, (3) assessing the effect of repeated salt exposure on H3K27me3, and (4) detailed analysis of cell-type specific H3K27me3 changes in the HKT1 gene, encoding a sodium transporter with a crucial role in plant salt tolerance. The research will use a range of modern technologies including chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP), next-generation (Illumina) sequencing, quantitative PCR, nucleosome mapping and the use of INTACT technology for cell-type specific ChIP, combined with refined data analysis to obtain results at a high spatio-temporal/molecular resolution. Advanced training in cutting-edge technologies, collaborations with other laboratories and significant project outcomes will greatly contribute to develop the candidate’s career.

Keywords: environmental stress,priming,epigenetic memory,salt tolerance,drought tolerance,food security,arabidopsis thaliana