Project acronym activeFly
Project Circuit mechanisms of self-movement estimation during walking
Researcher (PI) M Eugenia CHIAPPE
Host Institution (HI) FUNDACAO D. ANNA SOMMER CHAMPALIMAUD E DR. CARLOS MONTEZ CHAMPALIMAUD
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), LS5, ERC-2017-STG
Summary The brain evolves, develops, and operates in the context of animal movements. As a consequence, fundamental brain functions such as spatial perception and motor control critically depend on the precise knowledge of the ongoing body motion. An accurate internal estimate of self-movement is thought to emerge from sensorimotor integration; nonetheless, which circuits perform this internal estimation, and exactly how motor-sensory coordination is implemented within these circuits are basic questions that remain to be poorly understood. There is growing evidence suggesting that, during locomotion, motor-related and visual signals interact at early stages of visual processing. In mammals, however, it is not clear what the function of this interaction is. Recently, we have shown that a population of Drosophila optic-flow processing neurons —neurons that are sensitive to self-generated visual flow, receives convergent visual and walking-related signals to form a faithful representation of the fly’s walking movements. Leveraging from these results, and combining quantitative analysis of behavior with physiology, optogenetics, and modelling, we propose to investigate circuit mechanisms of self-movement estimation during walking. We will:1) use cell specific manipulations to identify what cells are necessary to generate the motor-related activity in the population of visual neurons, 2) record from the identified neurons and correlate their activity with specific locomotor parameters, and 3) perturb the activity of different cell-types within the identified circuits to test their role in the dynamics of the visual neurons, and on the fly’s walking behavior. These experiments will establish unprecedented causal relationships among neural activity, the formation of an internal representation, and locomotor control. The identified sensorimotor principles will establish a framework that can be tested in other scenarios or animal systems with implications both in health and disease.
Summary
The brain evolves, develops, and operates in the context of animal movements. As a consequence, fundamental brain functions such as spatial perception and motor control critically depend on the precise knowledge of the ongoing body motion. An accurate internal estimate of self-movement is thought to emerge from sensorimotor integration; nonetheless, which circuits perform this internal estimation, and exactly how motor-sensory coordination is implemented within these circuits are basic questions that remain to be poorly understood. There is growing evidence suggesting that, during locomotion, motor-related and visual signals interact at early stages of visual processing. In mammals, however, it is not clear what the function of this interaction is. Recently, we have shown that a population of Drosophila optic-flow processing neurons —neurons that are sensitive to self-generated visual flow, receives convergent visual and walking-related signals to form a faithful representation of the fly’s walking movements. Leveraging from these results, and combining quantitative analysis of behavior with physiology, optogenetics, and modelling, we propose to investigate circuit mechanisms of self-movement estimation during walking. We will:1) use cell specific manipulations to identify what cells are necessary to generate the motor-related activity in the population of visual neurons, 2) record from the identified neurons and correlate their activity with specific locomotor parameters, and 3) perturb the activity of different cell-types within the identified circuits to test their role in the dynamics of the visual neurons, and on the fly’s walking behavior. These experiments will establish unprecedented causal relationships among neural activity, the formation of an internal representation, and locomotor control. The identified sensorimotor principles will establish a framework that can be tested in other scenarios or animal systems with implications both in health and disease.
Max ERC Funding
1 500 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2017-11-01, End date: 2022-10-31
Project acronym AdaptiveResponse
Project The evolution of adaptive response mechanisms
Researcher (PI) Franz WEISSING
Host Institution (HI) RIJKSUNIVERSITEIT GRONINGEN
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), LS8, ERC-2017-ADG
Summary In an era of rapid climate change there is a pressing need to understand whether and how organisms are able to adapt to novel environments. Such understanding is hampered by a major divide in the life sciences. Disciplines like systems biology or neurobiology make rapid progress in unravelling the mechanisms underlying the responses of organisms to their environment, but this knowledge is insufficiently integrated in eco-evolutionary theory. Current eco-evolutionary models focus on the response patterns themselves, largely neglecting the structures and mechanisms producing these patterns. Here I propose a new, mechanism-oriented framework that views the architecture of adaptation, rather than the resulting responses, as the primary target of natural selection. I am convinced that this change in perspective will yield fundamentally new insights, necessitating the re-evaluation of many seemingly well-established eco-evolutionary principles.
My aim is to develop a comprehensive theory of the eco-evolutionary causes and consequences of the architecture underlying adaptive responses. In three parallel lines of investigation, I will study how architecture is shaped by selection, how evolved response strategies reflect the underlying architecture, and how these responses affect the eco-evolutionary dynamics and the capacity to adapt to novel conditions. All three lines have the potential of making ground-breaking contributions to eco-evolutionary theory, including: the specification of evolutionary tipping points; resolving the puzzle that real organisms evolve much faster than predicted by current theory; a new and general explanation for the evolutionary emergence of individual variation; and a framework for studying the evolution of learning and other general-purpose mechanisms. By making use of concepts from information theory and artificial intelligence, the project will also introduce various methodological innovations.
Summary
In an era of rapid climate change there is a pressing need to understand whether and how organisms are able to adapt to novel environments. Such understanding is hampered by a major divide in the life sciences. Disciplines like systems biology or neurobiology make rapid progress in unravelling the mechanisms underlying the responses of organisms to their environment, but this knowledge is insufficiently integrated in eco-evolutionary theory. Current eco-evolutionary models focus on the response patterns themselves, largely neglecting the structures and mechanisms producing these patterns. Here I propose a new, mechanism-oriented framework that views the architecture of adaptation, rather than the resulting responses, as the primary target of natural selection. I am convinced that this change in perspective will yield fundamentally new insights, necessitating the re-evaluation of many seemingly well-established eco-evolutionary principles.
My aim is to develop a comprehensive theory of the eco-evolutionary causes and consequences of the architecture underlying adaptive responses. In three parallel lines of investigation, I will study how architecture is shaped by selection, how evolved response strategies reflect the underlying architecture, and how these responses affect the eco-evolutionary dynamics and the capacity to adapt to novel conditions. All three lines have the potential of making ground-breaking contributions to eco-evolutionary theory, including: the specification of evolutionary tipping points; resolving the puzzle that real organisms evolve much faster than predicted by current theory; a new and general explanation for the evolutionary emergence of individual variation; and a framework for studying the evolution of learning and other general-purpose mechanisms. By making use of concepts from information theory and artificial intelligence, the project will also introduce various methodological innovations.
Max ERC Funding
2 500 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-12-01, End date: 2023-11-30
Project acronym ALGOCom
Project Novel Algorithmic Techniques through the Lens of Combinatorics
Researcher (PI) Parinya Chalermsook
Host Institution (HI) AALTO KORKEAKOULUSAATIO SR
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), PE6, ERC-2017-STG
Summary Real-world optimization problems pose major challenges to algorithmic research. For instance, (i) many important problems are believed to be intractable (i.e. NP-hard) and (ii) with the growth of data size, modern applications often require a decision making under {\em incomplete and dynamically changing input data}. After several decades of research, central problems in these domains have remained poorly understood (e.g. Is there an asymptotically most efficient binary search trees?) Existing algorithmic techniques either reach their limitation or are inherently tailored to special cases.
This project attempts to untangle this gap in the state of the art and seeks new interplay across multiple areas of algorithms, such as approximation algorithms, online algorithms, fixed-parameter tractable (FPT) algorithms, exponential time algorithms, and data structures. We propose new directions from the {\em structural perspectives} that connect the aforementioned algorithmic problems to basic questions in combinatorics.
Our approaches fall into one of the three broad schemes: (i) new structural theory, (ii) intermediate problems, and (iii) transfer of techniques. These directions partially build on the PI's successes in resolving more than ten classical problems in this context.
Resolving the proposed problems will likely revolutionize our understanding about algorithms and data structures and potentially unify techniques in multiple algorithmic regimes. Any progress is, in fact, already a significant contribution to the algorithms community. We suggest concrete intermediate goals that are of independent interest and have lower risks, so they are suitable for Ph.D students.
Summary
Real-world optimization problems pose major challenges to algorithmic research. For instance, (i) many important problems are believed to be intractable (i.e. NP-hard) and (ii) with the growth of data size, modern applications often require a decision making under {\em incomplete and dynamically changing input data}. After several decades of research, central problems in these domains have remained poorly understood (e.g. Is there an asymptotically most efficient binary search trees?) Existing algorithmic techniques either reach their limitation or are inherently tailored to special cases.
This project attempts to untangle this gap in the state of the art and seeks new interplay across multiple areas of algorithms, such as approximation algorithms, online algorithms, fixed-parameter tractable (FPT) algorithms, exponential time algorithms, and data structures. We propose new directions from the {\em structural perspectives} that connect the aforementioned algorithmic problems to basic questions in combinatorics.
Our approaches fall into one of the three broad schemes: (i) new structural theory, (ii) intermediate problems, and (iii) transfer of techniques. These directions partially build on the PI's successes in resolving more than ten classical problems in this context.
Resolving the proposed problems will likely revolutionize our understanding about algorithms and data structures and potentially unify techniques in multiple algorithmic regimes. Any progress is, in fact, already a significant contribution to the algorithms community. We suggest concrete intermediate goals that are of independent interest and have lower risks, so they are suitable for Ph.D students.
Max ERC Funding
1 411 258 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-02-01, End date: 2023-01-31
Project acronym ANTILEAK
Project Development of antagonists of vascular leakage
Researcher (PI) Pipsa SAHARINEN
Host Institution (HI) HELSINGIN YLIOPISTO
Call Details Consolidator Grant (CoG), LS4, ERC-2017-COG
Summary Dysregulation of capillary permeability is a severe problem in critically ill patients, but the mechanisms involved are poorly understood. Further, there are no targeted therapies to stabilize leaky vessels in various common, potentially fatal diseases, such as systemic inflammation and sepsis, which affect millions of people annually. Although a multitude of signals that stimulate opening of endothelial cell-cell junctions leading to permeability have been characterized using cellular and in vivo models, approaches to reverse the harmful process of capillary leakage in disease conditions are yet to be identified. I propose to explore a novel autocrine endothelial permeability regulatory system as a potentially universal mechanism that antagonizes vascular stabilizing ques and sustains vascular leakage in inflammation. My group has identified inflammation-induced mechanisms that switch vascular stabilizing factors into molecules that destabilize vascular barriers, and identified tools to prevent the barrier disruption. Building on these discoveries, my group will use mouse genetics, structural biology and innovative, systematic antibody development coupled with gene editing and gene silencing technology, in order to elucidate mechanisms of vascular barrier breakdown and repair in systemic inflammation. The expected outcomes include insights into endothelial cell signaling and permeability regulation, and preclinical proof-of-concept antibodies to control endothelial activation and vascular leakage in systemic inflammation and sepsis models. Ultimately, the new knowledge and preclinical tools developed in this project may facilitate future development of targeted approaches against vascular leakage.
Summary
Dysregulation of capillary permeability is a severe problem in critically ill patients, but the mechanisms involved are poorly understood. Further, there are no targeted therapies to stabilize leaky vessels in various common, potentially fatal diseases, such as systemic inflammation and sepsis, which affect millions of people annually. Although a multitude of signals that stimulate opening of endothelial cell-cell junctions leading to permeability have been characterized using cellular and in vivo models, approaches to reverse the harmful process of capillary leakage in disease conditions are yet to be identified. I propose to explore a novel autocrine endothelial permeability regulatory system as a potentially universal mechanism that antagonizes vascular stabilizing ques and sustains vascular leakage in inflammation. My group has identified inflammation-induced mechanisms that switch vascular stabilizing factors into molecules that destabilize vascular barriers, and identified tools to prevent the barrier disruption. Building on these discoveries, my group will use mouse genetics, structural biology and innovative, systematic antibody development coupled with gene editing and gene silencing technology, in order to elucidate mechanisms of vascular barrier breakdown and repair in systemic inflammation. The expected outcomes include insights into endothelial cell signaling and permeability regulation, and preclinical proof-of-concept antibodies to control endothelial activation and vascular leakage in systemic inflammation and sepsis models. Ultimately, the new knowledge and preclinical tools developed in this project may facilitate future development of targeted approaches against vascular leakage.
Max ERC Funding
1 999 770 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-05-01, End date: 2023-04-30
Project acronym ASSESS
Project Episodic Mass Loss in the Most Massive Stars: Key to Understanding the Explosive Early Universe
Researcher (PI) Alceste BONANOS
Host Institution (HI) NATIONAL OBSERVATORY OF ATHENS
Call Details Consolidator Grant (CoG), PE9, ERC-2017-COG
Summary Massive stars dominate their surroundings during their short lifetimes, while their explosive deaths impact the chemical evolution and spatial cohesion of their hosts. After birth, their evolution is largely dictated by their ability to remove layers of hydrogen from their envelopes. Multiple lines of evidence are pointing to violent, episodic mass-loss events being responsible for removing a large part of the massive stellar envelope, especially in low-metallicity galaxies. Episodic mass loss, however, is not understood theoretically, neither accounted for in state-of-the-art models of stellar evolution, which has far-reaching consequences for many areas of astronomy. We aim to determine whether episodic mass loss is a dominant process in the evolution of the most massive stars by conducting the first extensive, multi-wavelength survey of evolved massive stars in the nearby Universe. The project hinges on the fact that mass-losing stars form dust and are bright in the mid-infrared. We plan to (i) derive physical parameters of a large sample of dusty, evolved targets and estimate the amount of ejected mass, (ii) constrain evolutionary models, (iii) quantify the duration and frequency of episodic mass loss as a function of metallicity. The approach involves applying machine-learning algorithms to existing multi-band and time-series photometry of luminous sources in ~25 nearby galaxies. Dusty, luminous evolved massive stars will thus be automatically classified and follow-up spectroscopy will be obtained for selected targets. Atmospheric and SED modeling will yield parameters and estimates of time-dependent mass loss for ~1000 luminous stars. The emerging trend for the ubiquity of episodic mass loss, if confirmed, will be key to understanding the explosive early Universe and will have profound consequences for low-metallicity stars, reionization, and the chemical evolution of galaxies.
Summary
Massive stars dominate their surroundings during their short lifetimes, while their explosive deaths impact the chemical evolution and spatial cohesion of their hosts. After birth, their evolution is largely dictated by their ability to remove layers of hydrogen from their envelopes. Multiple lines of evidence are pointing to violent, episodic mass-loss events being responsible for removing a large part of the massive stellar envelope, especially in low-metallicity galaxies. Episodic mass loss, however, is not understood theoretically, neither accounted for in state-of-the-art models of stellar evolution, which has far-reaching consequences for many areas of astronomy. We aim to determine whether episodic mass loss is a dominant process in the evolution of the most massive stars by conducting the first extensive, multi-wavelength survey of evolved massive stars in the nearby Universe. The project hinges on the fact that mass-losing stars form dust and are bright in the mid-infrared. We plan to (i) derive physical parameters of a large sample of dusty, evolved targets and estimate the amount of ejected mass, (ii) constrain evolutionary models, (iii) quantify the duration and frequency of episodic mass loss as a function of metallicity. The approach involves applying machine-learning algorithms to existing multi-band and time-series photometry of luminous sources in ~25 nearby galaxies. Dusty, luminous evolved massive stars will thus be automatically classified and follow-up spectroscopy will be obtained for selected targets. Atmospheric and SED modeling will yield parameters and estimates of time-dependent mass loss for ~1000 luminous stars. The emerging trend for the ubiquity of episodic mass loss, if confirmed, will be key to understanding the explosive early Universe and will have profound consequences for low-metallicity stars, reionization, and the chemical evolution of galaxies.
Max ERC Funding
1 128 750 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-09-01, End date: 2023-08-31
Project acronym ASSYSt
Project A reliable CXCL4 biomarker assay to improve diagnosis and treatment of Systemic Sclerosis
Researcher (PI) Timothy RADSTAKE
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITAIR MEDISCH CENTRUM UTRECHT
Call Details Proof of Concept (PoC), ERC-2017-PoC
Summary Systemic Sclerosis (SSc, scleroderma) is a complex autoimmune disorder of unclear aetiology, culminating in excessive extracellular matrix deposition (fibrosis/tissue scarring) in skin and internal organs (e.g. joints, heart, lung, gastrointestinal tract and kidneys). More than half of the patients will ultimately die as a result of organ complications. The medical need is exacerbated by the lack of curative treatments and the lack of specific and sensitive molecular markers to facilitate reliable diagnosis and prognosis.
My team has recently demonstrated, through research funded by the ERC Starting Grant CIRCUMVENT, that the chemokine CXCL4 is a central player in the pathogenesis of SSc. Our results suggest that CXCL4 has great potential as 1) a biomarker to assist early diagnosis, 2) a biomarker to predict SSc disease course, and 3) a therapeutic target for the treatment or prevention of fibrosis in patients with SSc. Currently, a robust, accessible, reliable, cheap and fast assay to determine CXCL4 levels for clinical use is lacking. This prohibits the use of CXCL4 to predict clinical and treatment outcome and complicates the large-scale replication experiments across multiple labs and cohorts that are necessary to validate the diagnostic value of CXCL4.
Therefore, we argue that a reliable in vitro assay measuring circulating CXCL4 levels is highly needed and can be deployed as a research support tool to accelerate the implementation of clinical strategies based on CXCL4 and a clinical decision support tool in SSc to complement current diagnostic protocols. ASSYSt will focus on 1) the development of a reliable assay to adequately determine circulating CXCL4 levels irrespective of sample collection and storage conditions, 2) assessing the market potential of each of the applications listed above, and 3) defining a strong business strategy to guide route to market.
Summary
Systemic Sclerosis (SSc, scleroderma) is a complex autoimmune disorder of unclear aetiology, culminating in excessive extracellular matrix deposition (fibrosis/tissue scarring) in skin and internal organs (e.g. joints, heart, lung, gastrointestinal tract and kidneys). More than half of the patients will ultimately die as a result of organ complications. The medical need is exacerbated by the lack of curative treatments and the lack of specific and sensitive molecular markers to facilitate reliable diagnosis and prognosis.
My team has recently demonstrated, through research funded by the ERC Starting Grant CIRCUMVENT, that the chemokine CXCL4 is a central player in the pathogenesis of SSc. Our results suggest that CXCL4 has great potential as 1) a biomarker to assist early diagnosis, 2) a biomarker to predict SSc disease course, and 3) a therapeutic target for the treatment or prevention of fibrosis in patients with SSc. Currently, a robust, accessible, reliable, cheap and fast assay to determine CXCL4 levels for clinical use is lacking. This prohibits the use of CXCL4 to predict clinical and treatment outcome and complicates the large-scale replication experiments across multiple labs and cohorts that are necessary to validate the diagnostic value of CXCL4.
Therefore, we argue that a reliable in vitro assay measuring circulating CXCL4 levels is highly needed and can be deployed as a research support tool to accelerate the implementation of clinical strategies based on CXCL4 and a clinical decision support tool in SSc to complement current diagnostic protocols. ASSYSt will focus on 1) the development of a reliable assay to adequately determine circulating CXCL4 levels irrespective of sample collection and storage conditions, 2) assessing the market potential of each of the applications listed above, and 3) defining a strong business strategy to guide route to market.
Max ERC Funding
150 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-08-01, End date: 2020-01-31
Project acronym ATTACK
Project Pressured to Attack: How Carrying-Capacity Stress Creates and Shapes Intergroup Conflict
Researcher (PI) Carsten DE DREU
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITEIT LEIDEN
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), SH3, ERC-2017-ADG
Summary Throughout history, what has been causing tremendous suffering is groups of people fighting each other. While behavioral science research has advanced our understanding of such intergroup conflict, it has exclusively focused on micro-level processes within and between groups at conflict. Disciplines that employ a more historical perspective like climate studies or political geography report that macro-level pressures due to changes in climate or economic scarcity can go along with social unrest and wars. How do these macro-level pressures relate to micro-level processes? Do they both occur independently, or do macro-level pressures trigger micro-level processes that cause intergroup conflict? And if so, which micro-level processes are triggered, and how?
With unavoidable signs of climate change and increasing resource scarcities, answers to these questions are urgently needed. Here I propose carrying-capacity stress (CCS) as the missing link between macro-level pressures and micro-level processes. A group experiences CCS when its resources do not suffice to maintain its functionality. CCS is a function of macro-level pressures and creates intergroup conflict because it impacts micro-level motivation to contribute to one’s group’s fighting capacity and shapes the coordination of individual contributions to out-group aggression through emergent norms, communication and leadership.
To test these propositions I develop a parametric model of CCS that is amenable to measurement and experimentation, and use techniques used in my work on conflict and cooperation: Meta-analyses and time-series analysis of macro-level historical data; experiments on intergroup conflict; and measurement of neuro-hormonal correlates of cooperation and conflict. In combination, this project provides novel multi-level conflict theory that integrates macro-level discoveries in climate research and political geography with micro-level processes uncovered in the biobehavioral sciences
Summary
Throughout history, what has been causing tremendous suffering is groups of people fighting each other. While behavioral science research has advanced our understanding of such intergroup conflict, it has exclusively focused on micro-level processes within and between groups at conflict. Disciplines that employ a more historical perspective like climate studies or political geography report that macro-level pressures due to changes in climate or economic scarcity can go along with social unrest and wars. How do these macro-level pressures relate to micro-level processes? Do they both occur independently, or do macro-level pressures trigger micro-level processes that cause intergroup conflict? And if so, which micro-level processes are triggered, and how?
With unavoidable signs of climate change and increasing resource scarcities, answers to these questions are urgently needed. Here I propose carrying-capacity stress (CCS) as the missing link between macro-level pressures and micro-level processes. A group experiences CCS when its resources do not suffice to maintain its functionality. CCS is a function of macro-level pressures and creates intergroup conflict because it impacts micro-level motivation to contribute to one’s group’s fighting capacity and shapes the coordination of individual contributions to out-group aggression through emergent norms, communication and leadership.
To test these propositions I develop a parametric model of CCS that is amenable to measurement and experimentation, and use techniques used in my work on conflict and cooperation: Meta-analyses and time-series analysis of macro-level historical data; experiments on intergroup conflict; and measurement of neuro-hormonal correlates of cooperation and conflict. In combination, this project provides novel multi-level conflict theory that integrates macro-level discoveries in climate research and political geography with micro-level processes uncovered in the biobehavioral sciences
Max ERC Funding
2 490 383 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-08-01, End date: 2023-07-31
Project acronym Auger-Horizon
Project A large-scale radio detector for the Pierre Auger cosmic-ray Observatory – precision measurements of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays
Researcher (PI) Jörg HÖRANDEL
Host Institution (HI) STICHTING KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), PE9, ERC-2017-ADG
Summary Cosmic Rays (ionized atomic nuclei) are the only matter from beyond our solar system or even from extragalactic space, that we can directly investigate. Up to energies of 10^17 eV they most likely originate in our Galaxy. The highest-energy cosmic rays (>10^18 eV) cannot be magnetically bound any more to the Galaxy and are most likely of extragalactic origin.
The pure existence of these particles raises the question about their origin – how and where are they accelerated? How do they propagate through the universe and interact? How can we directly probe extragalactic matter and how can we locate its origin?
A key to understand the origin of cosmic rays is to measure the particle species (atomic mass). A precise mass measurement will allow discriminating astrophysical models and will clarify the reason for the observed suppression of the cosmic-ray flux at the highest energies, namely the maximum energy of the accelerators or the energy losses during propagation.
I address these questions by employing a new technique to precisely measure the cosmic-ray mass composition, which my group pioneered, the radio detection of air showers (induced by high-energy cosmic rays in the atmosphere) on very large scales, detecting horizontal air showers with zenith angles from 60° to 90°.
The new set-up will be the world-largest radio array, operated together with the well-established Auger surface and fluorescence detectors, forming a unique set-up to measure the properties of cosmic rays with unprecedented precision for energies above 10^17.5 eV. The radio technique is a cost-effective and robust method to measure the cosmic-ray energy and mass, complementary to established techniques. The energy scale of the radio measurements is established from first principles. The proposed detectors will also enhance the detection capabilities for high-energy neutrinos and the search for new physics through precision measurements of the electromagnetic and muonic shower components.
Summary
Cosmic Rays (ionized atomic nuclei) are the only matter from beyond our solar system or even from extragalactic space, that we can directly investigate. Up to energies of 10^17 eV they most likely originate in our Galaxy. The highest-energy cosmic rays (>10^18 eV) cannot be magnetically bound any more to the Galaxy and are most likely of extragalactic origin.
The pure existence of these particles raises the question about their origin – how and where are they accelerated? How do they propagate through the universe and interact? How can we directly probe extragalactic matter and how can we locate its origin?
A key to understand the origin of cosmic rays is to measure the particle species (atomic mass). A precise mass measurement will allow discriminating astrophysical models and will clarify the reason for the observed suppression of the cosmic-ray flux at the highest energies, namely the maximum energy of the accelerators or the energy losses during propagation.
I address these questions by employing a new technique to precisely measure the cosmic-ray mass composition, which my group pioneered, the radio detection of air showers (induced by high-energy cosmic rays in the atmosphere) on very large scales, detecting horizontal air showers with zenith angles from 60° to 90°.
The new set-up will be the world-largest radio array, operated together with the well-established Auger surface and fluorescence detectors, forming a unique set-up to measure the properties of cosmic rays with unprecedented precision for energies above 10^17.5 eV. The radio technique is a cost-effective and robust method to measure the cosmic-ray energy and mass, complementary to established techniques. The energy scale of the radio measurements is established from first principles. The proposed detectors will also enhance the detection capabilities for high-energy neutrinos and the search for new physics through precision measurements of the electromagnetic and muonic shower components.
Max ERC Funding
3 499 249 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-10-01, End date: 2023-09-30
Project acronym AUTO NERVE
Project Tracers for targeting nerves in the autonomic nervous system
Researcher (PI) Fijs VAN LEEUWEN
Host Institution (HI) ACADEMISCH ZIEKENHUIS LEIDEN
Call Details Proof of Concept (PoC), ERC-2017-PoC
Summary """As a common disease in western men, prostate cancer is a major driver for the billion-euro robotic surgery and laparoscopic devices markets. In the surgical management of prostate cancer patients, next to the tumor resection accuracy, the surgeon’s ability to preserve the nerve-network and prevent erectile dysfunction and urinary incontinence, is key. As these nerves are not visible by eye, image guided surgery approaches aimed at nerve-sparing demand the clinical availability of nerve-specific fluorescence tracers. Hereby it is expected that the ability to visualize peripheral nerves promotes nerve-sparing opportunities and opens up new commercial-avenues for companies involved in the surgical market. Previously my ILLUMINATING NERVES ERC-StG yielded a sensory-nerve targeted lead-compound that was made suitable for imaging somatic-nerves (MY NERVE ERC-PoC). This tracer, however, does not allow for imaging of the autonomic nerves. For autonomic nerves I have now shown, within the same ERC-StG, that an alternative tracer can be used as an imaging target. The aim of the AUTO NERVE ERC-PoC project is to convert the autonomic-nerve targeted lead-compound into a fluorescence tracer. Systematic fine-tuning of this lead will optimize the structure-activity relation and will improve the chance of future commercialization. Ultimately, the outcome of the three complementary ERC-grants should yield an advancement in clinical care.”"
Summary
"""As a common disease in western men, prostate cancer is a major driver for the billion-euro robotic surgery and laparoscopic devices markets. In the surgical management of prostate cancer patients, next to the tumor resection accuracy, the surgeon’s ability to preserve the nerve-network and prevent erectile dysfunction and urinary incontinence, is key. As these nerves are not visible by eye, image guided surgery approaches aimed at nerve-sparing demand the clinical availability of nerve-specific fluorescence tracers. Hereby it is expected that the ability to visualize peripheral nerves promotes nerve-sparing opportunities and opens up new commercial-avenues for companies involved in the surgical market. Previously my ILLUMINATING NERVES ERC-StG yielded a sensory-nerve targeted lead-compound that was made suitable for imaging somatic-nerves (MY NERVE ERC-PoC). This tracer, however, does not allow for imaging of the autonomic nerves. For autonomic nerves I have now shown, within the same ERC-StG, that an alternative tracer can be used as an imaging target. The aim of the AUTO NERVE ERC-PoC project is to convert the autonomic-nerve targeted lead-compound into a fluorescence tracer. Systematic fine-tuning of this lead will optimize the structure-activity relation and will improve the chance of future commercialization. Ultimately, the outcome of the three complementary ERC-grants should yield an advancement in clinical care.”"
Max ERC Funding
140 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-09-01, End date: 2020-02-29
Project acronym BioELCell
Project Bioproducts Engineered from Lignocelluloses: from plants and upcycling to next generation materials
Researcher (PI) Orlando Rojas Gaona
Host Institution (HI) AALTO KORKEAKOULUSAATIO SR
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), PE8, ERC-2017-ADG
Summary BioELCell will deliver ground-breaking approaches to create next material generation based on renewable resources, mainly cellulose and lignin micro- and nano-particles (MNC, MNL). Our action will disassemble and re-engineer these plant-based polymers into functional materials that will respond to the demands of the bioeconomy of the future, critically important to Europe and the world. My ambitious, high gain research plan is underpinned in the use of multiphase systems with ultra-low interfacial tension to facilitate nanocellulose liberation and atomization of lignin solution streams into spherical particles.
BioELCell will design novel routes to control MNC and MNL reassembly in new 1-D, 2-D and 3-D structures. The systematic methodologies that I propose will address the main challenges for lignocellulose processing and deployment, considering the important effects of interactions with water. This BioELCell action presents a transformative approach by integrating complementary disciplines that will lead to a far-reaching understanding of lignocellulosic biopolymers and solve key challenges in their use, paving the way to functional product development. Results of this project permeates directly or indirectly in the grand challenges for engineering, namely, water use, carbon sequestration, nitrogen cycle, food and advanced materials. Indeed, after addressing the key fundamental elements of the research lines, BioELCell vindicates such effects based on rational use of plant-based materials as a sustainable resource, making possible the generation of new functions and advanced materials.
BioELCell goes far beyond what is known today about cellulose and lignin micro and nano-particles, some of the most promising materials of our century, which are emerging as key elements for the success of a sustainable society.
Summary
BioELCell will deliver ground-breaking approaches to create next material generation based on renewable resources, mainly cellulose and lignin micro- and nano-particles (MNC, MNL). Our action will disassemble and re-engineer these plant-based polymers into functional materials that will respond to the demands of the bioeconomy of the future, critically important to Europe and the world. My ambitious, high gain research plan is underpinned in the use of multiphase systems with ultra-low interfacial tension to facilitate nanocellulose liberation and atomization of lignin solution streams into spherical particles.
BioELCell will design novel routes to control MNC and MNL reassembly in new 1-D, 2-D and 3-D structures. The systematic methodologies that I propose will address the main challenges for lignocellulose processing and deployment, considering the important effects of interactions with water. This BioELCell action presents a transformative approach by integrating complementary disciplines that will lead to a far-reaching understanding of lignocellulosic biopolymers and solve key challenges in their use, paving the way to functional product development. Results of this project permeates directly or indirectly in the grand challenges for engineering, namely, water use, carbon sequestration, nitrogen cycle, food and advanced materials. Indeed, after addressing the key fundamental elements of the research lines, BioELCell vindicates such effects based on rational use of plant-based materials as a sustainable resource, making possible the generation of new functions and advanced materials.
BioELCell goes far beyond what is known today about cellulose and lignin micro and nano-particles, some of the most promising materials of our century, which are emerging as key elements for the success of a sustainable society.
Max ERC Funding
2 486 182 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-08-01, End date: 2023-07-31
