Project acronym ECO-ZEN
Project Enabling Catalytic Cross Couplings with only Zinc Electrophiles, Nucleophiles and Boranes
Researcher (PI) Michael James INGLESON
Host Institution (HI) THE UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER
Call Details Consolidator Grant (CoG), PE5, ERC-2017-COG
Summary This high-impact, challenging CoG Proposal integrates multiple novel ideas in boron and zinc chemistry into an overarching project to open up new horizons across synthesis and catalysis. The Applicant’s successful ERC StG has opened up new avenues of pioneering research in main group element mediated transformations that were not conceivable before the work was done. Components of this proposal extend out from the StG into new, exciting research areas that are completely different. Developing low toxicity earth abundant catalysts for important transformations is vital to the EU with the focus herein being on; (i) the Suzuki-Miyaura (S-M) cross coupling reaction which is ubiquitous in industry and academia, and (ii) the formation of organoboranes that are essential synthetic intermediates. Both of these are currently dominated by toxic, expensive and low abundance precious metal catalysts (e.g. Pd, Ir). This project will deliver innovation through utilising combinations of main group Lewis acids and nucleophilic anions that do not react with each other, i.e. are frustrated pairs. This “frustration” enables the two species to concertedly transform substrates to achieve:
(i) Precious metal-free S-M cross coupling reactions of sp3C electrophiles catalysed by zinc and boron compounds, including stereospecific couplings and one pot two step cross electrophile couplings.
(ii) Trans-elementoboration of alkynes, including the unprecedented fluoroboration of alkynes.
Other new approaches will be developed to access novel (hetero)arylboronic acid derivatives using only simple boranes and without requiring noble metal catalysts, specifically: (i) boron directed C-H borylation and (ii) directed ortho borylation to enable subsequent meta selective SEAr C-H functionalisation.
This CoG will afford the freedom and impetus via consolidated funding to undertake fundamental research to deliver high impact results, including developing a new area of cross coupling catalysis research.
Summary
This high-impact, challenging CoG Proposal integrates multiple novel ideas in boron and zinc chemistry into an overarching project to open up new horizons across synthesis and catalysis. The Applicant’s successful ERC StG has opened up new avenues of pioneering research in main group element mediated transformations that were not conceivable before the work was done. Components of this proposal extend out from the StG into new, exciting research areas that are completely different. Developing low toxicity earth abundant catalysts for important transformations is vital to the EU with the focus herein being on; (i) the Suzuki-Miyaura (S-M) cross coupling reaction which is ubiquitous in industry and academia, and (ii) the formation of organoboranes that are essential synthetic intermediates. Both of these are currently dominated by toxic, expensive and low abundance precious metal catalysts (e.g. Pd, Ir). This project will deliver innovation through utilising combinations of main group Lewis acids and nucleophilic anions that do not react with each other, i.e. are frustrated pairs. This “frustration” enables the two species to concertedly transform substrates to achieve:
(i) Precious metal-free S-M cross coupling reactions of sp3C electrophiles catalysed by zinc and boron compounds, including stereospecific couplings and one pot two step cross electrophile couplings.
(ii) Trans-elementoboration of alkynes, including the unprecedented fluoroboration of alkynes.
Other new approaches will be developed to access novel (hetero)arylboronic acid derivatives using only simple boranes and without requiring noble metal catalysts, specifically: (i) boron directed C-H borylation and (ii) directed ortho borylation to enable subsequent meta selective SEAr C-H functionalisation.
This CoG will afford the freedom and impetus via consolidated funding to undertake fundamental research to deliver high impact results, including developing a new area of cross coupling catalysis research.
Max ERC Funding
2 070 093 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-05-01, End date: 2023-04-30
Project acronym ECOGAL
Project Star Formation and the Galactic Ecology
Researcher (PI) Ian Bonnell
Host Institution (HI) THE UNIVERSITY COURT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), PE9, ERC-2011-ADG_20110209
Summary We will construct the first self-consistent models of star formation that follow the galactic scale flows
where molecular clouds form yet still resolve the star formation and feedback events down to sub-parsec scales.
By following the full galactic ecology, the life cycle of gas from the interstellar medium into stars and their radiative and kinematic output back into
the galaxy, we will develop a comprehensive theory of star formation. The link between the large-scale dynamics of the galaxy and the
small-scale star formation provides the ground-breaking nature of this proposal.
Star formation produces a wide range
of outcomes in nearby molecular clouds yet on large scales yields star formation rates that are strongly correlated to galactic-scale gas densities.
These observed properties of star forming galaxies have inspired a plethora of theoretical ideas, but until now there has been
no means of testing these analytical theories.
We will use galactic-disc simulations to determine how molecular clouds form through self-gravity, spiral shocks and/or
cloud-cloud collisions. We will use these self-consistent models of molecular clouds to follow the local gravitational collapse to
form individual stars and stellar clusters.
We will include ionisation, stellar winds and supernovae into the ISM to study how feedback can support
or destroy molecular clouds, as well as triggering successive generations of young stars.
We will also conduct Galactic bulge scale simulations to
model how gas flows into, and star formation occurs in, the Galactic centre.
The primary goals of this proposal are to understand what determines the
local and global rates, efficiencies and products of star formation in galaxies, and to develop
a complete theory of star formation that can be applied to galaxy formation and cosmology.
Summary
We will construct the first self-consistent models of star formation that follow the galactic scale flows
where molecular clouds form yet still resolve the star formation and feedback events down to sub-parsec scales.
By following the full galactic ecology, the life cycle of gas from the interstellar medium into stars and their radiative and kinematic output back into
the galaxy, we will develop a comprehensive theory of star formation. The link between the large-scale dynamics of the galaxy and the
small-scale star formation provides the ground-breaking nature of this proposal.
Star formation produces a wide range
of outcomes in nearby molecular clouds yet on large scales yields star formation rates that are strongly correlated to galactic-scale gas densities.
These observed properties of star forming galaxies have inspired a plethora of theoretical ideas, but until now there has been
no means of testing these analytical theories.
We will use galactic-disc simulations to determine how molecular clouds form through self-gravity, spiral shocks and/or
cloud-cloud collisions. We will use these self-consistent models of molecular clouds to follow the local gravitational collapse to
form individual stars and stellar clusters.
We will include ionisation, stellar winds and supernovae into the ISM to study how feedback can support
or destroy molecular clouds, as well as triggering successive generations of young stars.
We will also conduct Galactic bulge scale simulations to
model how gas flows into, and star formation occurs in, the Galactic centre.
The primary goals of this proposal are to understand what determines the
local and global rates, efficiencies and products of star formation in galaxies, and to develop
a complete theory of star formation that can be applied to galaxy formation and cosmology.
Max ERC Funding
2 210 523 €
Duration
Start date: 2012-05-01, End date: 2018-04-30
Project acronym EDIP
Project Evolution of Development In Plants
Researcher (PI) Jane Alison Langdale
Host Institution (HI) THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), LS3, ERC-2008-AdG
Summary Different morphologies evolve in different organisms in response to changing environments. As land plants evolved, developmental mechanisms were either generated de novo, or were recruited from existing toolkits and adapted to facilitate changes in form. Some of these changes occurred once, others on multiple occasions, and others were gained and then subsequently lost in a subset of lineages. Why have certain forms survived and others not? Why does a fern look different from a flowering plant, and why should developmental biologists care? By determining how many different ways there are to generate a particular morphology, we gain an understanding of whether a particular transition is constrained. This basic information allows an assessment of the extent to which genetic variation can modify developmental mechanisms and an indication of the degree of developmental plasticity that is possible and/or tolerated both within and between species. This proposal aims to characterize the developmental mechanisms that underpin the diverse shoot forms seen in extant plant species. The main goal is to compare developmental mechanisms that operate in vegetative shoots of bryophytes, lycophytes, ferns and angiosperms, with a view to understanding the constraints that limit morphological variation. Specifically, we will investigate the developmental basis of three major innovations that altered the morphology of vegetative shoots during land plant evolution: 1) formation of a multi-cellular embryo; 2) organization of apical growth centres and 3) patterning of leaves in distinct spatial arrangements along the shoot. To facilitate progress we also aim to develop transgenic methods, create mutant populations and generate digital transcriptomes for model species at key phylogenetic nodes. The proposed work will generate scenarios to explain how land plant form evolved and perhaps more importantly, how it could change in the future.
Summary
Different morphologies evolve in different organisms in response to changing environments. As land plants evolved, developmental mechanisms were either generated de novo, or were recruited from existing toolkits and adapted to facilitate changes in form. Some of these changes occurred once, others on multiple occasions, and others were gained and then subsequently lost in a subset of lineages. Why have certain forms survived and others not? Why does a fern look different from a flowering plant, and why should developmental biologists care? By determining how many different ways there are to generate a particular morphology, we gain an understanding of whether a particular transition is constrained. This basic information allows an assessment of the extent to which genetic variation can modify developmental mechanisms and an indication of the degree of developmental plasticity that is possible and/or tolerated both within and between species. This proposal aims to characterize the developmental mechanisms that underpin the diverse shoot forms seen in extant plant species. The main goal is to compare developmental mechanisms that operate in vegetative shoots of bryophytes, lycophytes, ferns and angiosperms, with a view to understanding the constraints that limit morphological variation. Specifically, we will investigate the developmental basis of three major innovations that altered the morphology of vegetative shoots during land plant evolution: 1) formation of a multi-cellular embryo; 2) organization of apical growth centres and 3) patterning of leaves in distinct spatial arrangements along the shoot. To facilitate progress we also aim to develop transgenic methods, create mutant populations and generate digital transcriptomes for model species at key phylogenetic nodes. The proposed work will generate scenarios to explain how land plant form evolved and perhaps more importantly, how it could change in the future.
Max ERC Funding
2 230 732 €
Duration
Start date: 2009-07-01, End date: 2015-06-30
Project acronym EIGER
Project Exploring the Inception of Galaxies and the Epoch of Reionization
Researcher (PI) Ross James Mclure
Host Institution (HI) THE UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), PE9, ERC-2012-StG_20111012
Summary Studying the nature of the first generation of galaxies to form in the Universe is central to efforts to understand the earliest phases of galaxy evolution and the physical processes driving cosmic reionization. Building on my recent success investigating galaxy evolution at redshifts z>6, I propose to recruit and lead the research team necessary to fully exploit my involvement in two Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging programmes focused on the high-redshift Universe. The first of these is a new, ultra-deep, proprietary imaging programme in the Hubble Ultra-Deep Field (on which I am co-PI) which will deliver the deepest near-IR image ever obtained and the first robust sample of z>9 galaxies. This dataset will produce the definitive measurement of the faint-end of the high-redshift galaxy luminosity function in the pre-JWST era, a key observational
constraint necessary for understanding reionization. The second HST programme is the on-going, wide-area, CANDELS imaging survey, which will provide the first statistically significant sample of massive galaxies at redshifts 6<z<8, many of which will be suitable for spectroscopic follow-up. Consequently, I intend to assemble a team with the necessary skills to take full advantage of my leading position in these two key imaging datasets and to exploit opportunities for spectroscopic follow-up with the next generation of multi-object optical/near-IR spectrographs. Finally, I also propose to recruit the necessary expertise to accurately interpret the new observational results within the context of the latest spectral synthesis and galaxy formation models. In summary, the aim of this proposal is to build a research team with the interdisciplinary skills necessary to successfully exploit the latest observational datasets, interpret them within the context of the latest theoretical predictions, and thereby attempt to construct a fully consistent framework describing high-redshift galaxy evolution.
Summary
Studying the nature of the first generation of galaxies to form in the Universe is central to efforts to understand the earliest phases of galaxy evolution and the physical processes driving cosmic reionization. Building on my recent success investigating galaxy evolution at redshifts z>6, I propose to recruit and lead the research team necessary to fully exploit my involvement in two Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging programmes focused on the high-redshift Universe. The first of these is a new, ultra-deep, proprietary imaging programme in the Hubble Ultra-Deep Field (on which I am co-PI) which will deliver the deepest near-IR image ever obtained and the first robust sample of z>9 galaxies. This dataset will produce the definitive measurement of the faint-end of the high-redshift galaxy luminosity function in the pre-JWST era, a key observational
constraint necessary for understanding reionization. The second HST programme is the on-going, wide-area, CANDELS imaging survey, which will provide the first statistically significant sample of massive galaxies at redshifts 6<z<8, many of which will be suitable for spectroscopic follow-up. Consequently, I intend to assemble a team with the necessary skills to take full advantage of my leading position in these two key imaging datasets and to exploit opportunities for spectroscopic follow-up with the next generation of multi-object optical/near-IR spectrographs. Finally, I also propose to recruit the necessary expertise to accurately interpret the new observational results within the context of the latest spectral synthesis and galaxy formation models. In summary, the aim of this proposal is to build a research team with the interdisciplinary skills necessary to successfully exploit the latest observational datasets, interpret them within the context of the latest theoretical predictions, and thereby attempt to construct a fully consistent framework describing high-redshift galaxy evolution.
Max ERC Funding
1 176 273 €
Duration
Start date: 2012-12-01, End date: 2016-11-30
Project acronym EMERGE
Project Enzyme Driven Molecular Nanosystems
Researcher (PI) Rein V Ulijn
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITY OF STRATHCLYDE
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), PE5, ERC-2010-StG_20091028
Summary Functional nanomaterials are predicted to have an enormous impact on some of the most pressing issues of 21st century society, including next-generation health care and energy related technologies. Bottom-up approaches, using self-assembly principles, are increasingly considered to be the most appropriate routes for their synthesis. Indeed, Science magazine highlighted How far can we push chemical self-assembly? as one of the 25 biggest questions that face scientific inquiry over the next quarter century. Despite significant advances in recent years, it is still a major challenge to access precisely defined nano-structures in the laboratory, especially if these do not represent the global free energy minimum (i.e. are asymmetric, multifunctional, compartmentalized and/or dynamic). The biological world provides numerous outstanding examples of highly complex functional nano-scale architectures with attractive features such as defect repair, adaptability, molecular recognition and programmability. It is the objective of this ERC Starting Grant to develop and exploit the concept of (bio-)catalytic self-assembly, a bio-inspired approach for bottom-up synthesis of complex nanomaterials. We will explore three unique features of these systems (i) spatiotemporal control, (ii) catalytic amplification, either towards or away from equilibrium and the tempting vision of (iii) dynamic systems with emergent properties. In our approach we aim to encompass the entire spectrum from fundamental understanding to eventual societal benefit. Alongside the fundamental aims, we wish to put our methodologies to use, in collaboration with experts in these fields, to develop novel functional materials towards applications in next-generation biomaterials and gel-phase supramolecular (opto-) electronic materials.
Summary
Functional nanomaterials are predicted to have an enormous impact on some of the most pressing issues of 21st century society, including next-generation health care and energy related technologies. Bottom-up approaches, using self-assembly principles, are increasingly considered to be the most appropriate routes for their synthesis. Indeed, Science magazine highlighted How far can we push chemical self-assembly? as one of the 25 biggest questions that face scientific inquiry over the next quarter century. Despite significant advances in recent years, it is still a major challenge to access precisely defined nano-structures in the laboratory, especially if these do not represent the global free energy minimum (i.e. are asymmetric, multifunctional, compartmentalized and/or dynamic). The biological world provides numerous outstanding examples of highly complex functional nano-scale architectures with attractive features such as defect repair, adaptability, molecular recognition and programmability. It is the objective of this ERC Starting Grant to develop and exploit the concept of (bio-)catalytic self-assembly, a bio-inspired approach for bottom-up synthesis of complex nanomaterials. We will explore three unique features of these systems (i) spatiotemporal control, (ii) catalytic amplification, either towards or away from equilibrium and the tempting vision of (iii) dynamic systems with emergent properties. In our approach we aim to encompass the entire spectrum from fundamental understanding to eventual societal benefit. Alongside the fundamental aims, we wish to put our methodologies to use, in collaboration with experts in these fields, to develop novel functional materials towards applications in next-generation biomaterials and gel-phase supramolecular (opto-) electronic materials.
Max ERC Funding
1 500 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2011-01-01, End date: 2015-12-31
Project acronym EMERGENCE
Project The Emergence of Structure during the Epoch of Reionization
Researcher (PI) Martin Gerhard Otto Haehnelt
Host Institution (HI) THE CHANCELLOR MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), PE9, ERC-2012-ADG_20120216
Summary Early on the Universe consisted of a near-uniform mixture of hydrogen, helium, dark matter and radiation. The emergence of structure from a stochastic background of fluctuations in the
period between 400.000 years and 1 billion years is the main subject of this proposal. This era saw the formation of the first autonomous sources of radiation, stars and black holes. This `renaissance' of light led to the heating, reionization and pollution of the Intergalactic Medium with metals.
We will unravel how the hydrogen in Universe progressed from substantially neutral to highly ionized by detailed comparison of cosmological hydro-simulations of the intergalactic Medium (IGM) and galaxy formation including continuum and resonant Lyman-alpha radiative transfer with QSO absorption spectra and LBG/ Lyman-alpha emitter surveys and other data.
This will help us to make the most out the wealth of information which will be provided by new observational missions and surveys which have just begun (or are just about to begin) to report results (UKIDDS, VISTA, Planck, Herschel, COS@HST, LOFAR, ALMA). In this way we expect to make decisive contributions to the expected transformation of our understanding of this exciting period in the history of the Universe.
Measurements of the matter power spectrum on scales from 1Mpc to a Gpc from Lyman-alpha forest, weak gravitational lensing, and galaxy survey data contain important information of the nature of dark matter and the mass and number of species of neutrinos. Particularly exciting is the possibility to significantly push the limit on 'how cold' dark matter is. To robustly answer the question, whether the free-streaming of dark matter suggested to solve the dwarf-galaxy problem of the cold dark matter paradigm is consistent with Lyman-alpha forest data, is another key goal of this proposal.
Summary
Early on the Universe consisted of a near-uniform mixture of hydrogen, helium, dark matter and radiation. The emergence of structure from a stochastic background of fluctuations in the
period between 400.000 years and 1 billion years is the main subject of this proposal. This era saw the formation of the first autonomous sources of radiation, stars and black holes. This `renaissance' of light led to the heating, reionization and pollution of the Intergalactic Medium with metals.
We will unravel how the hydrogen in Universe progressed from substantially neutral to highly ionized by detailed comparison of cosmological hydro-simulations of the intergalactic Medium (IGM) and galaxy formation including continuum and resonant Lyman-alpha radiative transfer with QSO absorption spectra and LBG/ Lyman-alpha emitter surveys and other data.
This will help us to make the most out the wealth of information which will be provided by new observational missions and surveys which have just begun (or are just about to begin) to report results (UKIDDS, VISTA, Planck, Herschel, COS@HST, LOFAR, ALMA). In this way we expect to make decisive contributions to the expected transformation of our understanding of this exciting period in the history of the Universe.
Measurements of the matter power spectrum on scales from 1Mpc to a Gpc from Lyman-alpha forest, weak gravitational lensing, and galaxy survey data contain important information of the nature of dark matter and the mass and number of species of neutrinos. Particularly exciting is the possibility to significantly push the limit on 'how cold' dark matter is. To robustly answer the question, whether the free-streaming of dark matter suggested to solve the dwarf-galaxy problem of the cold dark matter paradigm is consistent with Lyman-alpha forest data, is another key goal of this proposal.
Max ERC Funding
1 975 121 €
Duration
Start date: 2013-05-01, End date: 2019-04-30
Project acronym EnBioN
Project Engineering the Biointerface of Nanowires to Direct Stem Cell Differentiation
Researcher (PI) Ciro CHIAPPINI
Host Institution (HI) KING'S COLLEGE LONDON
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), PE5, ERC-2017-STG
Summary ENBION will engineer a platform to direct the differentiation of stem cells by developing principles for the rational design of the biointerface of nanowires.
It is increasingly evident that efficient tissue regeneration can only ensue from combining the regenerative potential of stem cells with regulatory stimuli from gene therapy and niche engineering. Yet, despite significant advances towards integrating these technologies, the necessary degree of control over cell fate remains elusive.
Vertical arrays of high aspect ratio nanostructures (nanowires) are rapidly emerging as promising tools to direct cell fate. Thanks to their unique biointerface, nanowires enable gene delivery, intracellular sensing, and direct stimulation of signalling pathways, achieving dynamic manipulation of cells and their environment.
This broad manipulation potential highlights the importance and timeliness of engineering nanowires for regenerative medicine. However, developing a nanowire platform to direct stem cell fate requires design principles based on the largely unknown biological processes governing their interaction with cells. Enabling localized, vector-free gene therapy through efficient transfection relies on understanding the still debated mechanisms by which nanowires induce membrane permeability. Directing cell reprogramming requires understanding the largely unexplored mechanosensory processes and the resulting epigenetic effects arising from the direct interaction of nanowires with multiple organelles within the cell. Engineering the cell microenvironment requires yet undeveloped strategies to localize signalling and transfection with a resolution comparable to the lengthscale of cells.
ENBION will develop this critical knowledge and integrate it into guidelines for dynamic manipulation of cells. Beyond the nanowire platform, the principles highlighted by this unique interface can guide the development of nanomaterials with improved control over cellular processes.
Summary
ENBION will engineer a platform to direct the differentiation of stem cells by developing principles for the rational design of the biointerface of nanowires.
It is increasingly evident that efficient tissue regeneration can only ensue from combining the regenerative potential of stem cells with regulatory stimuli from gene therapy and niche engineering. Yet, despite significant advances towards integrating these technologies, the necessary degree of control over cell fate remains elusive.
Vertical arrays of high aspect ratio nanostructures (nanowires) are rapidly emerging as promising tools to direct cell fate. Thanks to their unique biointerface, nanowires enable gene delivery, intracellular sensing, and direct stimulation of signalling pathways, achieving dynamic manipulation of cells and their environment.
This broad manipulation potential highlights the importance and timeliness of engineering nanowires for regenerative medicine. However, developing a nanowire platform to direct stem cell fate requires design principles based on the largely unknown biological processes governing their interaction with cells. Enabling localized, vector-free gene therapy through efficient transfection relies on understanding the still debated mechanisms by which nanowires induce membrane permeability. Directing cell reprogramming requires understanding the largely unexplored mechanosensory processes and the resulting epigenetic effects arising from the direct interaction of nanowires with multiple organelles within the cell. Engineering the cell microenvironment requires yet undeveloped strategies to localize signalling and transfection with a resolution comparable to the lengthscale of cells.
ENBION will develop this critical knowledge and integrate it into guidelines for dynamic manipulation of cells. Beyond the nanowire platform, the principles highlighted by this unique interface can guide the development of nanomaterials with improved control over cellular processes.
Max ERC Funding
1 495 430 €
Duration
Start date: 2018-02-01, End date: 2023-01-31
Project acronym ENCODE
Project Environmental Control of Development
Researcher (PI) Henrietta Leyser Day
Host Institution (HI) THE CHANCELLOR MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), LS3, ERC-2011-ADG_20110310
Summary Plant development is highly plastic, with major variations in form determined by the environment. An excellent example is shoot branching, where the body plan of the shoot system conferred by one genotype can range from a single unbranched stem, to a highly ramified bush, depending on the growth conditions. In recent years we have investigated the hormonal network that allows environmentally sensitive changes in shoot branching in Arabidopsis. Through the analysis of a set of monogenic mutants with clear effects on both the number of shoot branches produced and on its responsiveness to environmental inputs, we have developed a model for shoot branching control involving interactions between three systemically transported plant hormones. In collaboration with Prusinkiewicz (Calgary), we have built a computational implementation of this model, which captures the phenotypes of wild-type plants and, through the manipulation of single biologically plausible model parameters, our mutant phenotypes. While there is still much to learn about individual network components, the mechanistic framework we have established is sufficiently well developed to allow network-level investigation. We therefore propose an ambitious project to use natural allelic variation in shoot branching and its environmental sensitivity as in vivo differently parameterized versions of the shoot branching regulatory network, which can be compared with parameter space exploration in our computational model. By investigating the properties of shoot branching in diverse genotypes and in the computational model parameter space, we will identify trait correlations that will contribute to understanding the architecture of the regulatory network. This approach will simultaneously test the validity of our current model and provide new hypotheses for investigation. Furthermore, the rapidly moving genomics tools available in Arabidopsis will allow us to elucidate the genetic basis for key network properties.
Summary
Plant development is highly plastic, with major variations in form determined by the environment. An excellent example is shoot branching, where the body plan of the shoot system conferred by one genotype can range from a single unbranched stem, to a highly ramified bush, depending on the growth conditions. In recent years we have investigated the hormonal network that allows environmentally sensitive changes in shoot branching in Arabidopsis. Through the analysis of a set of monogenic mutants with clear effects on both the number of shoot branches produced and on its responsiveness to environmental inputs, we have developed a model for shoot branching control involving interactions between three systemically transported plant hormones. In collaboration with Prusinkiewicz (Calgary), we have built a computational implementation of this model, which captures the phenotypes of wild-type plants and, through the manipulation of single biologically plausible model parameters, our mutant phenotypes. While there is still much to learn about individual network components, the mechanistic framework we have established is sufficiently well developed to allow network-level investigation. We therefore propose an ambitious project to use natural allelic variation in shoot branching and its environmental sensitivity as in vivo differently parameterized versions of the shoot branching regulatory network, which can be compared with parameter space exploration in our computational model. By investigating the properties of shoot branching in diverse genotypes and in the computational model parameter space, we will identify trait correlations that will contribute to understanding the architecture of the regulatory network. This approach will simultaneously test the validity of our current model and provide new hypotheses for investigation. Furthermore, the rapidly moving genomics tools available in Arabidopsis will allow us to elucidate the genetic basis for key network properties.
Max ERC Funding
2 483 870 €
Duration
Start date: 2012-01-01, End date: 2017-05-31
Project acronym ENERCAPSULE
Project Nanoencapsulation for Energy Storage and Controlled Release
Researcher (PI) Dzmitry Shchukin
Host Institution (HI) THE UNIVERSITY OF LIVERPOOL
Call Details Consolidator Grant (CoG), PE5, ERC-2014-CoG
Summary The main vision of the project ENERCAPSULE is the development of nanoencapsulation technologies based on switchable nanoscale barriers for novel generation of controlled energy storage and delivery systems. These systems will be based on the “smart” nanocontainers (size below 200 nm) loaded with the energy-enriched active components: materials for thermal energy (both latent and based on chemical reactions) storage and substances for bioenergy (ATP or its components) storage for synthetic biology platforms. First novelty of the proposed project is the protection of the nanoscaled energy-enriched materials against environment during storage and controlled release of the encapsulated energy on demand only using both inherent properties of nanocontainer shell or biomimetic nanovalves introduced as shell components. Another main objective of the project is to study the structure and surface-to-volume properties of the energy enriched materials dispersed and encapsulated on nanoscale. The questions of stability of energy nanomaterials, influence of the nanocontainer shell on their energy capacity, homogeneity and operation lifetime will be investigated. Polymer organic nanocapsules with hollow interior and mesoporous carbon nanoparticles are chosen in the project as main types of the nanocontainer scaffolds for energy-enriched materials due to their high loading capacity and potential to design their shells to attain them controlled permeability properties. At the end of the project, developed novel energy storage and delivery systems will be combined within one network having several mechanisms for release and uptake of energy, which can be activated depending on type and intensity of the external impact (demand). The potential applications of such multienergy storage systems will be tested by industrial companies supporting the project.
Summary
The main vision of the project ENERCAPSULE is the development of nanoencapsulation technologies based on switchable nanoscale barriers for novel generation of controlled energy storage and delivery systems. These systems will be based on the “smart” nanocontainers (size below 200 nm) loaded with the energy-enriched active components: materials for thermal energy (both latent and based on chemical reactions) storage and substances for bioenergy (ATP or its components) storage for synthetic biology platforms. First novelty of the proposed project is the protection of the nanoscaled energy-enriched materials against environment during storage and controlled release of the encapsulated energy on demand only using both inherent properties of nanocontainer shell or biomimetic nanovalves introduced as shell components. Another main objective of the project is to study the structure and surface-to-volume properties of the energy enriched materials dispersed and encapsulated on nanoscale. The questions of stability of energy nanomaterials, influence of the nanocontainer shell on their energy capacity, homogeneity and operation lifetime will be investigated. Polymer organic nanocapsules with hollow interior and mesoporous carbon nanoparticles are chosen in the project as main types of the nanocontainer scaffolds for energy-enriched materials due to their high loading capacity and potential to design their shells to attain them controlled permeability properties. At the end of the project, developed novel energy storage and delivery systems will be combined within one network having several mechanisms for release and uptake of energy, which can be activated depending on type and intensity of the external impact (demand). The potential applications of such multienergy storage systems will be tested by industrial companies supporting the project.
Max ERC Funding
2 004 500 €
Duration
Start date: 2015-09-01, End date: 2020-08-31
Project acronym ENOLCAT
Project Emulating Nature: Reaction Diversity and Understanding through Asymmetric Catalysis
Researcher (PI) Andrew David Smith
Host Institution (HI) THE UNIVERSITY COURT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), PE5, ERC-2011-StG_20101014
Summary The remarkable way that Nature prepares complex natural products has always been a source of inspiration to scientists, stimulating the development of new synthetic methods and strategies, as elegantly demonstrated by biomimetic approaches to total synthesis. Similarly, the performance and specificity of enzymes, perfected though evolution, offer ideals of selectivity and specificity that synthetic chemists aspire to. This proposal aims to develop an internationally leading research programme inspired by Nature’s ability to selectively generate diverse products from simple materials with exquisite levels of regio- and enantiocontrol. We aspire to synthetically emulate the elegant behaviour of Nature’s building blocks, such as co-enzyme A, in their ability to generate synthetic diversity (such as polyketides and alkaloids) from a simple and common starting material. Using this blueprint, we intend to selectively control the synthesis of a diverse range of bespoke stereodefined carbo- and heterocycles from readily available starting materials using simple man-made catalysts. We specifically aim to develop new strategies within the field of organic catalysis, focused upon the development of methods for the in situ catalytic generation of chiral ammonium enolates from carboxylic acids and their employment in catalysis. We also propose to develop a comprehensive mechanistic understanding of these processes. In preliminary work we have delineated a simple and efficient approach to this problem by employing chiral isothioureas as asymmetric catalysts, and we aim to build on the insight provided by these studies to develop this powerful concept into a generally applicable synthetic strategy.
Summary
The remarkable way that Nature prepares complex natural products has always been a source of inspiration to scientists, stimulating the development of new synthetic methods and strategies, as elegantly demonstrated by biomimetic approaches to total synthesis. Similarly, the performance and specificity of enzymes, perfected though evolution, offer ideals of selectivity and specificity that synthetic chemists aspire to. This proposal aims to develop an internationally leading research programme inspired by Nature’s ability to selectively generate diverse products from simple materials with exquisite levels of regio- and enantiocontrol. We aspire to synthetically emulate the elegant behaviour of Nature’s building blocks, such as co-enzyme A, in their ability to generate synthetic diversity (such as polyketides and alkaloids) from a simple and common starting material. Using this blueprint, we intend to selectively control the synthesis of a diverse range of bespoke stereodefined carbo- and heterocycles from readily available starting materials using simple man-made catalysts. We specifically aim to develop new strategies within the field of organic catalysis, focused upon the development of methods for the in situ catalytic generation of chiral ammonium enolates from carboxylic acids and their employment in catalysis. We also propose to develop a comprehensive mechanistic understanding of these processes. In preliminary work we have delineated a simple and efficient approach to this problem by employing chiral isothioureas as asymmetric catalysts, and we aim to build on the insight provided by these studies to develop this powerful concept into a generally applicable synthetic strategy.
Max ERC Funding
1 497 005 €
Duration
Start date: 2011-10-01, End date: 2017-06-30
