Grant winners

BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES RESEARCH COUNCIL

ERASysBio+ scheme

Sixteen transnational projects have received EUR24 million (£20 million) in funding under ERASysBio+, an initiative involving ministries and funding agencies from 13 countries that seeks to coordinate national research in systems biology and agree a common European research agenda. These transnational projects will address pressing global issues including food security, healthy ageing and diseases such as cancer and tuberculosis. The 13 projects listed this week and next involve UK-based organisations and will receive a total of EUR7.7 million from the BBSRC.

Award winners: Lee Sweetlove, University of Oxford, and David Fell, Oxford Brookes University

BBSRC funding: EUR710,000

Total funding: EUR1.1 million

FRIM - fruit integrative modelling

Award winner: James Murray

Institution: Cardiff University

BBSRC funding: EUR720,000

Total funding: EUR1.4 million

iSAM - integrative systems analysis of the shoot apical meristem

Award winner: Francesco Falciani

Institution: University of Birmingham

BBSRC funding: EUR380,000

Total funding: EUR1.1 million

LINCONET - modelling the gene regulatory network underlying lineage commitment in human mesenchymal stem cells: identification of drug targets for the anabolic treatment of degenerative disorders

Award winner: Magnus Rattray

Institution: University of Manchester

BBSRC funding: EUR440,000

Total funding: EUR2.1 million

SYNERGY - systems approach to gene regulation biology through nuclear receptors

Award winners: Chris Proud, University of Southampton, and J. Douglas Armstrong, University of Edinburgh

BBSRC funding: EUR610,000

Total funding: EUR700,000

SynProt - a systems biological approach to elucidate local protein synthesis code in plasticity and memory

Award winner: Brigitta Stockinger

Institution: MRC National Institute for Medical Research London

BBSRC funding: EUR380,000

Total funding: EUR900,000

LymphoSys - signalling pathways and gene regulatory networks responsible for Th17 cell differentiation

Award winners: Vincent Jansen, Royal Holloway, University of London, and Gary Coulton, St George's, University of London

BBSRC funding: EUR1. million

Total funding: EUR2.8 million

SHIPREC (salmonella host interactions project European consortium) - living with uninvited guests - comparing plant and animal responses to endocytic invasions

For the remaining winners, see Times Higher Education next week

IN DETAIL

Award winner: Andrzej Kierzek

Institution: University of Surrey

BBSRC funding: EUR530,000

Total funding: EUR1.3 million

TB-HOST-NET

With drug-resistant strains of tuberculosis emerging in many countries, there is now a need for the development of new therapeutic approaches and vaccines to shorten TB treatment and combat resilient strains. This project will analyse the interaction between Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the pathogen that causes most cases of TB, and the human immune system as it seeks to deliver models that can be used in the creation of therapeutic, diagnostic and vaccination strategies.