Objective
Immune-mediated disorders such as allergy and autoimmunity are major public health problems. In the past 40 years the incidence of these diseases has risen dramatically in developed countries. Epidemiological studies have revealed a clear correlation between disease susceptibility and improvements in hygiene. For example, children with older siblings show a reduced prevalence of asthma, multiple sclerosis (MS), and Type 1 diabetes (T1D), and infants (<1year) that attend daycare centers show reduced incidence of atopic dermatitis and asthma. Whilst there is a clear genetic component to each of these diseases, development is a result of a complex interplay between genes, environment, and the immune system. Therefore, in genetically stable populations changes in the environment, which impact on immune development and regulation, must account for the observed increase in disease susceptibility. The “Hygiene Hypothesis” originally proposed that the increased incidence of allergic disease was due to decreased microbial exposure early in life, particularly during early childhood as the immune system develops. However, the immune mechanisms underlying the hygiene hypothesis remain elusive and our understanding of how hygiene, pathogen exposure, and environmental bacterial diversity might lower the susceptibility to allergy and autoimmunity is extremely limited. This research project will make use of state-of-the-art germ-free and gnotobiotic (controlled microbial status) animal models to elucidate the precise immunological mechanisms that are affected by decreased microbial exposure. Understanding the way in which environmental microbes influence immune development and regulation will lay the groundwork for treatment regimes aimed at reducing the rise in allergic and autoimmune diseases. More importantly, a greater understanding of how hygiene levels impact on disease development should lead to a greater ability to prevent, and not just treat, such diseases.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/euroscivoc.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/euroscivoc.
- medical and health sciences health sciences public health
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine pneumology asthma
- medical and health sciences basic medicine neurology multiple sclerosis
- medical and health sciences basic medicine immunology autoimmune diseases
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine allergology
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
ERC-2011-StG_20101109
See other projects for this call
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Host institution
3012 Bern
Switzerland
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.