Objective
"The evolution of antibiotic resistance poses an important threat to human health and welfare. Antibiotic resistance is accompanied by fitness costs that have been shown to play a key role in the spread of resistance. These costs are variable, but the underlying ecological and genetic causes of this variation remain obscure. Unfortunately, bacteria can adapt to the cost of resistance by compensatory mutations, and this permits resistance to be maintained in pathogen populations after antibiotics have been withdrawn from use. Resistance mutations vary in their potential for compensatory adaptation, but the causes of this variation remain unknown. In this project, we will determine how the molecular mechanisms of antibiotic resistance and the (i) ecological and (ii) genetic context in which resistance evolves interact to determine (a) the fitness costs associated with antibiotic resistance and (b) the potential and mechanisms for adaptation to the cost of resistance. Conceptually, we will approach this problem using an interdisciplinary approach that combines theory from population genetics and systems biology into the same evolutionary framework. To carry out this research program, we will use high-throughput experimental evolution of resistance to the broad-spectrum antibiotic rifampicin in bacteria from the genus Pseudomonas. This research approach will allow us to measure both the costs of resistance and the (i) rate and (ii) mechanisms of compensation for this cost at an unprecedented scale. The results of this research program will provide key insights into the underlying drivers of resistance emergence and persistence, and it may ultimately be possible to apply the insights from this research program to help combat resistance in pathogen populations. At a more conceptual level, this research will provide an important experimental test of the roles of chance, necessity, and historical contingency in shaping the rate and mechanisms of adaptation."
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: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences microbiology bacteriology
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics mutation
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pharmacology and pharmacy pharmaceutical drugs antibiotics
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pharmacology and pharmacy drug resistance antibiotic resistance
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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
OX1 2JD Oxford
United Kingdom
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.