Objective
Dysregulation of cGMP is a pathological hallmark of inherited retinal degenerations (RD) affecting photoreceptors, the sensory cells of the retina. These RDs, including Retinitis Pigmentosa, Lebers Congenital Amaurosis, and Achromatopsia, are major causes of blindness, affecting approximately one in every 2000 individuals worldwide, and remain without effective treatment. In photoreceptors, cGMP is produced by retinal guanylyl cyclase (GC). The two main cGMP targets are cyclic nucleotide gated ion channels (CNGC) and cGMP-dependent protein kinase (PKG). Since attenuation of PKG and CNGC activity can reduce photoreceptor cell death, both proteins constitute potential targets to prevent RD. Recent data suggest that blocking retinal GC may also constitute a viable therapeutic approach.
This consortium will study and develop targeted compounds and delivery systems aimed at preventing photoreceptor damage in preclinical disease models. Towards this goal, two SMEs have teamed up with three academic research groups focused on retinal degeneration: the German company BIOLOG specializes on development of cyclic nucleotide based drugs targeting PKG, CNGC, and GC; the Dutch company to-BBB develops systems to deliver drugs across the blood brain/retinal barrier (BBB, BRB, resp.); the groups of V. Marigo (Modena, Italy), P. Ekström (Lund, Sweden), and F. Paquet-Durand (Tübingen, Germany) have a strong and joint collaborative track record of studying photoreceptor degenerative mechanisms as well as on testing and evaluating drug treatment effects. Manufacturing of the most promising drugs fitted to a suitable delivery system will be scaled up towards clinical-size batches and studied towards efficacy, toxicology and off-target effects in model animals. The results of the project will allow the SMEs to further co-develop these drugs towards translation into clinical studies, addressing the high needs of RD patients and the high economic benefit of such therapies.
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.
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules proteins
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine ophthalmology
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics nucleotides
- medical and health sciences basic medicine toxicology
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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.
FP7-HEALTH-2012-INNOVATION-2
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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.
Coordinator
72074 Tuebingen
Germany
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.