Objective
Recent progress on direct re-programming into functional neurons provides a new approach towards cell-based therapy for neurodegenerative disorders. The induced neurons (iNs) are a novel type of cell resulting from rapid and remarkable conversion of somatic cells into subtype-specific functional neurons. Importantly they are non-proliferating which make them interesting alternatives to induced pluripotent (iPS) cells as sources of patient specific neurons for exogenous cell replacement therapy and disease modeling.
Another major advantage with direct conversion over iPS cells is that the reprogramming could be performed in vivo. While direct conversion has been successful in organs such as the pancreas, where exocrine cells can be directly converted into insulin producing cells by viral injections in vivo (Zhou et al., Nature, 2008), the method is yet to be explored in the brain. Once direct conversion of non-neuronal cells into subtype specific neurons directly in the brain is established, it provides a new strategy for cell based brain repair that do not depend on exogenous cells.
The overall goal of this project is to provide proof-of-principle that induced neurogenesis is achievable in the adult brain through guided transcription factor reprogramming of non-neuronal cells, to determine which cells are best suited as cellular substrate for in vivo neural conversion, and to compare this approach with transplantation of converted fibroblasts.
The ability to directly reprogram cell fate using defined combinations of transcription factors have already turned basic studies of stem cell differentiation and cell therapy into a new direction. Establishing this technique in vivo would be another paradigm-shifting finding that opens up for novel strategies for brain repair
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 medical biotechnology cells technologies stem cells
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine transplantation
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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-2012-StG_20111109
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
22100 LUND
Sweden
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.