Objective
Small silencing RNAs regulate gene expression in nearly all eukaryotes and have enormous biotechnological and therapeutic potential. MicroRNAs belong to the larges family of trans-acting gene regulatory molecules in multicellular organisms. In flies and mammals, they control more than half of the protein-coding transcriptome, and act as key regulators of organismal development, physiology, and disease.
Here, we propose to study the molecular mechanisms that regulate microRNA homeostasis. We aim to understand how distinct small RNA profiles are established and maintained to coordinate the expression of more than half of all protein coding genes in flies and mammals. Our studies will provide insight into the processes that regulate the function of miRNAs, determine possible causes for aberrant miRNA levels, that have been associated with human diseases, and provide guidelines how to efficiently inhibit miRNA function for analytical and therapeutic purposes.
We aim to identify and characterize the molecular determinants of microRNA stability, to dissect the pathways that promote the sequence-specific degradation of microRNAs, and to understand the biological consequences and therapeutic potential of small RNA decay. We will develop novel tools to obtain a view on the intracellular dynamics of RNA silencing pathways, in order to determine the molecular features associated with small RNA biogenesis and decay.
Because of its genetic and biochemical tools, we will use Drosophila melanogaster as a model organism. We will employ a combination of bioinformatics, cell-free biochemical experiments, cell culture methods, and in vivo genetics. What we learn in flies we will test in vitro in mammalian cell extracts, in cultured human cell lines and in vivo in mice to identify where these processes are conserved and where they diverge.
Overall, our goal is to determine fundamental biological mechanisms of RNA silencing, a phenomenon with enormous biological and biomedical impact.
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
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics RNA
- natural sciences biological sciences zoology mammalogy
- medical and health sciences basic medicine physiology homeostasis
You need to log in or register to use this function
We are sorry... an unexpected error occurred during execution.
You need to be authenticated. Your session might have expired.
Thank you for your feedback. You will soon receive an email to confirm the submission. If you have selected to be notified about the reporting status, you will also be contacted when the reporting status will change.
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-2013-StG
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
1030 WIEN
Austria
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.