Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS
Content archived on 2024-05-30

Modeling cytoplasmic trafficking and molecular delivery in cellular microdomains

Objective

Cytoplasmic motion is a key determinant of organelle transport, protein-protein interactions, RNA transport and drug delivery, to name but a few cellular phenomena. Nucleic acid trafficking is important in antisense and gene therapy based on viral and synthetic vectors. This proposal is dedicated to the theoretical study of intracellular transport of proteins, organelles and DNA particles. We propose to construct a mathematical model to quantify and predict the spatiotemporal dynamics of complex structures in the cytosol and the nucleus, based on the physical characteristics and the micro-rheology of the environment (viscosity). We model the passive motion of proteins or DNA as free or confined diffusion, while for the organelle and virus motion, we will include active cytoskeleton-dependent transport. The proposed mathematical model of cellular trafficking is based on physical principles. We propose to estimate the mean arrival time and the probability of viruses and plasmid DNA to arrive to a nuclear pore. The motion will be described by stochastic dynamics, containing both a drift (along microtubules) and a Brownian (free diffusion) component. The analysis of the equations requires the development of new asymptotic methods for the calculation of the probability and the mean arrival time of a particle to a small hole on the nucleus surface. We will extend the analysis to DNA movement in the nucleus after cellular irradiation, when the nucleus contains single and double broken DNA strands (dbDNAs). The number of remaining DNA breaks determines the activation of the repair machinery and the cell decision to enter into apoptosis. We will study the dsbDNA repair machinery engaged in the task of finding the DNA damage. We will formulate and analyze, both numerically and analytically, the equations that link the level of irradiation to apoptosis. The present project belongs to the new class of initiatives toward a quantitative analysis of intracellular trafficking.

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.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

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.

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

ERC-2007-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.

ERC-SG - ERC Starting Grant

Host institution

ECOLE NORMALE SUPERIEURE
EU contribution
€ 597 820,80
Address
45, RUE D'ULM
75230 Paris
France

See on map

Region
Ile-de-France Ile-de-France Paris
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

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.

No data

Beneficiaries (2)

My booklet 0 0