Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Primordial Germ Cells Environmentally-driven fate in Zebrafish

Project description

The role of environmental temperature on fish reproductive cells

Temperature plays a key role in sex determination in many fish and reptile species. Therefore, the effect of climate change on such species remains a subject of great concern. The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) PEZ project aims to study how temperature influences the formation of primordial germ cells (PGC), the undifferentiated stem cells that will form the gametes in the reproductive gland. Researchers will follow a multidisciplinary approach to analyse the profile of PGCs under different temperatures and characterise their fate and activity. Results will advance our knowledge on the role of abiotic factors on fish reproduction with important consequences for species conservation as well as aquaculture.

Objective

In a global climate change scenario with pieces of evidence of abiotic factor changes and the increase of pollutants due to anthropogenic activities, we are starting to accumulate evidence of its effects on animal welfare and physiology. One of these effects is changes in fish sex determination and differentiation processes due to alterations of abiotic and anthropogenic factors. Among these factors, temperature is known to affect sex determination well before the gonads are differentiated, pointing towards an evident interplay between the genetic and environmental factors, even prior to gonad formation at the primordial germ cell (PGCs) stage. However, how temperature controls PGCs and final sex ratios fate is still unknown. In this project, I aim to dissect when and how temperature is controlling the fate of PGCs. Hence, driving the future sex ratio of the population since changes in sex ratios could put at risk future food production and species conservation. To that extent, I propose combining state-of-the-art imaging, genomic, and epigenetic technologies to analyse PGCs transcriptomic and epigenetic landscapes of zebrafish under thermal stress. This project capitalises on combining my background in epigenetics and bioinformatic fields with extensive expertise in developmental biology, fish sex determination and differentiation and spatial transcriptomics of the host labs. This multidisciplinary proposal will explain how temperature increases as predicted on a climate change scenario modulates PGCs fate and identity. These results will significantly advance the field of epigenetics and developmental biology and will impact future food production and species conservation. Finally, the knowledge and skills gained from this project will allow me to become an independent researcher and hopefully enable me to establish my own line of research in Regulatory Genomics applied to aquaculture and marine conservation.

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.

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)

Programme(s)

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.

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.

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

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

(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2021-PF-01

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 181 152,96
Address
CALLE SERRANO 117
28006 MADRID
Spain

See on map

Region
Comunidad de Madrid Comunidad de Madrid Madrid
Activity type
Research Organisations
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
My booklet 0 0