Project description
Metabolic mechanisms in embryonic development
Following fertilisation, the zygote undergoes numerous cleavages or rapid cell divisions to form the developing embryo. This early phase integrates cell-intrinsic and -extrinsic signals but the precise mechanisms that facilitate adaptation to the rapidly changing environment remain largely unknown. Funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the MetEmbryoniC project aims to investigate the role of metabolism as a pivotal regulator of cytoskeletal dynamics and cellular function. Researchers will uncover spatiotemporal metabolic activity and determine metabolic influences on cytoskeleton regulation. Project findings will not only advance knowledge on embryonic development, but also shed light on diseases linked to metabolism such as cancer.
Objective
Multicellular animals development begins with a sequence of rapid cell cycles and divisions, named cleavages, leading to the generation of a large pool of cells, from which the embryo develops. While there are several species-specific types of cleavages, the underlying processes of cell-cycle and cytokinesis, involving characteristic large-scale cytoskeletal reorganizations, are well conserved. Yet, how these processes integrate cell-intrinsic and -extrinsic signals, adapting to the rapidly changing environment of the developing embryo, remains largely unknown. An emerging concept implies cell metabolism as an important factor regulating cytoskeletal elements and, hence, cellular function. Here, I test the hypothesis that during cleavages, specific metabolic elements play an essential role in regulating the cytoskeleton.
To address this hypothesis, I developed an innovative fluxomics approach for analyzing whole-embryo metabolism, combining metabolomics, transcriptomic, and real-time bioenergetics measurements in two different embryonic cleavage pattern models: ascidians and zebrafish. By combining the Heisenberg group's expertise in biomechanics and my expertise in metabolism, I will follow three main lines of research based on the whole-embryo fluxomics data: (1) Characterizing the spatiotemporal metabolic activity in the cleaving embryo; (2) analyzing the function of specific metabolic elements in cytoskeleton regulation during cleavages; and (3) determining the extrinsic factors (temperature and oxygen levels) affecting the mechano-metabolic reactions during cleavages. I expect these findings to provide insight into mechano-metabolic mechanisms that will advance our understanding of embryonic development and shed light on disease-related processes where metabolism and cell division are highly interconnected, such as cancer.
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.
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.
- natural sciences biological sciences developmental biology
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine oncology
- natural sciences biological sciences biophysics
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine embryology
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
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.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
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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
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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
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Call for proposal
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Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01
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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.
3400 KLOSTERNEUBURG
Austria
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