Project description
Studying persister cells for new cancer treatments
Many cancer patients relapse because tumours contain both genetically mutated cells and persister cells, which can withstand treatment without carrying identifiable mutations. The lack of tools to study these cells has limited our understanding. Advances in molecular profiling and access to patient samples offer new research opportunities. The ERC-funded CancerPersisters project will combine advanced single-cell lineage tracing techniques with functional approaches to identify factors that enable persister cells to escape therapy-induced senescence. It will explore how cellular processes determine the duration of drug-induced arrest and how epigenetic memory affects responses to therapy. By developing tools to study persister cells, the project will potentially lead to new cancer drugs that increase cancer cells’ sensitivity to subsequent treatments.
Objective
Despite tremendous progress in cancer therapy, many patients still succumb to the disease following an initial successful response to treatment. In addition to the long-appreciated contribution of genetically mutated cells to disease recurrence, persister cells, a rare subpopulation of cells that evade therapy in the absence of any known resistance-mediating mutation, have recently emerged as orthogonal drivers of therapy failure. While there has been much progress in targeting genetic resistance, the paucity of molecular tools that can capture persister traits, as well as the lack of a robust methodological framework for their study have significantly hampered our understanding and ability to target persister cells. Nevertheless, recent breakthroughs in molecular profiling techniques, as well as growing access to human residual disease clinical samples, now provide the opportunity to uncover the molecular underpinnings of this crucial cellular state. In this project, I propose to combine state-of-the-art single-cell lineage tracing techniques with functional approaches to (1) identify the determinants that control the ability of persister cells to escape therapy-induced senescence; (2) elucidate the cellular processes that govern the duration of persister drug-induced arrest; (3) investigate how epigenetic memory shapes persisters response to subsequent cycles of therapy. CancerPersisters will establish the tools that are needed in order to study key persister traits and further our understanding of this important cancer phenotype. Successful completion of this project may instruct the development of new classes of cancer drugs that can resensitize patients to subsequent cycles of therapy by erasing cellular memory and increase progression-free survival by modulating the duration of drug-induced arrest.
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 genetics mutation
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine oncology
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)
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.
-
HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
See all projects funded under this programme
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.
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.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
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.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2023-STG
See all projects funded under this callHost institution
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.
69978 Tel Aviv
Israel
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.