Periodic Reporting for period 1 - EUREMAP (European Research Infrastructure for Marine Bioprospecting)
Berichtszeitraum: 2024-01-01 bis 2025-06-30
The main EUREMAP objective is to combine complementary expertise in chemical biology, marine biology, and data science into a unique, RI-based, pan-European service platform for marine natural product discovery. The EUREMAP project has made progress towards optimizing the marine bioprospecting pipeline in Europe through increased collaboration across the multidisciplinary consortium of EU-OPENSCREEN, EMBRC, and ELIXIR. By aligning its efforts with its core aims, the project has advanced the development of tools and technologies to enhance sustainability, accessibility, and efficiency in marine biodiscovery. The detailed progress below describes the steps forward to make an impact on the scientific community and industry.
Key achievements by work package:
• WP1 (Project Management): Established governance structures, communication rules, and project templates, ensuring efficient coordination across partners.
• WP3 (In Silico Tools): Delivered a cutting-edge pipeline for BGC discovery and initiated eukaryotic BGC analysis.
• WP5 (Service Integration): Harmonized protocols across infrastructures, enabling tailored services for diverse user needs.
• WP8 (Natural Products Chemistry): Developed a comprehensive service portfolio, integrating expertise and technologies for natural product discovery.
• WP11 & WP12 (Data Management): Published the EUREMAP Data Interoperability Roadmap and implemented tools for open data sharing (e.g. OpenAIRE Argos, Zenodo).
• WP13 (Industry Engagement): Established procedures for industry collaboration and identified service needs through targeted engagement activities.
• WP15 & WP16 (Training): Delivered training resources, initiated staff exchanges, and organized workshops to build capacity in marine bioprospecting.
• WP19 (Communication): Developed a Communication and Dissemination Plan, launched a professional toolkit, and enhanced project visibility through social media and events.
• WP1 (Project Management): Established governance structures, communication rules, and project templates, ensuring efficient coordination across partners.
• WP3 (In Silico Tools): Delivered a cutting-edge pipeline for BGC discovery and initiated eukaryotic BGC analysis.
• WP5 (Service Integration): Harmonized protocols across infrastructures, enabling tailored services for diverse user needs.
• WP8 (Natural Products Chemistry): Developed a comprehensive service portfolio, integrating expertise and technologies for natural product discovery.
• WP11 & WP12 (Data Management): Published the EUREMAP Data Interoperability Roadmap and implemented tools for open data sharing (e.g. OpenAIRE Argos, Zenodo).
• WP13 (Industry Engagement): Established procedures for industry collaboration and identified service needs through targeted engagement activities.
• WP15 & WP16 (Training): Delivered training resources, initiated staff exchanges, and organized workshops to build capacity in marine bioprospecting.
• WP19 (Communication): Developed a Communication and Dissemination Plan, launched a professional toolkit, and enhanced project visibility through social media and events.
Before EUREMAP, there was no single Research Infrastructure (RI) dedicated to marine bioprospecting- biotechnology—an emerging pillar of the blue economy. This makes EUREMAP particularly timely, as it directly addresses this critical gap. EUREMAP unites three complementary RIs—EU-OPENSCREEN, EMBRC, and ELIXIR—and, through structuring, integrating, customizing, and developing services, creates a technical pipeline that links genomics, culturomics, green chemistry, marine natural compounds, and data management to industry valorization, training, and capacity building.
The initial phase of the project has made significant progress and impact by transforming fragmented expertise along the bioprospecting pipeline for new marine natural products into an organized service pipeline with greater visibility for potential users in both science and industry. The data management and service models developed have improved data sharing, ensuring better translation to industry applications. The barrier that will continue to need emphasis is to remove the technology limitations to support full exploitation of the biotech applications for Blue bioeconomy industry. The training catalog and gap analysis are expected to address the lack of training in this interdisciplinary field. Additionally, our social media engagement and face-to-face meetings have helped promote the intentions and scope of Research Infrastructures (RIs). These efforts aim to increase awareness within the broader scientific community, thereby enhancing the impact of EUREMAP. EUREMAP has also achieved increased synergies between research infrastructures, contributing to informed decision-making and broadening the scope of the RI landscape.
The initial phase of the project has made significant progress and impact by transforming fragmented expertise along the bioprospecting pipeline for new marine natural products into an organized service pipeline with greater visibility for potential users in both science and industry. The data management and service models developed have improved data sharing, ensuring better translation to industry applications. The barrier that will continue to need emphasis is to remove the technology limitations to support full exploitation of the biotech applications for Blue bioeconomy industry. The training catalog and gap analysis are expected to address the lack of training in this interdisciplinary field. Additionally, our social media engagement and face-to-face meetings have helped promote the intentions and scope of Research Infrastructures (RIs). These efforts aim to increase awareness within the broader scientific community, thereby enhancing the impact of EUREMAP. EUREMAP has also achieved increased synergies between research infrastructures, contributing to informed decision-making and broadening the scope of the RI landscape.