IMProving User experience, Long-term sustainability and Services of EU-OPENSCREEN

Project Information

IMPULSE

Grant agreement ID: 101132028

DOI

10.3030/101132028

EC signature date 27 October 2023

Start date 1 March 2024

End date 28 February 2027

Funded under

• Research infrastructures

Total cost

€ 4 999 981,26

EU contribution

€ 3 999 985,00

Coordinated by

EUROPEAN INFRASTRUCTURE OF OPEN SCREENING PLATFORMS FOR CHEMICAL BIOLOGY EUROPEAN RESEARCH INFRASTUCTURE CONSORTIUM (EU-OPENSCREEN ERIC)
Germany

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - IMPULSE (IMProving User experience, Long-term sustainability and Services of EU-OPENSCREEN)

Reporting period: 2024-03-01 to 2025-08-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

EU-OPENSCREEN ERIC, the European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) for Chemical Biology and Early Drug Discovery, provides open access to Europe’s leading compound screening and omics platforms and chemistry expertise, enabling researchers to identify and develop novel bioactive molecules. The distributed RI comprises 33 partner sites in 10 countries, supported by a central compound management facility and open-access European Chemical Biology Database (ECBD). IMPULSE strengthens and complements EU-OPENSCREEN by advancing its services, data quality, user engagement, and sustainability.
IMPULSE addresses the evolving needs of the life sciences community by expanding EU-OPENSCREEN's service portfolio, improving data quality, engaging new user communities, and strengthening long-term sustainability. New services integrate chemoproteomics, spatial omics, advanced disease models, medicinal chemistry of emerging modalities, and AI-driven mode-of-action prediction.
The project enhances data FAIRness, reproducibility, and interoperability; expands targeted communication and training; and consolidates EU-OPENSCREEEN’s financial and strategic foundation by engaging new ERIC member countries. Through these measures, IMPULSE reinforces Europe’s capacity for collaborative, open, and high-quality drug discovery, contributing to the goals of the European Research Area (ERA) and the EU’s health and innovation strategies.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

During the first reporting period, IMPULSE advanced the scientific and technical capacity of EU-OPENSCREEN through the development of new services, data standards, and collaborative research capabilities.
A new service category in chemoproteomics and spatial MS-based omics was launched, with three new partner sites integrated following external evaluation. EU-OPENSCREEN access procedures and management tools were refined to accommodate new service capacities.
Global engagement of the chemistry community (WP2) resulted in 16 Material Transfer Agreements and sharing of ca. 2,000 new compounds, which were integrated into EU-OPENSCREEN’s growing open compound collection, fostering new interdisciplinary collaborations.
Advanced disease models and genetic screening capabilities (WP3) were mapped and validated through 10 demonstrator projects, expanding the service portfolio. WP4 developed and validated services for new chemical modalities, e.g. fluorescent and covalent probes, targeted degraders (PROTACs, RIBOTACs), and allosteric modulators.
Data quality and interoperability were improved under WP5 with common standards, validated assays, and preparations for an interlaboratory comparison study. WP6 initiated the development of AI/ML approaches for mode-of-action prediction and prepared curated datasets integrating chemical and morphological data.
WP7 delivered targeted technical and managerial training, while WP8 deepened collaboration with industry, implementing joint projects in assay development and early-stage drug discovery.
An Ethics Registry (WP11) was launched under independent oversight to ensure compliance across ten ethical domains.
Collectively, these achievements expanded EU-OS’s technical service portfolio, improved data FAIRness, and strengthened Europe’s capacity for collaborative, open-access chemical biology and drug discovery.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

IMPULSE has advanced EU-OPENSCREEN ERIC beyond the current state-of-the-art by integrating new technologies, data frameworks, and collaborative models that strengthen chemical biology and early drug discovery in Europe. The project has already introduced capabilities in chemoproteomics and spatial MS-based omics, while actively developing validated services for advanced disease models, emerging chemical modalities 8e.g. targeted degraders), and AI/ML-based methods for mode-of-action prediction. These efforts are supported by harmonised standards for data quality and interoperability across partner sites.
Through its open compound sharing initiative, IMPULSE expanded the European Academic Compound Library with nearly 2,000 new compound submissions from chemists worldwide, fostering interdisciplinary collaborations. Demonstrator projects validated emerging modalities—including fluorescent probes, degraders (PROTACs, RIBOTACs), and multi-target ligands—strengthening Europe’s capacity to generate high-quality chemical tools.
Ongoing efforts in AI/ML pipeline development and dataset curation are laying the foundation for predictive, data-driven discovery, while targeted training and industry engagement promote the adoption of these innovations. Collectively, these achievements enhance the scientific excellence, sustainability, and innovation capacity of EU-OPENSCREEN, reinforcing Europe’s global leadership in chemical biology and translational research.

IMPULSE Work-packages structure and synergies with EU-OPENSCREEN core activities