Project description
A physiologically accurate heart model
To understand heart disease and develop new therapies, researchers need accurate cardiac models. Animal models do not faithfully recapitulate the physiology of the human heart, while stem cell-derived models remain too immature for testing drugs. The ERC-funded CardioGROWTH project aims to address this by developing a human organoid that reproduces key stages of heart development such as myocardial compaction, vascularisation and maturation. Researchers will combine advanced imaging and molecular profiling to deliver a physiologically accurate model of the human heart. This model could be used for disease prediction and drug discovery and for testing regenerative treatments.
Objective
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading global cause of death. Yet, breakthroughs in cardiac therapies are limited due to the poor predictive power of current models. While the animals fail to accurately replicate human heart physiology, the human pluripotent stem cell-derived models remain underdeveloped and immature for reliable disease modeling and therapy development. To address these challenges, we propose to further develop our cardiac organoid (“cardioid”) model and recapitulate the key stages of heart growth, including trabeculation, compaction, vascularization, and postnatal hypertrophy, resulting in physiological-like maturation. We hypothesize that these processes lead synergistically to postnatal heart maturation. Guided by developmental principles, we will combine signaling, metabolic, and genetic manipulations, as well as quantitative morphometric, functional, and molecular readouts on our high throughput cardioid platform. By leveraging advanced technologies (e.g. light sheet microscopy and single-cell proteomics), we will develop a physiologically relevant cardiac model that enables predictive cardiac disease modeling and drug discovery, paving the way for innovative therapies and regenerative medicine.
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.
This project's classification has been human-validated.
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.
This project's classification has been human-validated.
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.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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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
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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-2024-ADG
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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.
1030 Wien
Austria
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.