Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English en
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Improving Life expectancy of LUNG transplant recipients through innovative ex vivo perfusion gene therapy

Project description

Gene therapy to improve lung transplant outcomes

Lung transplantation remains the definitive treatment for individuals with end-stage pulmonary disease. However, post-transplant survival rates are low due to immune rejection and the complications caused by reperfusion injury. Standard immunosuppressive treatments have demonstrated limited efficacy in preventing reperfusion injury, highlighting the need for alternative strategies. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the LifeLUNG project proposes to precondition donor lungs before transplantation with a dual approach that combines ex vivo lung perfusion and gene therapy. Researchers will utilise advanced machine learning and deep sequencing to identify key immune and gene targets of reperfusion injury. LifeLUNG will develop advanced delivery vehicles to ensure specific genetic modulation of lung grafts.

Objective

Patient survival after lung transplantation (LTx) for end-stage pulmonary disease is poor (5-year survival rate of 59%) due to ischemia reperfusion injury (IRI) and graft rejection. No therapies are available to prevent IRI, and current immunosuppression causes toxicity and morbidity. Novel strategies are required that can mask the graft from the recipient’s immune system

The LifeLUNG initiative unites the critical building blocks available in Europe to advance towards a novel paradigm for LTx. Ex vivo lung perfusion (EVLP) is a clinically used platform to maintain active lung physiology outside the body, making pre-LTx organ engineering a reality. The project aims to advancing EVLP technology to enhance our understanding of transplant rejection through accessible models. By utilizing biobanks of lung biopsies from both clinical LTx cases and established animal models of IRI and rejection, LifeLUNG will apply advanced machine learning and AI-driven deep sequencing to identify key immune factors and gene targets. The latter will be targeted in LifeLUNG with gene therapeutic agents (GTAs) that can be delivered during EVLP to selectively modulate immune responses. Several delivery tools including adeno-associated viral vectors, virus-like particles and lipid nanoparticles, will be tailored to ensure precise and graft-specific gene modulation, enhancing the therapeutic potential for reducing IRI and preventing rejection. Also the efficient production strategies of these GTAs will be an integral part of LifeLUNG. In parallel, LifeLUNG will explore the economic and ethical paradigms of genetic modification of lung transplantation and reflect its implementation into the broader research and clinical framework.

The interdisciplinary nature of LifeLUNG will support the training of 15 doctoral candidates across clinical, academic, and industrial sectors, fostering collaboration and the development of transferable skills to advance the research objectives.

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.

Keywords

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.

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.

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.

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-DN - HORIZON TMA MSCA Doctoral Networks

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.

(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2024-DN-01

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVEN
Net EU contribution

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.

€ 1 057 980,00
Address
OUDE MARKT 13
3000 LEUVEN
Belgium

See on map

Region
Vlaams Gewest Prov. Vlaams-Brabant Arr. Leuven
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

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.

No data

Participants (11)

Partners (12)

My booklet 0 0