Objective
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) encodes 13 essential subunits of the oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) system, the machinery that generates most of the cell’s ATP. The remaining ~1200 proteins required for mitochondrial function are encoded in the nucleus. Proper expression and maintenance of mtDNA are therefore indispensable: defects compromise OXPHOS and cause a wide spectrum of human disease, ranging from inherited mitochondrial disorders to age-related pathologies.
Over the past two decades, my laboratory has developed experimental systems, including the first in vitro reconstitutions of human mtDNA transcription (2002) and replication (2004), and integrated them with structural and cell biology approaches. This work helped define the transcription and replication machineries and identified key regulatory elements that cluster within the ~1.1 kb non-coding region (NCR). The NCR contains promoters for transcription and initiation/termination sites for replication, and is the central site coordinating genome expression and copy number control.
Yet the regulatory role of the NCR remains unexplored. This project moves beyond enzymatic mechanisms to define the regulatory principles of this control region, addressing long-standing questions that have remained unresolved. We will determine how transcription and replication are coordinated, how promoter firing is timed, and how these processes integrate to maintain genome stability. Our recent discoveries, including the molecular function of conserved non-coding 7S RNA and the identification of a human-specific promoter (LSP2), now make these key questions tractable.
This will be the first comprehensive definition of the NCR in mitochondrial genome regulation. By combining biochemistry with cellular approaches, we will resolve how mtDNA copy number is controlled and how genome stability is safeguarded, transforming understanding of mitochondrial genetics and its disruption in ageing and disease.
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 biochemistry biomolecules proteins
- natural sciences biological sciences cell biology
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pathology
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics RNA
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics genomes
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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.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
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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-2025-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.
405 30 Goeteborg
Sweden
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.