Objective
Since a few decades, human patients who suffer from severe illnesses or multiple trauma, conditions that were previously lethal, are being treated in intensive care units (ICUs). Modern intensive care medicine bridges patients from life-threatening conditions to recovery with use of mechanical devices, vasoactive drugs and powerful anti-microbial agents. By postponing death, a new unnatural condition, intensive-care-dependent prolonged (>1 week) critical illness, has been created. About 25% of ICU patients today require prolonged intensive care, sometimes for weeks or months, and these patients are at high risk of death while consuming 75% of resources. Although the primary insult was adequately dealt with, many long-stay patients typically suffer from hypercatabolism, ICU-acquired brain dysfunction and polyneuropathy/myopathy leading to severe muscle weakness, further increasing the risk of late death. As hypercatabolism was considered the culprit, several anabolic interventions were tested, but these showed harm instead of benefit. We previously showed that fasting early during illness is superior to forceful feeding, pointing to certain benefits of catabolic responses. In healthy humans, fasting activates catabolism to provide substrates essential to protect and maintain brain and muscle function. This proposal aims to investigate whether evolutionary conserved catabolic fasting pathways, specifically lipolysis and ketogenesis, can be exploited in the search for prevention of brain dysfunction and muscle weakness in long-stay ICU patients, with the goal to identify a new metabolic intervention to enhance their recovery. The project builds further on our experience with bi-directional translational research - using human material whenever possible and a validated mouse model of sepsis-induced critical illness for objectives that cannot be addressed in patients - and aims to close the loop, from a novel concept to a large randomized controlled trial in patients.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
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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H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - 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.
ERC-ADG - Advanced Grant
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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-2017-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.
3000 LEUVEN
Belgium
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.