Project description
Exploring the sex-specific effects of diet
The development of organisms involves genetic and environmental factors. Organisms also respond to rapidly changing environments – a capability that helps avoid extinction. But scientists know little about the non-genetic mechanisms on adaptation and evolutionary processes. The EU-funded SESAME project will fill this knowledge gap by focusing on the social and diet-induced effects. By studying dietary ecology, it will shed light on the role of non-genetic effects in evolutionary adaptation. Diets, for instance, can maximise components of reproduction and longevity based on the amino acid content of the translated exome of an organism. Also, the project will explore how sex-specific effects may serve to prepare offspring for environmental conditions.
Objective
It is a well-accepted concept that organisms aren’t shaped by their genes alone, but respond variedly to different environments. In recent years it has become evident that these responses to environments are in fact heritable and can be transmitted across generations. In rapidly changing environments this may have important consequences for the ability of populations to adapt and avoid extinction. To date, we know very little about the role of non-genetic mechanisms on adaptation and evolutionary processes, a gap that needs to be filled if we want to be able to understand and predict how climate change is going to affect natural populations. Here, I will harness an emerging framework for the study of dietary ecology, in which diets that maximise components of reproduction and longevity can be created, based on the amino acid content of the translated exome (i.e. the DNA sequence of the coding portions of genes) of an organism. This so-called “exome-matched” diet will help to resolve outstanding questions in the rapidly developing field of non-genetic inheritance, principally by uncovering the role of non-genetic effects in evolutionary adaptation. In addition, sex-specific effects may serve to prepare offspring for environmental conditions in a sex-specific way, but despite fundamentally different reproductive strategies the interacting roles of parental and offspring sex is so far under explored. The project builds upon my expertise with social and diet-induced effects and expands my skills into the fields of optimal nutrition and sexual conflict. Using cutting edge experimental and genomic approaches in collaboration with a major Spanish Research Centre and one of Australia’s top Universities, this project will yield high impact results in evolutionary biology, and act as a springboard for my own academic development, facilitating my transition to becoming an independent group leader.
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 ecology
- natural sciences biological sciences evolutionary biology
- medical and health sciences health sciences nutrition
- natural sciences chemical sciences organic chemistry amines
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences atmospheric sciences climatology climatic changes
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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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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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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.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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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) H2020-MSCA-IF-2018
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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.
28006 MADRID
Spain
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.