Project description
Making sense of the vast expanse between brain cells
Understanding the human brain is one of the biggest scientific challenges. Until now, one aspect that that has been sparsely researched is the extracellular space (ES) of the brain. The ES of the brain is important in the field of neuropharmacology because it is key to the successful delivery of drugs. Also, the importance of the metabolite clearance activity of the ES has led to considering its role in neurodegenerative diseases. To help in the understanding of the ES, the Hippocampus Extracellular Space Simulator Project (HESSP) is going to be executed. The EU-funded HESSP project goal is to develop a software that simulates the diffusion process of endogenous and exogenous substances in the ES of the mouse’s hippocampus.
Objective
Understanding the human brain is one of the biggest scientific challenges of the 21st century, and this endeavor has led the European Union to launch the Human Brain Project (HBP) as a FET flagship project. However, even a flagship project such as the HBP cannot study all aspects of the human brain. One aspect that is not covered by the HBP is the extracellular space (ES). The ES of the brain is important in the field of neuropharmacology because it is key to the successful delivery of drugs to the neurons. Also, the importance of the metabolite clearance activity of the ES has led to proposing that a dysfunction of this process plays a role in neurodegenerative diseases. However, to the best of the eligible researchers knowledge, no initiative exists to create an ES simulation software that improves the research.
To address this lack of simulation software, this proposal presents the Hippocampus Extracellular Space Simulator Project (HESSP). The HESSPs goal is to develop a simulation software for how substances released by neurons and chemical substances that pass the blood-brain barrier diffuse through the ES. Specifically, the HESSP will create a software that simulates the diffusion process in the ES of the mouses hippocampus. The HESSP is an interdisciplinary project that involves computer science, neuroscience and pharmacology, and it addresses the challenge of developing a software architecture to simulate a diffusion process highly complex due to its number of elements formed. The hippocampus was chosen because it is a well-known structure, the results can be tested, and it is the earliest brain structure affected in Alzheimers disease (AD). The HESSP will open a frontier line of research at the host university in collaboration with leading scientists in ES and neurodegenerative diseases. Additionally, the eligible researcher will acquire frontier knowledge in the simulation of complex biophysical processes and in neuroscience.
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 neurobiology
- natural sciences computer and information sciences software
- medical and health sciences basic medicine neurology dementia alzheimer
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pharmacology and pharmacy
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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-2019
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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.
37008 Salamanca
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.