Periodic Reporting for period 2 - PhenolAcTwin (ENHANCING RESEARCH AND INNOVATION CAPACITY OF TUBITAK MRC FOOD INSTITUTE ON DIETARY POLYPHENOLS AND BIOAVAILABILITY/ BIOEFFICACY)
Reporting period: 2022-03-01 to 2024-05-31
PhenolAcTwin aimed to contribute to “Vision Document” of Joint Programming Initiative (JPI): “A Healthy Diet for a Healthy Life” and 11th Development Plan of Turkey with relevant thematic priorities with project partners TUBITAK (Türkiye), CSIC (Spain), QIB (United Kingdom), and INRAE (France).
The main objective of this project is to enhance the research and innovation capacity of TUBITAK on dietary polyphenols focusing on their bioavailability and bioefficacy. In order to achieve the project objective six (6) major objectives (OBJ) have been set.
OBJ1: To support research profile of human resources, especially the young researchers
OBJ2: To enhance the research and innovation capacity of TUBITAK
OBJ3: To improve networking of TUBITAK with leading partners/other related stakeholders
OBJ4: To improve capability of TUBITAK for future collaborations
OBJ5: To spread the impact of the Twinning Project
OBJ6: To improve proposal preparation and project management/administration skills of TUBITAK
1. Expert Visits: 3 visits from each leading partner aimed to assess the current situation of TUBITAK, which served for the exchange of knowledge and methodologies, potentially leading to the integration of cutting-edge techniques and insights beyond current practices.
2. Trainings (Short-term and on-site/virtual): 5 Short-term trainings focused on capacity building by introducing new methodologies or technologies that surpass existing capabilities in the field.
3. Technical Visits: These 9 visits involved sharing advanced technical know-how, improving networking, forming new consortia and submitting new projects as the outcomes of technical visits.
4. Staff Exchanges: 3 Short-term staff exchanges at each partner institution facilitated the development of skill and career of researchers from TUBITAK, improved networking, and prepared joint publication, and future collaborative research projects.
5. Summer Schools: 4 Summer schools covering different topics, fostered intensive learning and collaboration, potentially pushing the boundaries of current knowledge for the young researchers.
6. External and Internal Research Project Group Meetings: A total of 6 regular meetings served to analyze current situation, identify gaps, further needs, and explore opportunities in defined scientific area.
7. Success Story Meetings: In 4 meetings, partners presented diverse projects they had coordinated, offering inspiration for project concepts and writing, and sharing their project management experiences through real-life examples.
8. Trainings on Project Management and Proposal Preparation: A total of 12 trainings served for enhancing the skills necessary for efficient project execution and successful proposal development.
9. Info Days, Conferences, Workshops, Open Days and Seminars: These activities served for disseminating new findings, methodologies, and technologies, leveraging networking, scientific presentations, exchange of knowledge, and showcasing infrastructure of TUBITAK.
10. Organizing an International Conference: The ISNFF 2022 included participation of delegates from 28 countries with 217 presentations (134 orals and 83 posters).. A specific session for PhenolAcTwin Project was planned to disseminate PhenolAcTwin project. Organizing ISNFF 2022 helped TUBITAK reach targeted audience, improve networking, increasing the visibility, gaining new ideas from the presentations.
11. Web and Social Media Presence: Active usage of webpage and other social media platforms had an impact on dissemination and exploitation of the project and effectively increase visibility and dissemination. Overall, more than 1,100 staff/actors visited the web page and 15,500 social media accounts.
By the end of the project, we achieved integration of state-of-the-art techniques and methodologies in dietary polyphenols and bioavailability/bioefficacy, significantly enhancing our capabilities. Through intensive trainings, including Expert visits, Technical visits, and specialized Workshops, participants developed advanced skills and competencies, enabling them to develop projects that offer new alternatives and products to the current state. Our research outcomes were disseminated through high-impact publications in renowned scientific journals, reflecting substantial advancements and influencing future research directions. Moreover, active participation in international conferences and collaborative meetings elevated our visibility, networking and reputation in the global scientific community, underscoring our contributions to advancing the field and fostering impactful innovations.
Through the PhenolAcTwin project, we strongly believe that its activities and outputs have had a significant impact on young researchers, providing training opportunities, networking activities, on-site trainings, and staff exchanges. Additionally, Summer schools were accessible to all young researchers. With events such as Open Days, Info Days, Seminars, and International Conferences, PhenolAcTwin aimed to create broader societal impact by raising awareness of the bioavailability and bioefficacy of dietary polyphenols. By applying newly acquired techniques and methodologies from PhenolAcTwin to new projects, we anticipate that the outputs of both PhenolAcTwin and these new projects will potentially yield socio-economic benefits through the development of new and healthier products.