Objective
A full understanding of the structure-activity relationship in proteins is becoming a major challenge of the post-genomic area. Solving this problem requires multidisciplinary studies in which the functional characteristics of a protein are analyzed and correlated with its structural features. Young scientists are needed who can master various subsets of the large number of techniques involved in this approach. Metallo-Beta-lactamases offer a nearly ideal object for this type of research. They constitute a rather diverse family of enzymes with only a very small number of residues strictly conserved in all proteins but the known 3-D structures are clearly related. Similarly, very different specificity profiles have been observed. Depending upon the enzyme, the most active form contains one or two Zn ^++ ions. These can be replaced by other transition metal divalent cations (Co^++, Cd), with concomitant modifications of the activity profiles. The projected studies will rest on the most up-to-date techniques for the analysis of the protein-metal, protein-substrate and protein-inhibitor interaction and for structural analyses. In consequence, significant technological improvement can be expected and it will be possible to apply this new knowledge to other Zn-hydrolases, some of which are of great biological and clinical interest, for instance the matrix metalloproteases. Finally, the emergence of metallo-Beta-lactamase-producing pathogenic strains represents a worrying clinical problem because they can hydrolyze carbapenems, often utilized as last-resort antibiotics and escape the action of the in activators designed against the active-site-serine Beta- lactamases. The genes encoding several MBLs are plasmid or transposon-borne, which makes their spreading by selective pressure a frightening possibility. For this reason, an important part of the project will be devoted to the search for specific MBL inhibitors which should ideally be active on all MB
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.
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pharmacology and pharmacy pharmaceutical drugs antibiotics
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules proteins enzymes
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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.
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.
Call for proposal
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Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
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.
Coordinator
4000 LIEGE
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.