Project description
Taking away license to congregate
Much like a group of protesters standing arm in arm for greater strength and resistance to dispersal, bacteria form so-called biofilms in which they adhere to each other via a sticky extracellular polymeric matrix that they make themselves. These films help protect them against antibiotics and contribute to increasing antimicrobial resistance. Biofilms form on a variety of substrates including plastics and metals and they are particularly dangerous in hospitals where they can form on things like catheters, sutures or implants. Their days may be numbered thanks to work by the EU-funded PePiPOM project and resulting novel materials that will prevent aggregation of bacteria and kill them as well.
Objective
Antimicrobial resistance is an increasingly serious threat to global public health and immediate action must be taken to prevent its ever-increasing spread. One approach to overcome this problem is the development of new materials and coatings with bactericidal action; in particular those which tackle biofilm formation specifically. By inhibiting the growth of biofilms, bacteria become more sensitive to treatment and resistance diminishes. The applicant has designed PePiPOM to develop peptide-functionalized polyoxometales (POMs) that possess synergic bactericidal activity. The PePiPOM materials combine the anti-aggregation activity of POM molecules (key to tackling growth of biofilm matrix) with the bactericidal effect of POMs + antimicrobial peptides (to rupture bacterial cell membranes and/or internalise and destroy bacterial cells). Central to the success of this proposal is a novel approach for the synthesis of POM-hybrids whereby an “on-POM polymerisation” will be used to produce peptide-POM hybrids. The design of the antimicrobial peptides will also play a key role in the success of the project, since they will provide the required properties for an improved and synergistic activity. The resulting PePiPOM biofilm inhibitors will be tested for both their anti-aggregation and antibacterial activity, and the most effective candidates will be evaluated as anti-biofilm agents on plastic and metal surfaces. The fundamental academic aspects of these results will be of interest to the chemistry and microbiology communities and their application of great relevance to industry and the general public. The PePiPOM MCSA will open new research horizons for hybrid materials with synergic antimicrobial properties, but also importantly, will offer a real boost in the career development of the applicant on her route to achieving her professional career objectives.
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 health sciences public health
- natural sciences biological sciences microbiology bacteriology
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules
- engineering and technology materials engineering coating and films
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pharmacology and pharmacy drug resistance antibiotic resistance
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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-EF-ST - Standard EF
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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.