The origin of mitochondria and the root of the eukaryotic tree

Objective

"The origins of eukaryotes and mitochondria are among the most fundamental questions in biology and are central to understanding eukaryotic genomic and cellular evolution. It is now accepted that the mitochondrion was ancestrally present in all eukaryotic groups and that it derives from an alpha-proteobacterium, although the precise identity of the original endosymbiont is unknown. In this project the candidate will use sophisticated computational analyses to investigate current hypotheses for the origin of eukaryotes, to identify the closest alpha-proteobacterial relatives of mitochondria, and to determine the root of the eukaryotic tree. Genome-wide computational analysis tools developed by the host lab will be used to identify genes transferred from the mitochondrial endosymbiont to the eukaryotic host nuclear genome during the evolution of the mitochondrion. The cohort of transferred genes will then be used to (i) determine the position of mitochondria among contemporary alpha-proteobacteria and (ii) root the eukaryotic tree. To do this, the candidate will be trained in the most sophisticated probabilistic methods for modeling sequence evolution and for inferring evolutionary relationships. The project is multidisciplinary and will enhance the candidate's analytical, mathematical and computational skills on a series of tightly focused biological problems for which the host laboratory has a strong international reputation. These new skills, and her already extensive international experience and contacts, will provide her with the competencies to develop a leading role as a European evolutionary biologist and bioinformatician. The project will also provide her with generic analytical skills relevant to the FP7 Health theme, ""Multidisciplinary fundamental genomics and molecular biology approaches to study basic biological processes directly relevant to health and diseases"" and ""Coordination and Support Actions in large-scale data gathering and systems biology""."

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.

• natural sciences biological sciences genetics genomes
• natural sciences biological sciences molecular biology

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

• Eukaryotes
• Phylogeny
• alpha-proteobacteria
• evolution
• mitochondria
• models of evolution
• protists

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

• FP7-PEOPLE - Specific programme "People" implementing the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013)

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.

• PEOPLE-2007-2-1.IEF - Marie Curie Action: "Intra-European Fellowships for Career Development"

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

FP7-PEOPLE-2007-2-1-IEF
See other projects for this call

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.

MC-IEF - Intra-European Fellowships (IEF)

Coordinator