Fading eyesight is a natural consequence of ageing. Presbyopia is a particular ocular condition that can affect everyone after the age of 45, hampering the ability to focus and leading to cataracts (the clouding of the eye lens) later in life.
Peering into the very depths of the universe gives scientists a better understanding of its origins. Since the speed of light is finite, the objects we are seeing are from the distant past. A recently completed EU-funded project developed not only a new means of measuring these cosmic distances, but also discovered galaxies at the point of their creation.
10th February 2014 - European Epilepsy Day
An EU-funded study has uncovered data that suggests a change in the behaviour of certain genes – the unit of heredity in a living organism – could be involved in precipitating epilepsy. By gaining a better understanding of exactly how the brain works, the EpiTarGene project aims to open the door to potential new therapies and novel drugs.
Toxic spills can be devastating to humans, animals and to the ecosystem The ERC-funded project CHOBOTIX has successfully created the first prototypes of chemical robots that could operate an "Intelligent Cleaning" system.
The world of archaeology has changed considerably since the days when wealthy enthusiasts such as Heinrich Schliemann excavated the site he believed was ancient Troy while Arthur Evans unearthed the spectacular Minoan palace of Knossos in Crete. While the shovel and the trowel are still important tools for finding ancient structures and artefacts, many of the exciting discoveries and breakthroughs are today being made in laboratories - a long way from the ancient remains.
You may be surprised at what can affect our climate. You always hear about the burning of fossil fuels. But what if you lived in Cyprus? Would you expect atmospheric conditions there to be affected by the sands of the Sahara, wood burning in the Ukraine and the monsoons in India?
The culprit in Cyprus is dust, natural dust from sand storms or man-made dust from the tiny sulphur compounds produced by burning wood.
For those unfortunate to suffer from kidney failure, an organ transplant may seem like the best long-term treatment. But kidney transplants are loaded with risk, the most salient being the rejection of the donor organ by the host’s body. Now, however an Irish-led research project has developed a new drug that could succeed in preventing organ rejection, offering hope to thousands of patients seeking donor kidneys.
4th February 2014 - World Cancer Day
A multidisciplinary EU-funded research team has successfully tested a pioneering HIV-detection technique that is ten times more sensitive than any identification method used to date.
The new methodology, which offers a much simpler and cheaper naked-eye-based read-out and could be commercialised in future, has also achieved positive results in similar early detection tests for different types of cancer.
4th February 2014 - World Cancer Day
Targeting existing proteins in the human body which contribute to the growth of cancerous cells can help researchers develop tailor-made treatments.
A team of EU researchers is working on ways to trick the proteins which ordinarily aid cancer growth into delivering therapeutic treatments directly to the cancerous cells.
Interested in Open Government, eParticipation, mobile eGovernment, cloud of public services, use of emerging technologies in public sector, etc...?
Find your way and your funding opportunities in the new programme Horizon 2020. Read the flyer!
(last update 24/3/2014)
Do you live near an airport or fly regularly? Even if you don't, new research that promises to lead to improved aircraft aerodynamics will benefit us all. It will ultimately enable planes to be built that are less noisy, use less fuel and pollute less – a win-win situation for society, the environment and the aviation industry.
In the past, the best-known medical use of gold in the human body was probably limited to dental repairs, and even then considered by some to be a little ostentatious! But now, with the support of the EU, a multi-award-winning research project is demonstrating that gold can have unforeseen benefits in cancer treatment.
What impact did the introduction of milk to our diets have on our early society? By examining Neolithic artefacts and bones, an EU-funded project has contributed to our understanding of how Europeans began to abandon their hunter-gathering lifestyle in favour of farming.
As part of its work, the LeCHe research network found milk residues trapped in mud-made cheese-strainers dating from around 7 000 years ago. The pottery, hidden in archaeological sites in Poland, hosts the earliest prehistoric evidence for cheese-making.
Every now and then scientists discover something out of this world – like a primitive strain of bacteria that lives in an extreme environment – not knowing that one day the proteins in this organism could revolutionise biotechnology, reveal the secret to life on other planets, or simply change our sunbathing habits. EU-funded researchers are exploring the potential of the unspoilt lagoons of the Andes.
The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Unit and the Research Executive Agency (REA) are organising a web-streamed training on the 2014 calls for the Innovative training Networks (ITN) and the Research and Innovation Staff Exchange (RISE) on Wednesday 15 January from 2 to 6 pm.
Here is the list of upcoming infodays on MSCA!
Scientists from the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, have come up with a technique to establish early on if a cancer treatment is working. The results, published in Nature Medicine, confirm the method’s robustness. The lead author, Tiago Brandão Rodrigues, is a former Marie Skłodowska-Curie fellow.
Coralie Chanvillard is an early stage researcher undertaking a PhD in Berlin, under the ITN Grant of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie programme. This grant gave her the opportunity to gain plenty of scientific experience and to do part of her research in other European Union Member States. She is researching her PhD in Immunology in Berlin at the Hospital Charité. Her research is on multiple sclerosis.
Gillian Hendy is an Electrochemist at MIT, Langer lab, USA. She was granted a Marie Skłodowska-Curie International Fellowship. The MSCA funding enables her to acquire new skills and gain new knowledge in a leading organisation outside Europe.
Marta López Daris is an ecologist from Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain and a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Individual Fellow at the Instituto de Productos Naturales y Agrobiología (CSIC) where she is concluding a postdoctoral position. She has already undertaken research on rethinking Darwin's Theory of Evolution in the contemporary context. Her scientific approach is to study hunting as a force driving evolution. She spent two years in the US and one year in Spain comparing the evolution of predator and prey between the Bahamas and the Canary Islands. As a scientist, the Individual Fellow Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions grant is helping her to improve her scientific skills and initiate strong collaborations with scientists in other parts of the world.
