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<\/p>\nOn 23 June, the European Research Council (ERC) announced the winners of its latest call for Advanced Grants. The funding, totalling 838 million euros, will go to 319 leading researchers from across Europe. Advanced grants offer the most experienced researchers the opportunity to carry out ambitious, curiosity-driven projects that could lead to significant scientific breakthroughs. The grants form part of the EU\u2019s Horizon Europe programme.<\/p>\n
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In Spain, projects led by 29 scientists conducting their research at Spanish institutions have been awarded an ERC Advanced Grant. In this call, the number of Spanish institutions with successful researchers has doubled compared to the previous one (14).<\/strong><\/p>\n Ekaterina Zaharieva<\/strong>, Commissioner for Start-ups, Research and Innovation, said: \u2018My sincere congratulations to the 319 new recipients of ERC Advanced Grants and a warm welcome to the researchers from Australia, Canada and the United States who have chosen Europe to carry out their research. These projects embody the spirit of scientific exploration that drives progress. The increase in applications from researchers based outside Europe shows that initiatives such as \u2018Choose Europe\u2019, aimed at attracting and retaining talent, are helping to strengthen Europe\u2019s appeal to the best scientific talent from around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n Projects selected for funding\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n The research carried out by the new grant recipients will cover a wide range of topics, such as studying differences in people\u2019s vulnerability to drug addiction, improving women\u2019s fertility and health, and exploring the brain mechanisms underlying stammering.<\/p>\n Project hosted by the Spanish National Research Council: rebuilding the brain to combat addiction<\/strong><\/p>\n Drug addiction is a devastating challenge for society; however, very little is yet known about individual vulnerability and resilience in the face of it. Not everyone who uses drugs such as cocaine\u2014one of the most addictive substances\u2014develops an addiction. In fact, only 20 per cent of human cocaine users develop an addiction, a pattern that is also seen in mice, which raises the following question: why are some people more vulnerable than others? The answer may lie not only in our genes or our environment, but in how the two interact to alter the functioning of brain circuits.<\/p>\n Christian L\u00fcscher and his team at the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) are investigating the enigma of addiction by studying genetically identical mice, focusing on neuroepigenetic mechanisms, that is, the brain\u2019s chemical \u2018switches\u2019 that do not alter DNA but do change how genes function. These mechanisms can shape behaviour through life experiences, whether negative, such as stress, or positive. Their work centres on identifying the factors that tip the balance between vulnerability and resilience.<\/p>\n Firstly, the team will identify brain and behavioural markers that can predict which animals are at risk of developing compulsive drug use. They will then test how stress drives them towards addiction and whether positive environmental influences can reverse these changes. Finally, they will investigate ways of eliminating harmful epigenetic changes, effectively \u2018resetting\u2019 the brain to reduce vulnerability and restore resilience.<\/p>\n Christian L\u00fcscher is a neurobiologist and neurologist, a professor at the University of Geneva and a consultant at Geneva University Hospital.<\/p>\n CEI funding: \u20ac2.8 million over 5 years.<\/p>\n Facts and figures\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n The new grant recipients will carry out their work at universities and research centres in 24 EU Member States and associated countries, notably in the United Kingdom (62 grants), Germany (46), Switzerland (32), Spain (29) and France (26). The successful applicants include 52 Germans, 45 Britons and 29 Italians, as well as researchers of 30 other nationalities.<\/p>\n A record number of 3,329 proposals were received for this call, representing a 31 per cent increase on last year\u2019s 2,534. 9.6 per cent of the proposals were selected for funding. Estimates suggest that the grants will create more than 3,000 jobs within the teams of the new grant recipients.<\/p>\n