Projects

In the CoVIDD project, we aim at unravelling interactions of viral proteins with the cellular factors and the host pathways involved in SARS-CoV-2 infection by a combination of modern technologies, genomics, proteomics, structural biology, chemoinformatics and drug discovery. To effectively search for drugs that could modify viral replication we need to know what human proteins and viral proteins interact. Thus, a comprehensive virus-host protein interaction network will help us to identify the
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Biomining is a biotechnological process carried out in many parts of the world that exploits acid loving microorganisms to extract metals from sulphide minerals. One industrial biomining method is called ‘heap bioleaching’ where typically copper containing minerals are piled into very large heaps, acid and microorganisms are added to the top and the soluble metal is collected at the heap base.

The role of the different types of microbes in the process is to speed up metal solubilisation by oxidising
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Here we share resources and best practices to develop a disease map for COVID-19. The project is progressing as a broad community-driven effort. We aim to establish a knowledge repository on virus-host interaction mechanisms specific to the SARS-CoV-2. The COVID-19 Disease Map is an assembly of molecular interaction diagrams established based on literature evidence.

Centre for Digital Life Norway (DLN) project 'OXYMOD - Optimized oxidative enzyme systems for efficient conversion of lignocellulose to valuable products'

The group around Nicole Radde specializes in the modeling, analysis, and simulation of biochemical systems. This especially includes parameter optimization and identification.

FAIRDOM will establish a support and service network for European Systems Biology. We will serve projects in standardising, managing and disseminating data and models in a FAIR manner: Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable.

MESI-STRAT: Systems Medicine of Metabolic-Signaling Networks -A New Concept for Breast Cancer Patient Stratification.
Breast cancer is a complex disease with high prevalence in the European Union and world-wide. 75%-80 of the patients have estrogen receptor-positive (ER)-positive tumors and are treated with endocrine therapies. Endocrine therapies, which block ER-driven tumor growth, show high efficacy. Yet, a significant proportion of the patients will eventually relapse with metastatic breast
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The main idea of MIX-UP (MIXed plastics biodegradation and UPcycling using microbial communities) is to showcase a novel approach for plastic recycling and therefore addresses one of the greatest challenges of our time: the establishment of a circular (bio)-economy for plastics. The continuing demand for plastic products, the lack of appropriate recycling and the ubiquitous pollution of the environment with plastic waste pose a global challenge.
An ambitious vision and considerable efforts are
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Collection of training material for SEEK/FAIRDOMHub

In this project, we integrate COVID19 Disease Maps curated regulatory information in a macrophage logical model.
This allows logical simulations of the effects of acute inflammation caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, both in general and in a cell-specific perspective. Moreover, understanding the regulatory network behavior of macrophages following infection opens new ways to test and predict drug and drug combination effects, as a first step towards the development of new treatments.

Data and experimental methods to support the work in the following paper:

Establishing Consensus Annotation for the Hallmarks of Cancer, 2020, Yi Chen, F.J.Verbeek and K.Wolstencroft, in submission

nfdi4health aims to create the most comprehensive inventory of German epidemiological, public health and clinical trial data to date. It builds a centralised data catalogue with elaborate search functionalities, sophisticated data access management, and a data analysis toolbox, while respecting stringent requirements for privacy concerning personal health data. Standardisation services ensure a high degree of interoperability. Use cases covering prototypical study types and areas of research show
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The Integrated Platform for Endocrine Disruptor Risk Assessment (SNAPPER) project will propose solutions based around three core philosophies:
Integrated Science: Integration of knowledge from a complete pipeline of systems biology into a holistic yet mechanistic framework that enhances the understanding both of endocrine biology and of adverse effects due to externally induced disruption of the body’s endocrine system. The pipeline includes in vivo, in vitro, and in silico data resulting both
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This project bundles information about COVID-19 related studies and tools in Germany. It intends to provide an information hub for the different initiatives, their aims, their processes, standards and study protocols, as well as their available data and metadata.
It is initiated by the German National Research Data Infrastructure for Personal Health Data (nfdi4health), a consortium that plans to establish a concept for a federated research data infrastructure for personal health data in Germany.
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In this project, the involved partners are trying to develop the knowledge base that will enable the breeding of new potato varieties, tolerant to multiple environmental stressors.

We used the Neo4j graph database approach to integrate the content of the COVID-19 Disease Map diagrams to efficiently access, query and manage the content of these diagrams and enable communication with external resources, such as Reactome and Recon, that already provide support via a similar environment.
This work complements the efforts on exploring COVID-19 disease mechanisms within the COVID-19 Disease Map Project.

Modelling COVID-19 epidemics : the training course organized by ISBE-NL, ELIXIR-LU, and EOSC-Life

Microalgae Microbiomes: A natural source for the prevention and treatment of diseases in aquaculture

Aquaculture is one of the fastest growing food sectors in the world. In order to guarantee continuous, efficient and sustainable production and to safeguard the growth of this important sector, its protection from biological threats is crucial.
Within the AquaHealth project, an international consortium of highly experienced partners will assemble and apply an advanced meta’omics toolbox on the
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Using standard systems biology methodologies a 14-compartment dynamic model was developed for the Corona virus epidemic. The model predicts that: (i) it will be impossible to limit lockdown intensity such that sufficient herd immunity develops for this epidemic to die down, (ii) the death toll from the SARS-CoV-2 virus decreases very strongly with increasing intensity of the lockdown, but (iii) the duration of the epidemic increases at first with that intensity and then decreases again, such that
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The project addresses the generation and establishment of programmed pacemaker cells for an in vitro drug testing possibility to perform predictive tests. This may lead to an improved treatment of cardiac arrhythmias or an accurate identification of potential drug molecules at a very early stage of development. Important benefits will arise in verifying the safety of a wide variety of medicines while reducing animal testing. For more information you may visit our project website at
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CEPOPA envisions a sustainable cascade one-pot process for the synthesis of optically pure amines from alcohols and/or alkynes, using enzymes immobilized onto catalytically active nanomaterials. In the framework of the project, efficient chemoenzymatic processes will be developed for the synthesis of a set of amines that can be used as building blocks for pharmaceuticals or biomaterials.

Valorization of mussel processing water into bioplastics