The doctoral network "Mem-Fast" - Membranes as Enablers for Future Biorefineries: from Fabrication to Advanced Separation Technologies - aims to educate 10 future professionals, who have the needed understanding to facilitate the utilisation of membranes in the growing biorefining industry. The research and training activities implemented in the Mem-Fast network form a “first of its kind” novel and unique doctoral training program. This reflects changing research priorities and emerging disciplines related to improving biorefinery processes to grow the Circular Economy. The network structures training at the European level in beneficiaries (CNR-ITM, LUT, LU, ULANC, UMK, UNL, UT) and associated partners (Alfa Laval, Aquaporin, Fibenol, Deltamem, Domsjö, B4C asp, MemBrain, NX Filtration, RAIZ-Navigator, UNICAL, UPM) across 11 countries giving the doctoral students a highly applied understanding on both membrane manufacturing and membrane processes and biorefinery processes that are critical to the future of EU’s chemical sector and circular economy. The individual projects of the doctoral candidates aim to push forward the use of membranes in biorefineries through the development of advanced membranes, novel tools for monitoring and controlling of fouling and novel continuous processes for simultaneous bioconversion and recovery of products. The network program leads to a new approach to training for the sector and will provide a first cohort of highly skilled future research leaders and managers by combining this network knowledge. Furthermore, it creates a basis for a European doctoral education focused on membranes in biorefineries that will be continued in the future.

The Ambition of GreenFeedBack is to enhance knowledge of the GHG dynamics in the ecosystems and link GHG in terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems to provide a solid basis for estimation of regional and global climate feedback processes taking human pressure on ecosystems into account. GreenFeedBack will study the processes in sensitive terrestrial, freshwater, coastal and marine areas of which some are hypothesized to be tipping elements in the climate system. Thus, we will primarily focus on high latitude terrestrial and freshwater systems, marine shelves and ocean areas and thereby advance the process-based representation of ecosystems in Earth System Models (ESM). The analysis will involve co-design between scientists and stakeholders. We will use data from the ICOS and ACTRIS stations in Europe and the GIOS, GEM and SMEAR network in Greenland and Finland as well as data from dedicated field and laboratory studies. The enhanced knowledge will be used to improve descriptions of the GHG processes for implementation in ecosystem models and ESMs. Hence, GreenFeedBack will improve and apply ecosystem- and Earth System models to advance our understanding of GHGs effect on climate variability over different time horizons.

Hybridization has been documented to the extent where its importance for generating evolutionary novelty can no longer be questioned. In spite of this, we lack an understanding of the evolution of regulation of gene expression in hybrids, and its role in hybridization derived novelty. Gene expression evolves in a stabilizing manner where cis(local)- and trans(distal) regulatory elements co-evolve. As hybridization breaks up co-inheritance of regulatory elements transgressive hybrid expression patterns, transcending the ranges of both parent species, may arise in spite of intermediate genome composition. I propose to leverage my finding of transgressive gene expression in a wild hybrid species and address how hybridization produces transgressive gene expression. This research will give insights into how hybridization can contribute to the arrival of the fittest, by producing novel variation that selection can act on. Objectives: 1. To determine how regulation of gene expression in hybrids can produce evolutionary novelty 2. To unravel the roles of hybridization induced transposable element-releases, alterations of methylation and larger structural variants in hybrid specific gene expression 3. To uncover the role of gene expression in avian hybrid sterility. I will use four independent hybrid lineages of the Italian sparrow and experimental F1 hybrids to achieve these ambitious goals. HybridExpress will i) Uncover how hybrid gene expression can transcend parental ranges, producing evolutionary novelty, ii) Contribute insights into how the variation selection acts on arises, iii) Increase our understanding of hybrid genotype-phenotype maps, and iv) Reveal the role of hybrid misexpression in reproductive isolation. Interdisciplinary character: This proposal will make extensive use of genomic methods and hence overlaps to some degree with the LS2 panel, but as the question addressed is evolutionary I deem the proposal best suited for evaluation by the LS8 panel.

Every year, more than 50 000 patients receive blood stem cell transplantation as a curative treatment for diseases such as leukemia, immune deficiencies, and sickle cell anemia. For a successful transplantation, a matching donor who is willing to donate blood stem cells needs to be found. Worldwide, around 30% patients in need of a transplantation cannot find a suitable donor. Umbilical cord blood (UCB) is an easily obtainable alternative source of blood stem cells, but unfortunately most UCB units do not contain enough stem cells for a successful transplantation, which is why UCB is currently only rarely used in the clinic. Within the ERC project UNEXPECTED, we have identified several small RNA biomolecules that can be used to expand engraftable blood stem cells efficiently. However, it is difficult to safely deliver molecules to blood stem cells, and currently used methods are highly toxic. We recently applied cutting edge nanotechnology to solve this long-standing problem in stem cell biology. We established nanostraws as an efficient and gentle alternative delivery method with which both cell function and viability are fully maintained. Our method that allows efficient non-toxic delivery of blood stem cell-expanding RNAs will allow us to greatly increase the number of UCB units that can be used for transplantations. Our approach could provide a life-saving treatment option for the thousands of patients yearly with malignant or inherited diseases that currently are ineligible for a stem cell transplantation procedure.