ANR 2019: the Institut Curie teams’ remarkable success

This year, 25 of Institut Curie’s collaborative research projects were selected out of the 82 projects submitted to the French National Research Agency (ANR), for an overall success rate of 30%, almost double than the French average (15.7%) - Institut Curie’s highest rate in five years. Total funding awarded amounts to €6.7 million, is similar to previously achieved records, and involves 11 Institut Curie units and one platform. After somewhat mixed results in 2018, these figures are a well-deserved reward for Institut Curie teams’ hard work and efforts.

For many years now, our researchers have secured excellent ANR results thanks to the quality of their scientific work, naturally, as well as for their tenacity. These are people who never back down in the face of rejection, striving instead to develop and improve their proposals before applying again the following year. Seventy percent of the project leaders for 2019’s funded projects are returning applicants

explains Nicolas Lyszyk, project manager at the Grants office (SFP).

Success in fields that are crucial to the fight against cancer

As the ANR doesn’t fund cancer research directly, the projects in question cover areas that are, for the most part, fundamental biology. The “Genetics, Genomics and RNA” and “Cellular Biology and Developmental and Evolutionary Biology” scientific review panels accounted for over half of the funded projects. “This success rate embodies the excellence of our teams and of the research institutes they are working with in these fields”, says Natacha Moquet, project manager at the SFP. “It also aligns with the Institut Curie Medical-scientific project priority research areas (genetics, epigenetics and immunotherapy) as promising fields to investigate in the fight against cancer”, adds Nicolas Lyszyk.

The Grants office: support tailored to researchers’ needs

This year, Institut Curie’s Grants office once again supported project leaders in putting together and submitting their applications, both on an administrative and financial level. “Our job is to allow researchers to focus on the scientific aspects of their projects”, explains Natacha Moquet. “Our colleague Cristina Bartocci is a scientific writer, and this year, she proofread young researchers’ applications to help them structure their proposals”. The department’s support undoubtedly contributed to the teams’ success.

Well done to all the researchers and the Grants office for the incredible work they’ve done, and for the quality of support they gave to the research teams at every stage of their applications

said Yann Guivarch, Deputy director of the Research Center

The 2019 Grantees

• A T O M Y: Axonal Transport in SMALED, a Motor Neuron Disease: A. Baffet
• CD4GWKO: In vivo genome wide screening of memory CD4 T cells proliferation inhibitors: L. Menger
• DeCLick : Deciphering interstrand cross links repair in mammals using click chemistry: R. Ceccaldi
• EXCELLDISC: Extra cellular vesicles for intervertebral disc therapy: G. Lavieu
• FIREFLY : Noise and robustness downstream of a morphogen gradient: a quantitative approach by imaging transcription dynamics in living embryos: N. Dostatni
• GlycoTopoSwitch: Glycan topology-switch of integrin activity:  L. Johannes
• Lustra : A system view of lung fibrogenesis using spatial transcriptomics: A. Londono, S. Saule
• MEliCENDre: A rare disease to decode the functional link between DNA methylation and maintenance of centromere integrity: D. Fachinetti
• Myo’n’ease : Dynamics and Organization of Myosin-Induced Actin Filament Bundles: A. Houdusse
• NaTeMoc: NAnoengineering and Therapeutic Evaluation of a novel bioorgano Metallic complexe with high potent antitumor activity for Ovarian Cancer: D. Decaudin
• Neck4Fission: Cleaving membrane necks by ESCRT-III: P. Bassereau,  P. Sens
• NEMESES: Genome-wide mapping of G4-ligand binding sites at single-base resolution: D. Verga
• NIRO : The Nuclear Pore Complex as a molecular hub to regulate replication fork repair pathways: S. Lambert
• NUCLEONDRIA: Innate immune sensing and responses by cGAS in DNA-containing organelles: N. Manel
• POLYCHROME: Polycomb Repressive Complex in Paramecium: interaction with small RNA machinery and substrate specificity: R. Margueron
• RAPID: Investigating the role of the Rab6 GTPase for polarized secretion in neural stem cells during neocortex development: B. Goud, F. Perez, A. Baffet
• ReDeFINe : RNA:DNA hybrids and replication fork instability: S. Lambert, C. Chen
• sCAV-BandPC: Role Of Caveolin In B Cell Differentiation And Plasma Cell Functions: C. Lamaze
• SLX4RTEL1: New co-functionalities of SLX4 and RTEL1 in genome maintenance: A. Londono
• stemmcell_lncRNA: lncRNA-directed neural stem cell regulation in the adult brain: A. Shkumatava, E. Barillot
• SurVol: Surface and volume modulation of fast deforming cells and organelles: M. Piel, AM. Lennon
• TELOCHROM: Basic mechanisms of heterochromatin replication: the telomere connection: C. Chen
• Tex3D: T-lymphocyte exhaustion in three dimensions: A. Bava
• VesicleFiltering: Control of vesicular flows by golgins: C. Hivroz, F. Perez
• VISION : Confined volumetric excitation and super-resolution imaging at low temperature: application to chromosome architecture during gene expression: B. Hajj