Portuguese in a consortium that wins European research project

A Portuguese researcher at the Institute of Molecular Medicine is part of the consortium that won a European Research Council project worth 10 million euros.

Edgar Gomes, the principal investigator of the Institute of Molecular Medicine João Lobo Antunes, integrates a project that aims to study the fundamental processes of muscle development, structure and physiology, according to a statement released today.

This is the first time that a ‘Synergy’ project of the European Research Council is awarded to a research group in Portugal, according to a note from the Institute of Molecular Medicine.

This funding, which was suspended since 2013, was designed to “make possible unconventional scientific collaborations”.

The project aims to study the development and structure of the cellular skeleton. According to the statement from the Institute of Molecular Medicine, the collaboration between the researchers of this consortium could provide clues about various diseases, including the dynamics of the skeleton of cells.

In addition to Edgar Gomes, two other researchers, Michael Way and Carolyn Moores, both from the UK, are part of this winning project.

Already earlier, Edgar Gomes ‘and Michael Way’ s laboratory had shown that a complex of molecules (Arp2 / 3) is essential for proper muscle development.

The goal now is to “expand this knowledge” and determine the role of those molecules in muscle development, structure, and physiology.

Each of the three laboratories will receive about 3.5 million euros over a period of six years.