A new European training network will teach 16 doctoral candidates how cells’ metabolic processes control gene activity and determine whether a cell becomes healthy tissue or cancer. This matters because the field of “metabolic regulation of genome function” sits at the intersection of metabolism, gene control, and cell identity—but no single university or country has all the expertise needed to train researchers in it. The network, called NUCLEAR, brings together specialists in metabolomics, chromatin regulation, stem cell biology, and cancer from eight EU member states plus associated countries, along with three industrial partners and a patient support group. The trainees will work on three specific problems holding the field back: the lack of tools to measure metabolism inside the cell nucleus, poor understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved, and the absence of clear targets for new cancer therapies. If successful, the project will produce a cohort of scientists who can bridge disciplines and sectors, and build lasting infrastructure for collaboration. The research itself is fundamental science—it aims to uncover how metabolism shapes genome function, which could eventually inform precision nutrition, drug development, and cancer treatment, but those applications lie beyond the network’s immediate scope.
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NUCLEAR aims at educating future experts that can drive the emerging field of Metabolic Regulation of Genome Function and Cell Identity relevant for stem cell biology and cancer. It is a Doctoral Training Network composed of 14 beneficiaries and 12 partner organisations including three industrial partners, a training-oriented foundation, a patient support association from 8 EU member states, 1 associated country and a non-EU member state self-funding itself to the level of beneficiary. Given the highly interdisciplinary nature of this emerging field, no single institution can provide all suitable infrastructures and the know-how required for high-quality PhD-level training. To address this shortfall in training capacity, NUCLEAR brings together European leaders in metabolomics, functional genomics, chromatin regulation, stem cell biology and cancer with innovators in precision nutrition, mass spectrometry technologies and drug development. Together we are committed to the following: 1. To train 16 doctoral candidates (DCs) through an innovative program structured in four capacity axes and occurring on three complementary levels to deliver enabling scientific and transferable skills. 2. To guide DCs in collaborative research bridging boundaries of countries, sectors, and disciplines. 3. To address three key challenges that limit the advancement and exploitation of the field and that are the lack of tools to measure nuclear metabolism, the lack of understanding of underlying molecular mechanisms and the lack of targets for novel cancer therapies. 4. To build lasting infrastructures for dissemination, communication and exploitation promoting an entrepreneurial culture and maximizing and extending the impact of this proposal beyond its lifetime. 5. To increase the international visibility of European research by taking leadership in the emerging field of Metabolic Regulation of Genome Functions and Cell Identity.
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