QBio
Creating the first european center for quantitative biology
The study of life sciences is undergoing profound changes, both in its interrogation and methodology. The successes of molecular biology, combined with increasingly powerful analytical technologies (imaging, ohmic, micro-fluidics, optogenetics, CRISPR, etc.), have revolutionized the scientific landscape, creating the possibility of experimentally manipulating and interrogating complex aspects of living systems. This transformation has given rise to the need for quantitative approaches to predict and decipher fundamental mechanisms that remain inaccessible to simple mutations and interpretations alone, due to the strong couplings and multiple scales involved. It is crucial to revive this multidisciplinary spirit and fuel it with cutting-edge computational and experimental approaches.
ENS-PSL is uniquely positioned in France to meet these challenges. Firstly, through its tradition of scientific excellence in the various disciplines at the heart of the QBio project: biology, chemistry, applied mathematics, physics, cognitive and computational sciences. Secondly, through its high-quality of students and young researchers, who are selectively chosen and have an outstanding theoretical background. Finally, the collaborations already established between researchers from different departments and institutions within PSL, the start of joint seminar programs, and pioneering initiatives at the interfaces (notably, the Q-Life Convergence Institute as part of the Investment for the Future Program) will be amplified and carried out by the QBio initiative.
The QBio program is primarily focused on fundamental research; however, it will have strong translational, of application and potential innovation in biomedicine, with the discovery and development of new methods for interrogating and manipulating living organisms, analyzing large databases, new experimental techniques and approaches to complex systems. The presence of a common site at Val-de-Grâce and a prefigurative site will provide an institutional venue and room for interaction between different disciplines, which are currently dispersed, as well as the organization of medium-long courses and schools.
It is currently headed by Professor Massimo Vergassola, from the University of California, San Diego, who has already helped to found one of the very first centers for quantitative biology. The Scientific Advisory Board is chaired by James Rothman (2013 Nobel Prize in Medicine). The team of researchers and students is in place at ENS and will join PariSanté Campus in Val-de-Grâce in the future.
Goal:
The new Center for Quantitative Biology (QBio) aims to be at the forefront of the transformative changes underway in high-throughput experimental techniques, imaging and microscopy, with the ability to efficiently compile and analyze large quantities of data to extract relevant information to help decipher the complex systems involved in living systems.
Using quantitative tools developed in biology, physics, chemistry, computer science and mathematics, researchers will explore the workings of biological systems, from atoms and molecules to cells, organs and whole organisms, in an approach that integrates theory and experimentation.
Within this center, the Quantitative Biology Fablab will offer a range of high-end measurement tools and experimental set-ups, enabling researchers from all disciplines to discover and learn about experimentation in biology, fostering interdisciplinary integration and innovation.
The aim is to set up dedicated spaces as a bridge between research and training, a place for experimentation and scientific and technical collaboration between engineers, researchers and students, where equipment, skills and knowledge can be shared.
Thanks to a major patron, Nicolas Paulmier, who has personally invested two million euros in this project, as a part of by an unprecedented “Double Your Donation” operation wherein every donation is doubled, to reach an initial target of €4 million.
Your donations go towards:
The Junior Research Chair program (€100,000/year) has been launched, with the first post-doc recruited over a 3-year period to develop cutting-edge interdisciplinary research themes.
A “Quantitative Biology” seminar is underway to raise awareness of the QBio training and research center.
The creation of a capitalized fund of €8 million is requested to finance this center on a long-term basis, namely:
- Funding for two post-docs per year
- Visiting professors
- Research chairs
- One international seminar per year
- Communication tools
