14.03.2019

The creation of pan-European networks within the framework of the EU's COST initiatives can generate considerable added value. This has now been reviewed by Nico Dissmeyer. In his new article published in Trends in Biochemical Sciences, the IPB junior research group leader summarizes the results of the COST action PROTEOSTASIS, which was funded until April 2018. More than 270 scientists from 30 countries came together in the PROTEOSTASIS campaign and jointly produced new results.

Proteostasis describes the ability of all living organisms to maintain the balance between their proteins. Almost all physiological processes of a living being, such as growth, differentiation, metabolism or immune defense, are realized and regulated by interaction of its proteins. A single human cell at any time contains up to three billion protein molecules consisting of approximately 10,000 different protein types. These proteins interact actively with each other: if necessary, new proteins are synthesized, which have to be folded correctly and transported to their destination. Here, they interact with their binding partners in an appropriate way and intensity. Non-functional or no longer used proteins are degraded. All these processes are called proteostasis. A disturbed proteostasis may lead to cancer, neurodegenerative and autoimmune diseases as well as numerous diseases of plants and other organisms. Human physicians, plant researchers, bacteriologists and veterinarians, cancer specialists and Alzheimer's experts - they all work on proteostasis, but rarely exchange information.

In the PROTEOSTASIS action, they now had the opportunity to do so. And they used them eagerly. During the four-year funding period of this European network program, 14 meetings and workshops were organized, 47 scientists visited cooperating institutions and eight training courses for young scientists were held. Many networkers communicated their activities widely with newsletters, websites and via social media. They founded thematic sub-networks and established a community of interest: the International Society of Protein Termini. In total, more than 50 joint publications and three specialist books resulted from this collaborative effort. A remarkable success with signal effect! The coming together of different disciplines and expert circles obviously prepares the ground for new ideas and veritable transdisciplinary approaches.

COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) is an intergovernmental initiative that bundles national research activities on an international level. COST supports European networking on defined topics by facilitating the exchange between scientists and the coordination of research activities. It finances networking activities such as conferences, workshops and joint publications.