Aktualności
Polish–German project involving the Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Rzeszów, funded in the OPUS 30+LAP/Weave call
The National Science Centre (NCN) has announced the results of the OPUS 30+LAP/Weave call. The results were published after approval by the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG). Among the winners is a project led on the Polish side by Prof. Maciej Wnuk’s team at the Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Rzeszów, carried out together with partners in Berlin.
Competition was intense. NCN received a record 2,359 proposals requesting a total of over PLN 4 billion. Funding went to 18 bilateral Polish–German projects and 3 trilateral projects, with only 4 projects in the life sciences.
Deciphering the role of human RNA 5-methylcytosine methyltransferases in HSV-1-induced neurodegeneration – a new concept of neuronal protein aggregation
Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infects about 3.7 billion people under the age of 50 worldwide and stays in the body for life. Growing evidence shows that acute HSV-1 infection of the nervous system can damage the brain and lead to neurodegeneration, and standard antiviral treatment does not prevent this.
The project will test whether an RNA modification plays a key role here: 5-methylcytosine (m5C) methylation, catalysed by m5C RNA methyltransferases such as TRDMT1. The researchers will determine:
- how HSV-1 infection changes the expression and localisation of these enzymes,
- what role they play in brain development,
- which mechanisms link altered RNA methylation to protein aggregation,
- how commonly used antiviral drugs affect these processes.
The goal is to identify new points for therapeutic intervention that could prevent HSV-1-related neurodegeneration.
The project brings together three institutions:
- Freie Universität Berlin: Prof. Benedikt Kaufer’s team, experts in HSV-1 infection;
- Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC), Berlin: the Organoid Platform led by Dr Agnieszka Rybak-Wolf, which will provide brain organoid models;
- Faculty of Biotechnology, Collegium Medicum, University of Rzeszów: Prof. Maciej Wnuk’s team, specialising in m5C RNA methyltransferases and cellular senescence.