STEM CELLS OF MARINE/AQUATIC INVERTEBRATES: FROM BASIC RESEARCH TO INNOVATIVE APPLICATIONS

RESEARCH

The present Action aims at fostering and consolidating the fragmented European community of scientists and institutions involved in marine/aquatic invertebrate stem cells. By sharing the expertise of our members, we are creating a wide and strong network of European research excellence to develop innovative ideas and applications.

This action has a wide geographical network involving 38 institutions from 22 countries (21 COST countries and 1 NNC). In the network there are universities, research institutes and 2 companies. The action is chaired by the management committee (MC), leaders of working group (WG) are in charge of coordinating the work of the members to meet the [defined goals|link to working groups] and the science communication committee (SCC) is responsible for the visibility of this action. Each member country can have up to two representatives (R) and two substitutes (S).

Name Institution Expertise Research Area Experimental System URL
Pedro Martinez Serra University of Barcelona Developmental and Molecular Biology of Invertebrates. Evolution of Invertebrates. Development and Regeneration of the nervous system. Acoel flatworms (Acoelomorpha) link
Simone Blanchoud University of Fribourg Microscopy, image analysis, biocomputing Whole-body regeneration in colonial ascidians Botrylloides leachii link
Buki Rinkevich Israel National Institute of Oceanography Marine biology Marine invertebrates immunity and developmental biology, reef restoration, cell cultures from marine organisms, genotoxicity, stem cells from marine invertebrates Botryllid ascidians, corals (Stylophora pistillata),Nematostella link
Juan M Encinas Achucarro Basque Center for Neuroscience Neuroscience Adult Neural Stem Cells and Neurogenesis in Mammals in Aging and Physiopathological Conditions. Transgenic mice; imaging; functional morphology and anatomy. link
Olga Petukhova Institute of Cytology, Russian Academy of Sciences Biochemisry and Molecular Biology of Cell Reproduction Actin cytoskeleton in cell signaling and transcription factor, stem cells and regeneration in marine invertebrate  Asterias rubens
Helike Lõhelaid Tallinn University of Technology, Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology Lipid mediators, dioxygenases, cell signaling, stress Biochemistry, molecular biology Coral
Fabian Rentzsch SARS, International Centre for Marine Molecular Biology, Norway Developmental Biology, Neurogenesis, Cnidaria Nervous system development  Nematostella vectensis link
Sebastian Rakers Fraunhofer Research Institution for Marine Biotechnology and Cell Technology Molecular and cellular biotechnology for aquaculture purposes, i.e. cell cultures of fish species;  progenitor and stem cell cultures; cryopreservation; integrated aquaculture systems Animal health and biotechnology as well as aquaculture  In vitro cultures,  integrated aquaculture systems, freezing systems link
Sébastien Cambier Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology Molecular biology, Ecotoxicology, Cellular toxicology development of in vitro models, nanotoxicology, freshwater ecotoxicology Freshwater Invertabrates link
Paola Oliveri University College London Systems developmental biology of invertebrates Cell type specification and evolution. Development and regeneration of biomineralized tissues in echinoderms Strongylocentrotus purpuratus; Amphiura fifliformis link
Kerstin Bartscherer Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine Planarian stem cells, RNA-seq, proteomics Stem cell-based regeneration Planarian flatworms link
Ildiko Somorjai University of St Andrews Transcriptomics, in situ hybridisation, immunohistochemistry and confocal microscopy Evo-devo at the invertebrate/vertebrate transition; evolution of regeneration; amphioxus regeneration and stem cells (somatic and germline); comparative aspects of development and regeneration Branchiostoma lanceolatum mainly, other cephalochordates link
Loriano Ballarin University of Padova Miscroscopy, histo- and cytochemistry, immunohisto- and immunocytochemistry, in situhybridisation Evolution of innate immunity, invertebrate immunobiology, stem cells, haemocytes and immune responses, stress responses. compound ascidians (mainly Botryllus schlosseri), solitary ascidians, bivalves link
Ana Varela Coelho Instituto Tecnologia Química e Biológica, Universidade Nova de Lisboa Echinoderm regeneration, proteomics and metabolomics Echinoderm regeneration, omics of non-model organisms Marthasterias glacialis link
Daniel Lyons Ruđer Bošković Institute Embryonal development, biomineralisation, skeletogenesis, nanomaterials Impact of nanomaterials on developmental processes in invertebrates, modulation of cellular processes and pathways in biomineralisation, (eco)nanotoxicology Paracentrotus lividus, Arbacia lixula, Sphaerechinus granularis link
Isabelle Domart-Coulon French National Museum of Natural History (MNHN) – Lab. MCAM Marine Cellular biology coral biology, marine microbial symbioses, biomineralization, tissue morphogenesis, in vitro cultures Scleractinian coral Pocillopora damicornis, (calcareous sponges) link
Andreja Ramšak National Institute of Biology, Marine Biology Station Piran Marine biology, ecotoxicology Biodiversity and relationships (phylogeny, phylogeography), biochemical biomarkers, genotoxicity Cnidaria (Scyphozoa, stone corals), bivalves link
Tali Mass University of Haifa Coral biology, phsiology and biomineralization Biomineralization mechanism in corals, coral cell culture Coral link
Brigitte GALLIOT Department of Genetics and Evolution; Faculty of Sciences, University of Geneva Hydra model system, stem cell biology, FACS, cell death, live sensors, autophagy methods, RNA-seq, transgenesis Tissue repair and regeneration, cellular remodelling, epithelial plasticity, homeostasis and injury responses, organizer and patterning, apoptosis-induced compensatory proliferation, Aging and resistance to aging, autophagy, evolution, de novo neurogenesis Hydra vulgaris, Hydra oligactis link
Dmitri Krysko Ghent University Immunology, cell biology and molecular biology in mammals Cell death modalities in inflammation and cancer In vitro mouse and human cancer cell lines, transplantable tumor and sepsis models in mice link
Younes Smani Institute of Biomedicine of Seville Microbiology and Infectious diseases Antimicrobial resistance, Antimicrbial therapy, and Bacterial pathogenesis In vitro antimicrobial activity assays (microdilution, checkerboard, and time-kill curve), and animal models of infection (sepsis and pneumonia) link
Simon Sprecher University of Fribourg Neurogenetics, Developmental Biology Nervous system and eye development; Cell fate specification; Gene regulation; neural circuits; connectomics Symsagittifera roscoffensis Isodiametra pulchra Nematostella vectensis (Drosophila) link
Jérôme Delroisse University of Mons Evolutionnary biology, Invertebrate morphology, Marine biology, Transcriptomics, Echinoderm biology Amphiura filiformis, Asterias rubens, Holothuria scabra … link
Arzu Karahan Middle East Technical University, Institute of Marine Sciences Molecular Biology and Genetics Evolution, population genetics, metagenomics, metabarcoding, genomics of marine species Colonial tunicates (Botryllus and Botrylloides), bacteria, fish link
Antonietta Spagnuolo Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn Napoli Molecular and Developmental Biology. Ecotoxicology Cell type specification and evolution of nervous system structures. Impact of toxicants on developmental processes Ciona robusta link
Michela Sugni University of Milan Microscoopy (light and electron), immunohisto- and cytochemistry, in situ hybridization, echinoderm cell cultures, biomaterial development Comparative aspects of echinoderm regeneration and stem cell/dedifferentiated cells, echinoderm endocrinology, echinoderm development, impact of environmental stressors, development of echinoderm-derived biomimetic biomaterials for tissue regeneration Antedon mediterranea, Echinaster sepositus, Marthasterias glacialis, Coscinasterias tenuispina, Amphiura filiformis, Amphipholis squamata, Ophioderma longicaudum, Paracentrotus lividus link
Tiago H. Silva University of Minho Marine biomaterials; isolation, characterization and processing of biopolymers; tissue engineering Marine biotechnology and regenerative medicine Biomaterials using compounds from marine sponges, squids, crabs, fish and/or macroalgae link
COST is supported by the EU Framework Programme Horizon 2020

COST is supported by the EU Framework Programme Horizon 2020

Chairman: Prof. Loriano Ballarin

Vice-Chairman: Prof. Buki Rinkevich