GLYTUNES

GLYTUNES is an Innovative Training Network (ITN) funded by the European Union Horizon 2020 Programme. GLYTUNES represents a novel, pioneering platform for understanding and exploiting the Siglecs-glycans cross-talk by harnessing the synergy of combining chemical to biological, biophysical, immunological research strategies and finally translating this knowledge into novel diagnostics and therapeutics. The GLYTUNES training network involves leading scientists from academia and industry and offers doctoral research projects (PhD projects) for 14 early stage researchers (ESRs). The research topics range from fundamental to translational science and aim at i) unravelling the mechanisms governing sialo-glycans recognition by the immune surface receptors Siglecs, and ii) enabling the rational design and development of novel therapeutic and diagnostic strategies against immune and infectious diseases. Experts in chemical and structural biology, drug design and computational chemistry, synthetic and medicinal chemistry, biophysics, biochemistry, immunology and molecular and medical microbiology will provide the ESRs with a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary training. Successful applicants will receive training in carbohydrate chemistry, glycoimmunology, tumor immunology, microbiology, drug design and development, project management, scientific communication, funding programmes and grant writings, entrepreneurship, ethics and intellectual property. GLYTUNES will expose ESRs to a unique combination of “hands-on” research training, non-academic placements, courses, and workshops on scientific and complementary skills necessary for their future thriving careers in academia, clinical research or industry, and to become the new leaders in the expanding research area of glycoscience.