Esteemed EU grants worth €2 million go to five University of Helsinki researchers

Five researchers working at the University of Helsinki have been awarded Consolidator Grants by the European Research Council. The €2 million funding for each is for five years.

Scientific innovation in the era of AI

In recent years, AI systems have led to significant scientific breakthroughs in, for example, biology and drug design. However, such AI use is also provoking criticism. 

A project headed by University Lecturer  in the philosophy of science and cognitive science describes how human–machine collaboration functions in scientific problem-solving and how AI shapes the scientific method.

The study helps to predict changes brought about by AI in research as well as develop principles and practices for reliable research. 

Investigating the secrets of quark matter

In Academy Research Fellow ERC-funded project, researchers aim to determine how matter behaves in the extreme densities of neutron stars.

When matter is compressed into such density, it can enter a new state where fundamental particles – quarks and gluons – are no longer confined. This produces what is known as quark matter, whose properties remain poorly understood. 

The project will develop new theoretical computational methods to study strong interaction (quantum chromodynamics). Reliable identification of quark matter would help solve the central unanswered question about neutron star structure and advance understanding of the fundamental properties of matter.

Concepts as Knowledge Facilitators 

Having the right concepts allows asking the right questions, formulating new hypotheses, and providing good explanations. Professor  ERC-funded project investigates what makes for a epistemically good concept, how social linguistic and conceptual practices and resources shape the thinking of individuals, and how the acquisition of entirely new concepts can be understood and modelled as a rational process.

Though the questions asked are distinctively philosophical ones, the project is informed by research on concepts and categorizations in psychology, linguistics, and cognitive science.

Concepts are potent tools of social and political influence. It is important for a society to understand and critically assess the concepts on which it operates. This project provides tools for evaluation.

How the evolution of cells shapes the colors of tropical fish 

In his project, Associate Professor l and his team ask how changes in cell types alter the appearance of animals over evolutionary time and ultimately contribute to the rich variety of species we see in nature. Using the natural diversity of color patterns in tropical cichlid fishes from the East African Rift Lakes as a window into this process, the project will unravel how the genetic code controls the development, behavior, and morphology of pigment cells.

By tracing these links from genes to cells to visible traits, the team aims to understand how cells change during evolution to reshape the colorful appearance of organisms. 

By explaining how changes at the level of single cells scale up to differences in tissues and organisms, the project will improve our understanding of the complex biological systems underlying biodiversity. 

Research group:

What cancer cells consume and how it drives their behaviour

Academy Research Fellow  ERC-funded project investigates how intestinal cancer acquires the nutrients it needs, focusing on how cells regulate this process through surface proteins known as solute carriers (SLCs). Using the intestine as a model, the project aims to develop methods to understand how nutrient acquisition affects cancer cell behavior in living tissues.

Key objectives include mapping the metabolic landscape of intestinal stem and cancer-initiating cells with advanced imaging techniques and creating next-generation mouse models to study SLC functions in cancer development. The project will also analyze the roles of specific SLCs using patient samples.

Ultimately, the project aims to reveal essential principles of nutrient acquisition in cancer cells, providing valuable tools and experimental models for future research on metabolic changes across various cancer types. 

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