Project: Cardiovascular stress impacts on neuronal function: intracellular pathways to cognitive impairment

Acronym	CardioStressCI (Reference Number: ERA-CVD_JTC2020-015)
Duration	01/01/2021 - 31/12/2023
Project Topic	Vascular Cognitive Impairment (vCI) is known to be tightly linked to cardiovascular disease (CVD). The main purpose of the CardioStressCI project is to identify and validate causative mechanisms connecting both conditions. We will use an interdisciplinary approach that combines in vitro research with bioinformatics, systems biology modeling and clinical database analysis. We will use network-based disease gene prioritization algorithms to rank the relevance of genes in CI and CVD, and correlate the results to establish interaction networks, which will be modeled using systems biology approaches. Predictions will be validated experimentally with human samples and cell and animal models, to investigate and confirm how individual components of these networks may influence the responses to the different CVD pathological stresses that lead to CI. The main aims of CardioStressCI are: i) to identify proteins linked to CI and CVD; ii) to establish the contribution of nitro-oxidative stress to CVD and CI; iii) to study how CVD induces neuronal dysfunction; iv) to elucidate the pattern of the inflammasome activation in CI and CVD; v) to determine vCI biomarkers. Our studies will consider gender aspects, age, and socio-economic and lifestyle factors as potential modulators of CI pathophysiology. We aim at increasing the knowledge of the molecular mechanisms that contribute to CI when CVD happens. Such knowledge can inform new directions to potentially improve diagnosis, prevention and new therapeutic targets against CI, and even CVD preventing its consequences in brain function.
Network	ERA-CVD
Call	ERA-CVD Joint Transnational Call 2020

Project partner

Number	Name	Role	Country
1	Universitat Pompeu Fabra	Coordinator	Spain
2	Montreal Heart Institute/University of Montreal	Observer	Canada
3	Hospital del Mar / Institut Hospital del Mar d'Investigacions Mèdiques	Partner	Spain
4	Koc University	Partner	Türkiye
5	University of Tartu	Partner	Estonia