ZEbrafish Neuroscience Interdisciplinary Training Hub

Project Information

ZENITH

Grant agreement ID: 813457

DOI

10.3030/813457

Project closed

EC signature date 18 November 2019

Start date 1 October 2019

End date 31 March 2024

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Total cost

€ 4 096 014,48

EU contribution

€ 4 096 014,48

Coordinated by

INSTITUT DU CERVEAU ET DE LA MOELLE EPINIERE
France

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ZENITH (ZEbrafish Neuroscience Interdisciplinary Training Hub)

Reporting period: 2021-10-01 to 2024-03-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

A fundamental challenge for Neuroscience is to understand how neural circuits process information from the outside world and internal physiological states, to produce versatile but reliable behaviour. Two major research challenges are: 1) the complexity and distributed nature of neural circuits; 2) the need for data spanning multiple scales from molecular and activity phenotypes of single cells through to circuit connectivity and population dynamics and finally the behavioural output itself. The goal of the ZENITH is to understand how neural networks mediate perception and behaviour. The project exploits the advantages of zebrafish and Danionella as small transparent vertebrates with superb genetic accessibility and uses cutting-edge technology to elucidate the interactions between molecules, cells and entire networks that ultimately generate adaptive behaviour. ZENITH aims to promote collaborative, interdisciplinary young scientists who can tackle major challenges within neuroscience research. The program trains 15 Early Stage Researchers (ESRs), hosted by 13 labs, which undertake projects that address major questions in neuroscience.

Our research will involve the design and application of cutting-edge optical systems that utilize wavefront shaping, fast volumetric imaging and adaptive optics. These innovations will be developed in partnership with high tech European SMEs who will not only contribute technical expertise but will also enable the systems to be broadly disseminated.

Our principal training objectives are:
1. Interdisciplinary training: ESRs will be trained in complementary sets of research skills, drawing upon the distinct expertise of their supervisors and supported by innovative workshops involving collaborative team work.
2. Focus on spanning across levels of nervous system operation: from molecules to cells, cells to networks and networks to behavior.
3. Emphasizing the need to integrate data into analytical frameworks: extensive use of modeling to interpret results and guide further experimentation.
4. Reinforcing skills in intellectual property, ethics, scientific communication
5. Introducing young researchers to career opportunities in industry

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The ZENITH recruitment process was overall very successful, lively and dynamic.

ZENITH is built around five scientific and technological workpackages (WP) that runed successfully with the progress update being documented in the relevant deliverables.The impact of these WP can be measured by the high number of communications, dissemination activities, secondments, training, and collaborations achieved at various levels - among WP researchers, within the ZENITH consortium and externally.

The 1st ZENITH training workshop “Data analysis, Modelling and Causality” was delivered online in early 2021. A Scientific Writing and Communication Workshop was delivered in September 2021 at the Institut du Cerveau (ICM) in Paris. The second ZENITH bespoke workshop "Genetics, Anatomy & Behaviour" was held in November 2021 at the Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown (CCU) in Lisbon, and provide advanced, hands-on training in zebrafish, genetics and anatomy followed by hands-on behavioural experiments and data analysis. The third ZENITH workshop "Basic Imaging" was held in October 2022 at Technical University of Munich (TUM), and provided training on theoretical and practical knowledge to utilize imaging technologies. During this workshop, a specialized training in scientific 3D visualization and illustration was also delivered.The ZENITH Symposium and Hackathon took place in June 2023 at the Paris Brain Institute (ICM) and the Sorbonne University (SU). The final ZENITH Symposium was an opportunity to hear about the work and vision of a selected number of renowned guest scientists in the neuroscience field, and for the ESRs to present their body of work accomplished over the last years. The Symposium promoted idea exchange and collaboration. The Hackathon was an opportunity for intense problem solving with the support of Principal Investigators (PIs) and teaching assistants (TAs). A careers session was also delivered.

The ZENITH seminars, a seminar series for students to hear from international renowned speakers that illustrate how they tackle a scientific question and how to bring new approaches to a field, was launched in 2020 and run very succesfully in collaboration with another ITN.

The consortium planned and developed the communication and dissemination infrastructure, created a project website, social media channels, and information materials to share information and enable fruitful collaboration.

The Zenith network offered an opportunity for young researchers to collaborate in a structured way with many partners across Europe and worldwide, fostering a highly multidisciplinary and international approach to research which ultimately led to better science and better doctoral training. The program created a sense of community, the collaborations created during the project-lifetime lead to long-lasting research networks. The collaborations with the private sector and the scientific and soft-skills training provided, lead to significantly better career opportunities for the ESRs, making them more attractive to different sectors.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The innovation and interdisciplinarity necessary to achieve ZENITH’s research goals could not be implemented by single partners alone. The originality of our research program lies in bringing together partners with complementary expertise to take on ambitious research projects that tackle major outstanding questions in systems neuroscience. Key strengths of our research program are:
(1) Convergence of different expertise with a unified scientific goal: A multi-scale understanding of the neural systems underlying behavior;
(2) Extensive interactions with industry partners to disseminate cutting-edge technologies across the consortium and to the wider research community;
(3) Integration of experimental data into rigorous analytical and modeling frameworks.

New technologies and access to extensive datasets on whole brain activity, connectomics and behavior afford the next generation of neuroscience trainees exciting experimental opportunities. However, a novel approach to training is urgently required for equipping trainees with the diverse skills and research frameworks that are needed to both collect and interpret this data. To date, most graduate students have tended to train in a single research group, focused on a specialized project, and using a specific experimental approach. However, major breakthroughs often arise from collaboration between biologists, physicists, or mathematicians in order to develop new technologies or take a new perspective leading to breakthroughs in understanding complex biological systems. Our training network will expose a cohort of research trainees from diverse backgrounds to a highly collaborative consortium that incorporates expertise across fields, to elucidate the mechanisms by which the brain generates behavior.

ZENITH will have a radical impact on: interdisciplinarity, technological innovation and excellence. In the field of European neuroscience, the ZENITH network provides an effective solution to the fragmentation of knowledge associated with hyper-specialization, by providing in-depth interdisciplinary training for the next generation of neuroscientists.

logo-788x788-central.png