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Virtual Physiological Human Network of Excellence

by Portal Administrator — last modified 2008-07-28 18:56

The Virtual Physiological Human Network of Excellence (VPH NoE) is a EU Seventh Framework funded project, working to connect and support researchers in the VPH field within Europe and beyond. *Please note that some FP7 proposals noted below are under negotiation and their grant agreements have not yet been signed*

** VISIT THE NEW VPH NoE WEBSITE AT WWW.VPH-NOE.EU ; PROJECT INFORMATION, VPH INITIATIVE FORUM AND MORE**

The Virtual Physiological Human Network of Excellence (VPH NoE) has been designed with 'service to the community' of VPH researchers as its primary purpose. Its aims range from the development of a VPH ToolKit and associated infrastructural resources, through integration of models and data across the various relevant levels of physiological structure and functional organisation, to VPH community building and support. The VPH NoE aims to foster the development of new and sustainable educational, training and career structures for those involved in VPH related science, technology and medicine.

The EU VPH Initiative

The Virtual Physiological Human (VPH) has been previously defined as: “a methodological and technological framework that, once established, will enable collaborative investigation of the human body as a single complex system ... It is a way to share observations, to derive predictive hypotheses from them, and to integrate them into a constantly improving understanding of human physiology/pathology, by regarding it as a single system.” (Seeding the EuroPhysiome: A Roadmap to the Virtual Physiological Human, STEP Consortium, 2007). In keeping with this, Objective ICT-2007.5.3: Virtual Physiological Human lists, as its main target outcome, patient-specific computer models for personalised and predictive healthcare and ICT-based tools for modelling and simulation of human physiology and disease-related processes. Collaborative projects (IPs and STREPs, listed below) within the call will meet specific objectives, addressing: patient-specific computational modelling and simulation of organs or systems; data integration and new knowledge extraction; and clinical applications and demonstration of tangible benefits of patient-specific computational models. It is clear that the networking action outlined within the call should serve to connect these efforts, and lay the foundations for the methodological and technical framework to support such research. It should also build on previous EC investment in this field, including the outcomes of VPH ‘type’ projects funded within EU FP6 (listed below, including details on project type, links to project websites and EC project factsheets).

Objectives of the proposed VPH NoE

· coordination of research portfolios of VPH NoE partners through initiation of Exemplar integrative research projects that encourage inter-institution and interdisciplinary VPH research;

· integration of research infrastructures of VPH NoE partners through development of the VPH ToolKit: a shared and mutually accessible source of research equipment, managerial and research infrastructures, facilities and services;

· development of a portfolio of interdisciplinary training activities including a formal consultation on, and assessment of, VPH careers;

· establishment of a core set of VPH-related dissemination and networking activities which will engage everyone from partners within the VPH NoE/other VPH projects, to national policy makers, to the public at large. A key activity in this will be a VPH concertation day at ICT-BIO 2008;

· creation of Industrial, Clinical and Scientific Advisory Boards that will jointly guide the direction of the VPH NoE and, through consultation, explore the practical and legal options for real and durable integration within the VPH research community;

· creation of key working groups that will pursue specific issues relating to VPH, notably integrating VPH research worldwide through international physiome initiatives.

Consortium Members

· UCL, UK (Peter Coveney, Marco Cortopassi, Vanessa Diaz, Catherine Gale)

· University of Oxford, UK (Peter Kohl, David Gavaghan, Sharon Lloyd, Katherine Fletcher)

· CNRS, France (Randy Thomas)

· Universite Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium (Serge Van Sint Jan)

· The French National Institute for Research in Computer Science and Control (INRIA), France (Maxime Sermesant, Nicholas Ayache)

· University of Nottingham, UK (Bindi Brook, John King)

· University Pompeu Fabra, Spain (Alejandro Frangi, Aurelio Ruiz)

· University of Auckland, New Zealand (Peter Hunter)

· European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Germany (Bernard de Bono, Ewan Birney)

· University of Sheffield, UK (Rod Hose, Pat Lawford, John Fenner)

· Karolinska Institutet, Sweden (John Skaar, Jesper Tegner)

· Institut Municipal d’Assistència Sanitària, Spain (Ferran Sanz, Jordi Villà, Gianni de Fabritiis)

· GEIE ERCIM (Phillipe Rohou)

In addition to the core membership a general and associate membership of this project has also been created, to ensure wider engagement of the research community with this initiative. A full listing of members will be published in due course. Associate/General membership is open to any interested Institution, Organisation or Commercial Entity with an interest in the work of the VPH NoE, and will be subject to an collaboration agreement. Please contact VPH[at]ucl.ac.uk for more information.

Other VPH call projects *Please note that some projects remain in negotiation and their grant agreements have not yet been signed* (FP7)

· euHeart (IP)

· VPHOP (IP)

· ARTreat (IP)

· preDiCT (STREP)

· ContraCancrum (STREP)

· ARCH (STREP)

· PASSPORT (STREP)

· PredictAD (STREP)

· NeoMARK (STREP)

· VPH2 (STREP)

· IMPPACT (STREP)