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and the Institut Convergence joined forces since 2018, with support from the Fonds National de Valorisation (SGPI) and Ile-de-France, to launch a call for proposals aimed at supporting innovative projects with a high potential impact, across all fields and disciplines. The aim is to fund studies, prototypes, or proofs-of-concept that could promote the transfer and socio-economic impact of these projects.

19 high-potential projects, from 8 institutions within the PSL perimeter, in all disciplines and fields of application, were submitted to this call. After evaluation by independent experts, 9 projects were selected by the selection committee:

• Laurent Corté, Health, Mines ParisTech: Innovative hydrogel-based artificial ligaments, especially for the knee
• Gilles Gasser Health, Chimie ParisTech: Polypyridyl ruthenium complexes as photosensitizers for selective photodynamic therapy of cancer
• François Garnier, SHS/Art-design, EnsAD, Tamed Cloud: Sensitive interactions with a cloud of data visualized in immersion.
• Christophe Guérin, SHS/Art-design, EnsAD: ECO-Cast, a new manufacturing process for aluminum objects, based on crystallography and recycling
• Zoher Gueroui, Biotech, ENS: Magnetic bacteria programmed as cell biosensors for sensitive detection of pathogens
• David Holcman, Health, ENS: A tool for predicting post-operative disorders by analyzing isoelectric suppression in the EEG signal during general anesthesia
• Nicolas Manel, Biotech, Institut Curie: Identification of small molecules acting on the rupture of the nuclear envelope, a new target in the field of cancer and ageing  
• Eliane Piaggio, Biotech, Institut Curie: Interleukin-2 variants with modified biological activity for cancer immunotherapy
• Charlotte Tripon-Canseliet, Digital, ESPCI: Optically controllable electromagnetic metasurface antennas

In order to mobilize all the communities that make the diversity of PSL, two funding tickets have been set aside for the fields of Human and Social Sciences, Art and Design.

The project “Tamed Cloud”, led by François Garnier, professor and researcher at ENSAD, and carried out by the , was selected for this funding. The Tamed-Cloud project seeks to construct a sensitive, affective, aesthetic relationship with large digital datasets presented in the form of a virtual, living, malleable cloud. By recreating a sensory, visual and tactile proximity with dematerialized data, this immersive virtual reality experience reactivates cognitive capacities, through emotions and body actions, in complex activities of intuitive analysis or creative research. This new subjective approach to Big Data, offering an alternative to keyword-based searching, could be applied in many fields, particularly in digital humanities, communication, scientific data analysis and artificial security.
 

The call for proposals encouraged other innovative initiatives, such as the Ligagel project, led by Prof Laurent Corte, at the crossroads of Health and Materials: "At the, we are developing a new solution to ligament rupture. These are artificial ligaments made of a synthetic hydrogel that has already demonstrated its biocompatibility in clinical applications, and can reproduce the mechanical behaviour of ligament tissue. The first prototypes on a human scale are being evaluated in collaboration with orthopedic and veterinary surgeons, and biomechanics experts. These preclinical trials are designed for the reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), which is the most commonly affected ligament, with cases of rupture affecting nearly one in 3000 people each year. The reference treatment is currently based on the replacement of the ACL by a tendon graft harvested from the patient. The Ligagel device will then be able to provide an alternative solution avoiding this autograft, which is the cause of multiple complications.”
 

In the field of quantitative biology applied to medicine, the NERDRUG project will enable the development of an innovative technology to promote the death of tumor cells and reduce the ageing of normal cells. Led by Nicolas Manel and Matthieu Piel, , this project is based on the rupture of the nuclear envelope (NER) outside of mitosis, which is now recognized as a physiological and regulated cellular process. In cancer, NER can promote the death of tumor cells. In healthy cells, NER contributes to cell senescence, which is linked to aging. The teams have developed a method for quantifying NER (patent filed by the Institut Curie), based on the rapid and stable entry of modified cytosolic DNA sensors into the nucleus of cells. This method makes it possible to select small molecules that stimulate or reduce NER. The funding obtained will enable this method to be implemented in a screening system, in order to establish a proof of concept and test a first set of molecules. With this proof of concept, it will be possible to screen a larger library of small molecules and identify new drug candidates capable of modulating NER.

Partners supporting PSL in this call for projects are:

• The Fonds National de Valorisation, that supports PSL within the framework of the experimentation launched in 2016, because of the originality of its valorisation model, based on breakthrough innovation and the creation of startups.
• The supports PSL Valorisation through the PSL Transfert Entreprises project, and has enabled the financing of 4 projects linked to the creation of startups, in all fields of knowledge (MATIS@PSL projects).
• The   is dedicated to quantitative biology and the interdisciplinary study of the behaviour and dynamics of living systems. Qlife has joined this call for projects to support 3 startup projects in this field.