iMed.ULisboa researcher Rita Guedes, Group Leader of the Computational Medicinal Chemistry Lab, was granted a HORIZON-MSCA-2021-DN-01 (MSCA Doctoral Networks 2021) with the project titled “TClock4AD – Targeting circadian clock dysfunction in Alzheimer’s Disease”.

This project will deliver double degrees to 15 doctoral candidates, with triple-i knowledge/skills, broad vision, and a business-oriented mindset to create a new generation of researchers able to study circadian clock as a viable therapeutic target for new effective drugs against Alzheimer’s Disease.

TClock4AD research activities will be structured around 5 scientific themes to: (1) develop novel artificial intelligence-, proteolysis targeting chimeras- and multitarget-based strategies for new CC drug candidates (2) develop novel drug delivery nanotechnologies, which take into consideration CC (3) investigate innovative in vitro (stem-cells, 3D cultures) & in vivo (Drosophila), as well as organ-on-chip techniques, for preclinical validation of CC drugs (4) get insight into the molecular mechanisms underlying CC in AD and associated drug response in mice and C. elegans models (5) develop innovative biotech business model and exploitation strategies.

TClock4AD coordinated by Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna was funded with 3.811.636,80 € and will exploit unique expertise and advanced technologies at 10 leading universities, 3 research centers, a hospital, 10 non-academic institutions including the Faculty of Pharmacy from the University of Lisbon, SMEs, a large pharma company, a Health industry association, and a patient organization across EU, UK, Israel, USA, and China.