Mónica Sousa secures multi-million euro grant from the European Research Council
The i3S scientist, Mónica Sousa, was one of five Portuguese researchers distinguished by the European Research Council (ERC) with an ERC Advanced Grant, valued at 2.5 million euros. Over the next five years, the researcher will seek new therapies for spinal cord injuries in humans.
“I feel incredibly proud and honoured to receive the European Research Council Advanced Grant. This recognition will enable us to explore challenging scientific questions that we would otherwise be unable to address,” Mónica Sousa stated. For the i3S researcher, securing this multi-million euro grant also signifies, “a recognition of the dedication, and talent, of my team members, both past and present, and it underscores the relevance of our work. Although I feel the weight of this award, I am extremely enthusiastic about taking this next step and continuing to expand the frontiers of scientific knowledge.”
Recently, Mónica Sousa’s team discovered that, unlike in humans and most mammals, the spiny mouse (Acomys cahirinus) possesses the unique ability to spontaneously regenerate its spinal cord after an injury, preventing the formation of scars that block functional recovery. This discovery, which challenges decades of scientific knowledge and positions the Acomys as an extraordinary model for studying central nervous system (CNS) regeneration, underpins the CORDheal project, now distinguished by the European Research Council with an Advanced Grant.
When a spinal cord injury occurs, the researcher explains, “communication between the brain and the rest of the body is interrupted, often resulting in irreversible paralysis. Generally, this is due to the inability of axons - long extensions of nerve cells responsible for transmitting information - to overcome the scar tissue that forms after the injury, preventing the re-establishment of connections.”
Since the spiny mouse possesses the extraordinary ability to spontaneously regenerate its spinal cord, the team led by Mónica Sousa aims to map the cellular and molecular processes involved in this unique mammalian species’ regeneration, comparing the injured spinal cord of Acomys with that of Mus musculus (the common laboratory mouse, which is unable to regenerate it’s spinal cord), through advanced, cell-by-cell analyses. This study, she emphasises, “will allow us to identify the cell populations, and molecular pathways, responsible for the recovery phenomenon in the Acomys, with the objective of paving the way for new therapies for spinal cord injuries in humans.”
According to the i3S researcher, the team will also investigate this special ability of the Acomys further, to try and understand if the post-injury regenerative process recapitulates embryonic development, identify the potentially new genes that may be related to this regenerative capacity, and determine when these genes emerged throughout species’ evolution. To achieve this, comparative studies with closely related species will be conducted to determine the evolutionary moment at which this regenerative capacity arose in this mammal.
With a highly innovative, and multidisciplinary, scientific programme, Mónica Sousa stresses, "the CORDheal project promises to surpass the current limits of knowledge, and contribute decisively to unravelling the adaptive cellular mechanisms that make central nervous system regeneration possible in mammals."
Other Portuguese Awardees
In Portugal, the other winning scientists were the neuroscientist Megan Carey, from the Champalimaud Foundation, who aims to explore how the cerebellum helps consolidate motor memories and adapt to new challenges, and the economist Miguel Ferreira, from Nova SBE, who proposes to study the effects of financial education on the economy. Also awarded were the Portuguese Ana Domingos, a neuroscientist from the University of Oxford, and Paulo de Assis, from the Orpheus Institute in Belgium, in the field of Musical Sciences. Each will receive approximately €2.5M for the development of research projects over the next five years.
The President of the European Research Council, Maria Leptin, congratulated the awardees and praised the distinguished projects: “Much of this pioneering research will contribute to solving some of the most pressing challenges we face - social, economic, environmental, amongst others.”
The European Commissioner for Start-ups, Research, and Innovation, Ekaterina Zaharieva, emphasised that, “these ERC grants are our commitment to making Europe the global centre for research excellence. By supporting projects with the potential to redefine entire fields, we are not only investing in science, but in the future of our continent’s prosperity, and resilience.” In future editions of the calls, she assured, “scientists who move to Europe will receive even more support in establishing their laboratories, and research teams, here. This is part of our ‘Choose Europe for Science’ initiative, designed to attract and retain the world’s best scientists.”
About the European Research Council Grants
ERC Grants are research grants awarded by the European Research Council. Any researcher can apply, provided they intend to conduct their research at an institution within the European Union. With no quotas by country, area, or otherwise, these grants are awarded based solely on the merit of the project.
The funding is intended for the development of projects over a five-year period, and is awarded at three main levels, according to the proposing researcher's seniority: Starting Grants, for researchers with two to seven years post-doctorate, with a value of up to €1.5M; Consolidator Grants, for researchers with seven to twelve years post-doctorate, and funding of up to €2M; and Advanced Grants, for independent researchers, with a value of up to €3.5M. Initial support for relocation or scientific equipment may be added to these amounts.
This year, the ERC funding for Advanced Grants, with a total value of €721M, will be allocated to 281 researchers in Europe. In the case of life sciences, 732 proposals were submitted, with 83 selected for funding, representing a success rate of approximately 11 per cent.
About Mónica Sousa
Since 2008, Mónica Sousa has led the “Nerve Regeneration” research group at i3S, dedicated to discovering the mechanisms that regulate axon growth and regeneration. Among her group’s main discoveries is the identification of the spiny mouse as the first known mammal capable of spontaneously regenerating its spinal cord, an essential discovery that has opened new perspectives in regenerative medicine.
Mónica Sousa holds a PhD in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Porto. During her doctorate, she investigated the biology of an aggregation-prone protein responsible for axonal degeneration. Subsequently, she conducted postdoctoral research at Columbia University, in New York, where she studied signalling pathways implicated in amyloid fibril-induced neurodegeneration.
Throughout her career, Mónica Sousa has been distinguished with several prestigious awards, including the Pfizer Award in Basic Research, the Albino Aroso Award (2016), the Bluepharma Innovation Award (2018), the Grunenthal Pain Award 2021, and the Melo e Castro Award in 2022, 2019, and 2016, among others. She has also obtained significant funding from the international “Wings for Life” Foundation, and the “la Caixa” Foundation.
In addition to her scientific activities, Mónica Sousa has extensive experience in leadership, scientific mentorship, and science policy. In 2024, her scientific excellence and the impact of her work were recognised with her election as a lifelong member of the European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO).