This ERC grant is awarded through a highly competitive process, open exclusively to researchers who have previously completed projects under one of the ERC's major funding schemes – a testament to exceptional scientific achievements. In 2017, Prof. Klimašauskas received the prestigious €2.5 million ERC Advanced Grant for experienced researchers, successfully completing a project focused on developing advanced epigenome research technologies.
A Flexible Funding Scheme to Advance Biotechnology
“The second ERC grant will allow us to extend our work towards practical application of our research results in both scientific and industrial contexts. Despite its smaller financial contribution, the flexible funding scheme will give us the opportunity to effectively combine research, technological development, and commercialization efforts, maximizing the impact and delivering value to both science and industry,” says Prof. Klimašauskas.
One of the project’s goals is to produce SAM (S-adenosylmethionine) analogs suitable for targeted biomolecular modifications using methyltransferases. “Until now, these analogs have been chemically synthesized by us and a few other groups worldwide. However, the synthetic procedure is rather tedious and costly, yielding a mixture of compounds from which a functional isomer must be isolated,” explains Prof. Klimašauskas.
“Our latest studies demonstrated that chemo-enzymatic synthesis can be much more efficient and selective. Enzymatic reactions occur under milder conditions and directly yield the functional cofactor isomer. The primary goal of the CoMBi project is to transition our laboratory protocol into a technological framework, to test its feasibility for industrial production.”
Potential Applications in Cancer Diagnostics
Epigenome profiling technologies developed and utilized by Prof. Klimašauskas’s team during the past decade show significant potential in cancer and other disease diagnostics. These technologies have proven instrumental for detailed characterization of genomic features and mechanisms associated with disease onset and progression. This paves the way to developing more reliable, sensitive and inexpensive analytical tools for early detection of disease in the clinic.
However, a major hurdle lies in the poor availability of the reagents required for such studies. Currently, there are no commercial sources of the SAM analogs, grossly limiting further spread of these innovative technologies.
“We are receiving increasing inquiries for these materials from academic groups and industry, underscoring the existing demand. If our trials prove successful, the next phase will involve finding an industrial partner who can adapt and commercialize it. This will address the current bottleneck: despite its high potential, this technology remains largely inaccessible due to the lack of necessary reagents,” notes Prof. Klimašauskas.
The ERC Proof of Concept grant aims to support the initial steps in translating research results into commercial or societal applications. Prof. Klimašauskas’s research will not only contribute to the development of new biotechnological tools but also enhance VU and Lithuania’s position in the global scientific innovation landscape.
