Post by Prinses Máxima Centrum voor kinderoncologie

Within a new European training program, fifteen PhD candidates are focusing on the ‘dark proteome’: a group of proteins whose existence was unknown until recently. These proteins regulate processes in (cancer) cells and may play an important role in the development of new treatments, such as immunotherapy.The ORFeus program is coordinated by the Van Heesch group.   The PhD candidates will be trained to become independent researchers in fifteen research groups across different European countries and will specialize in this emerging field. Sebastiaan van Heesch: 'Previous research shows that the dark proteome offers opportunities for new treatments for various diseases. With fifteen PhD candidates focusing on this group of previously unknown proteins, we are gaining an increasingly better understanding of this research field and of the possibilities to apply it to new therapies, for example for pediatric cancer.”    Project coordinator Simon Venneman adds: 'Through more research and specialization, this field can develop further and we aim to fulfill the promise of the dark proteome.'   #HorizonEU, #DarkProteome, #ORFeus, #MSCA-DN, #MarieCurie