Why do viruses make us ill? Why does our immune system not always eliminate infections? These are some of the questions that a new basic research centre at the Faculty of Health at Aarhus University will attempt to answer.

Professor Søren Riis Paludan is behind the centre, and during the corona pandemic he became one of Denmark’s most well-known virologists, as he tirelessly contributed his research and expertise in viral mutations and vaccine development to control the disease.

"Understanding how the immune system combats viral infections is one of the biggest challenges in modern science. But there are fundamental gaps in our understanding of the immune system. Achieving this knowledge requires broad collaboration spanning all the way from experimental research to the philosophy of science," says Søren Riis Paludan.

More specifically, the centre will challenge the dogma that pattern-recognition receptors represent the only first line of specific defence against infections. The researchers behind the Center for Immunology of Viral Infections (CIVIA) will work from the hypothesis that there is a hitherto unknown layer of the immune system that mediates defence and disease prevention.

Joining the team as co-principal investigators are:

• Professor Trine Hyrup Mogensen - department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University
• Associate Professor David Olagnier - department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University
• Professor Jacob Giehm Mikkelsen - department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University
• Professor Andreas Pichlmair - Technical University Munich.

The centre will also have associated partners, among other things in the philosophy of science, for example Associate Professor K. Brad Wray from the Centre for Science Studies at Aarhus University.

The Danish National Research Foundation has announced that it will support the new centre with DKK 60 million.

"A grant of this size and with a timeframe of up to 10 years offers a unique opportunity to address major unanswered questions within virology and immunology," says Søren Riis Paludan.

11 international lighthouses

Dean of Health Anne-Mette Hvas is enthusiastic about the prospect of a new basic research centre affiliated with the faculty.

"Only the best researchers with the most ambitious ideas can achieve a Center of Excellence grant from the Danish National Research Foundation, and Søren Paludan's group and close partners fully meets the requirement to create excellent basic research at the highest international level. I have great expectations for the new centre and the ground-breaking knowledge it will create," she says.

The Danish National Research Foundation is supporting 11 new Centers of Excellence The chair of the board of the Foundation, Professor Jens Kehlet Nørskov, believes that the 11 new centres will be international lighthouses in Danish research.

"In Denmark, we’re good at creating the framework for fruitful, interdisciplinary research environments to form the basis for developing innovative solutions. Our Centers of Excellence stimulate cross-disciplinary collaboration and allow it to grow over a number of years," he says.

The new basic research centres will be established for a six-year period with the option of an extension for a further four years, subject to a satisfactory evaluation after approx. five years.

This is the 11th time the Danish National Research Foundation has supported Centers of Excellence Read more here.

FACTS – WHAT IS THE PROCESS?

Application to the Danish National Research Foundation to establish a new Center of Excellence is in two phases:

In the first phase, potential centre directors are invited to submit expressions of interest.
This time, the Danish National Research Foundation received 149 expressions of interest. Of these, 25 applicants were invited to submit full applications for a grant, and 11 applicants have now been invited to negotiate contracts for the establishment of new centres.

WHO GOT THROUGH THE EYE OF THE NEEDLE?

Eleven applicants are now initiating contract negotiations with the Danish National Research Foundation:

• Søren Riis Paludan, Aarhus University, for the Center for Immunology of Viral Infections (Civia). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 60 million.
• Marete Bilde, Aarhus University, for the Center for Chemistry of Clouds (C3). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 59,998,000.
• Jens-Christian Svenning, Aarhus University, Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 59,998,000.
• Eske Willerslev, University of Copenhagen, Centre for Ancient Environmental Genomics (CAEG). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 75 million.
• Ana Antic, University of Copenhagen, for the Centre for Culture and Mind (CULTMIND). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 38,983,000.
• Jesper Svejstrup, University of Copenhagen, for the Center for Gene Expression (CGEN). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 68,639,000.
• Lasse Heje Pedersen, Copenhagen Business School, for Center for Big Finance Data (BFD). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 59,399,000.
• Lone Simonsen, Roskilde University, for the to Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Pandemic Signatures (Pandemic-S). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 47 million.
• N. Asger Mortensen, University of Southern Denmark, for the Center for Polariton-driven Light-Matter Interactions (POLIMA). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 59,960,000.
• Riikka Rinnan, University of Copenhagen, for the Center for Volatile Interactions (VOLT). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 60 million.
• Thomas Gammeltoft-Hansen, University of Copenhagen, for the Center for Global Mobility Law (MOBILE). The Foundation is prepared to grant up to DKK 36 million.

Contact

Professor Søren Riis Paludan
Aarhus University, Department of Biomedicine
Email: srp@biomed.au.dk
Mobile: (+45) 2899 2066