14-Jun-2021
Instruct-ERIC is the single point of access to technology and expertise for structural biology research. Through its specialist research centres in Europe, Instruct-ERIC offers funded research visits, training, internships and R&D awards. By promoting integrative methods, Instruct-ERIC enables excellent science and technological development for the benefit of all life scientists.
As part of the ongoing collaboration with Latin America, Instruct has recently signed 2 Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with Latin American research institutions: the University of San Martin (UNSAM), and the School of Sciences, University of Buenos Aires (UBA), both in Argentina.
These MOUs are the latest in a long line of partnerships between Instruct and Latin America, bringing the total number of MOUs to 10 – the full list is shown below:
The MOU with UNSAM, signed June 2021, will allow researchers from the institution to access technologies, equipment and services from Instruct Centres. The first role of the MOU collaboration will involve trips of students to Instruct-FR1 (IGBMC) under fellowship programs such as St. Exupery, and its aim is to advance the understanding of cell cycle regulation by developing methods to solve structures of protein interactions that regulate cell cycle progression and have been challenging to characterise.
The access to the INSTRUCT Infrastructure present at IGBMC is a tool of great value to the project, and with this motivation Dr. Lucía Chemes (Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas) at UNSAM and Dr. Alberto Podjarny at IGBMC worked together to move forward the establishment of an institutional relationship between UNSAM and INSTRUCT that would allow such access.
Furthermore, eight other research groups at UNSAM intend to make use of the partnership, and access technologies at Instruct Centres.
The MOU between Instruct-ERIC and the School of Sciences, University of Buenos Aires, one of the largest science institutions in Latin America, was signed in April 2021, opening possibilities for access for both institutions to each other’s technologies and equipment – central to the development of science and understanding in both regions. Specifically, the MOU will allow FCEN-UBA to gain access to native mass spectrometry, Cryo-EM, X-ray diffraction, and NMR facilities in order to push forward local projects. This includes the study of immunogenic protein particles working against COVID-19 and investigations concerning protein complexes from the iron-sulfur cluster assembly pathways, among many others.
In addition to access, both FCEN-UBA and Instruct-ERIC will participate in training and networking events – designed to promote and sustain scientific excellence through education and connections between the regions. In addition, Instruct’s range of training programmes, from workshops to internships, can provide valuable opportunities for FCEN-UBA students.
For more information on the international outreach of Instruct-ERIC, visit our International Collaboration Page.
