OLISSIPO – Fostering Computational Biology Research and Innovation in Lisbon

The OLISSIPO project aims at enhancing the competences in Computational Biology at INESC-ID and developing it into an international pole of excellence.

The objectives are: 1) Enhance INESC-ID research profile and innovation competence in Computational Biology; 2) Provide training to staff and Early Stage Researchers to build a critical mass at the interface of computer science and health research; 3) Establish a leading pole of excellence in Computational Biology in Europe; 4) Support regional initiatives under the SMART specialization strategy for Lisbon and Portugal; and 5) Strengthen and expand the collaborative network between the Twinning partners.The project will reinforce the expertise of the Twinning partners in four interconnected Strategic Areas, strongly rooted in computer sciences and statistical learning and with direct impact on biology and health applications: 1) Single-cell data analysis, modeling and simulation; 2) Mathematical modeling of inter-cell and communities’ interactions; 3) Bayesian and combinatorial phylogenetic inference of cells and communities; and 4) Translational bioinformatics, data management and software development.The consortium is designed to meet the methodological challenges of analysing whole organisms and how they interact within communities and with the environment.

Besides the proponent institution, INESC-ID (Lead: Susana Vinga), it involves three leading institutions and Principal Investigators in Computational Biology: INRIA (Marie-France Sagot), ETH Zurich (Niko Beerenwinkel) and EMBL (Wolfgang Huber).OLISSIPO will have a decisive impact by: 1) Enhancing the scientific and technological capacity of INESC-ID and the scientific profile of its staff; 2) Contributing to the Portuguese SMART specialisation strategy and the UN Sustainable Development Goals; and 3) Reinforcing the international collaborative networks, visibility and attractiveness of INESC-ID.