Argentinian biologist Nicolás Rascovan sheds light on how he grew his research idea to a concrete proposal and then a ERC funded project.
Nicolás Rascovan is an Argentine biologist and the group leader of the Microbial paleogenomics unit at the Institut Pasteur in Paris, France. He initially trained as a molecular and cell biologist, taking his first steps in research as an undergraduate student in laboratories from Argentina (IFIBYNE/UBA) and USA (LRBGE/NIH). With the advent of high-throughput sequencing technologies, he decided to switch into the world of environmental metagenomics and bioinformatics for his Ph.D. (INDEAR Institute), which was defended at the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. He then moved to France for his postdoc at the University of Aix-Marseille, to work on viral metagenomics in topics closer to human health. By the end of his postdoc, he started to develop a research line in ancient microbial genomics, which helped him setting the grounds of his independent research career. His team, supported by an ERC grant, combines ancient DNA, microbial genomics and metagenomics to study the microbes and microbiomes that are associated with ancient human populations
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What motivated you to carry out your research in Europe?
I was motivated by a combination of professional and personal reasons. On the professional side, it was an opportunity for me to continue developing my scientific career in a rich environment - with much better resources than I had in my home country, and with easier access to discussions with experts in different fields. On the personal side, it was a way for me to follow my partner when she got a position in France and an opportunity to come to Europe for the first time.
What made you decide to apply for an ERC grant?
Soon after I came to Europe, I had an idea for a project that involved working in something never done in my host lab before - something I had always found fascinating. I thought it could be a very exciting path to follow as an independent researcher. I had the questions, the strategy to tackle these questions and I knew it would be exciting.
Having a good idea was just a part of the equation but I needed to gather the missing pieces.
Having a good idea was just a part of the equation but I needed to gather the missing pieces. For about three years I spent a lot of time reading and learning about the methodologies I needed. I created a network of colleagues to get access to the samples I needed and academic support (i.e. the background from other fields).
One positive thing about my idea was that, even though it involved interacting with other researchers, it did not overlap with their work. It is like parallel paths moving forward independently but hand in hand. The last challenging piece was getting funding and if I wanted to do it right, I needed a large amount of funding. The ERC was always the holy grail, the perfect means to achieve my goals. When I finally had all the loose ends tied up to write a strong proposal, I decided to apply to the ERC.
What it is like to carry out research in an international environment?
It is enriching on many levels. One gets to learn about different cultures, different ways of approaching things, different life stories and to meet different kinds of people. I think it really opens your mind up and helps make you see things as relative. And it’s fun. I particularly like making friends and meeting colleagues from different regions around the world. In the end, it is also thanks to them, the work environment and the network we are building together that I enjoy going to work every day and am glad that I am dedicating my life to what I do.
Do you and the Argentinian scientific community benefit from international collaboration such as this?
Yes, absolutely. I will develop my project by interacting closely with more than twenty research teams in Argentina (mostly archaeologists). These researchers are experts in their fields, have long and fruitful careers in Argentina, have a deep knowledge of their topics. I will need their input to get most of my results. In return, I will bring them the know-how about technologies and methodologies that are currently poorly developed in Argentina and are also unaffordable with Argentinian grants.
In the project, we will generate massive sequencing data that we will use to answer our questions of interest. The data will be far more vast and versatile than we can possibly exploit, and in years to come it will certainly be examined in many different ways, to tackle a myriad of questions. Our team has helped researchers in Argentina get trained in these approaches and use the generated data for their own research purposes.
We have also committed to making the data public and to generating multilingual databases with raw data, tables, figures and the most relevant outcomes for both scientists and the public to access.
We have also committed to making the data public and to generating multilingual databases with raw data, tables, figures and the most relevant outcomes for both scientists and the public to access. In many ways, the project will help enrich the cultural patrimony of Argentina, generate novel and valuable knowledge on areas that are of great interest for the country, while promoting equitable and synergistic exchanges between Europe and Argentina.
Could you explain your research in lay terms?
We will be recovering ancient DNA from human archaeological remains, mainly from Argentina, spanning from the earliest peopling of the territory (we will start around 6000 years ago) until the beginning of the 20th Century. We will focus particularly on teeth, because these are good sources of human and microbial DNA (oral microbes and, occasionally, systemic pathogens), so they
Teeth ... really act as time capsules that let us study how things were in the past - at least genomically speaking.
really act as time capsules that let us study how things were in the past - at least genomically speaking.
We will focus primarily on the microbial DNA fraction, which we will use to study the impact of major historical events on the health, mobility and interactions of human populations. For instance, we are interested in learning which infectious diseases were present in the indigenous populations of the Southern Cone of the Americas. Also, how historical events such as the adoption of agriculture, European contact and the postcolonial period shaped the prevalence, turnover and genomic changes of these diseases.
Since the human microbiome also plays important roles in human health and disease, we will also investigate how oral microbiota changed and was impacted by these events. We will also look at other more exploratory applications of ancient microbial DNA that could serve to trace human migrations, interactions between human populations, predicting lifestyles, etc.
Would you say being in Europe helps build useful long-term links with colleagues in your field globally?
Yes, it helps. Being in Europe gives more visibility to our work through the many networks, courses, workshops, meetings and events that show what we do. Many of these events and initiatives attract people from around the world, helping us to interact with colleagues in Europe and elsewhere. These are good starting points to establish collaborations and to create our own networks for discussions, exchanges, feedback, questions, etc. In addition, European funding makes it easier to travel for meetings with colleagues, or to invite researchers to visit when needed as well as to push forward a certain project, initiative or exchange.
Would you encourage Argentinian researchers to consider joining ERC teams in Europe and applying for an ERC grant?
Yes, absolutely. ERC-funded projects are in most cases cutting-edge, ambitious, exciting projects and count on strong financial support to do research in the best conditions you can find in Europe.
Any student or postdoc joining an ERC-funded team has good chances of having a highly stimulating and rich experience
Any student or postdoc joining an ERC-funded team has good chances of having a highly stimulating and rich experience and most likely, good scientific progress that can help them reach the next steps of their career development. For those considering about applying for an ERC grant, it is absolutely worth it. It takes a lot of time and effort to gather all the elements that are needed to create a strong proposal (it must be solid from every angle), but the payoff is very high, and it provides great work conditions for five years, while boosting your career in the middle and long term.
If you would like to ask Nicolás Rascovan about his career path, or learn more about ERC funding opportunities for researchers in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), you can watch a dedicated webinar on 6 October 2021. This information session is organised in conjunction with EURAXESS LAC, an EU backed initiative supporting researchers working outside of Europe who wish to connect with Europe.
