National and international
research clusters

European consortium “DARK MATTER”

What is DARK MATTER? The Bonelli Lab is a key member of Dark Matter, an ambitious Horizon-Europe consortium of 9 research partners throughout Europe (Austria, Netherlands, France, Germany, Hungary, Switzerland, Sweden & Spain) that is set to last for five years (2024-2028).

Scope: Unraveling the dark matter of infectious diseases, environmental and genetic factors tipping the balance towards Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).

Our role: Our team aims to identify effector T cells that are reactive to epitopes suspected to contribute to immune-related non-communicable diseases.

European consortium

What is SQUEEZE? The Bonelli Lab is an active partner of SQUEEZE, a new Horizon-Europe consortium consisting of 15 research partners throughout Europe (Austria, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, UK, Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Italy & Romania) that is set to last for five years (2022-2027).

Scope: Maximize the impact of Prescription drugs against Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA).

Our role: Our team focuses on establishing and validating innovative molecular and cellular platforms that support preferential treatment decisions for patients.

PhD & MD/PhD Program “SHIELD”

What is SHIELD? The Bonelli Lab takes part in SHIELD, a PhD excellence programme “Securing Host Immunity: Elimination versus Destruction (SHIELD)” that is supported by the doc.funds initiative of the FWF.

Scope: Students on this doctoral program investigate molecular and cellular mechanisms of the immune system in the context of infections, carcinogenesis and autoimmune diseases.

Our role: Our team aims to understand the mechanisms that drive the development of pathogenic T cells and their role in inflammatory arthritis.

SFB-F70 “HDACs as regulators of T cell-mediated immunity in health and disease” (“HIT”)

What is HIT? We are members of an interdisciplinary consortium of eight research groups throughout Austria.

Scope: An 8-year research (2023-2027) program to provide an immunological and molecular rationale for using sub-class-specific and isoform-selective Histone Deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors in the treatment of T cell-mediated diseases.

Our role: Our team is studying HDACs as targets in systemic autoimmune disease patients.

Ludwig Boltzman Institute for Arthritis and Rehabilitation Research Program

We are collaborating with the Ludwig Boltzman Institute for Arthritis and Rehabilitation.

Scope: Address questions of clinical and translational research in the fields of rheumatology and rehabilitation. The focus of basic and translational research is on chondrocyte biology and development of novel drugs for treatment of inflammatory and degenerative joint disorders.

Our role: Our research team is investigating the role of cellular interactions as drivers of tissue inflammation.

European Consortium RTCure

What was RTCure? We have been members of the RTCure project, a public-private partnership of twenty academic organizations and private companies accross Europe, co-funded by the EU and the private sector.

Scope: develop new tolerizing treatment strategies for Rheumatoid Arthritis patients in the earliest stages of the disease as well as those at risk for developing Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Our role: Our team has focused on developing and validating new methods to identify patients at high risk for Rheumatoid Arthritis and tools to monitor the progress of the diseases.