STEP:
A Strategy for the EuroPhysiome
Coordination Action # 017642
Marco Viceconti
Scientific Coordinator
© 2006 STEP Consortium
Contents
• consortium
• context to STEP
• STEP objectives and programme
• STEP conferences and related activities
• expected outcomes
• summary
© 2006 STEP Consortium
The Consortium
• LUT - University of Luton (UK)
– Project Coordinator, Gordon Clapworthy
• IOR - Istituti Ortopedici Rizzoli (I)
– Scientific Coordinator, Marco Viceconti
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ULB - Université Libre de Bruxelles (B)
SHE - University of Sheffield (UK)
AAS - Aalborg and Aarhus University Hospitals (DK)
OXF - University of Oxford (UK)
NOT - University of Nottingham (UK)
CNRS – CNRS/LaMI (F)
UCL - University College London (UK)
© 2006 STEP Consortium
Definition of the Physiome
• The physiome is the quantitative and integrated
description of the functional behavior of the physiological
state of an individual or species.
– The physiome describes the physiological dynamics of the
normal intact organism and is built upon information and
structure (genome, proteome, and morphome). The term comes
from "physio-" (life) and "-ome" (as a whole). In its broadest
terms, it should define relationships from genome to organism
and from functional behavior to gene regulation. In context of the
Physiome Project, it includes integrated models of components
of organisms, such as particular organs or cell systems,
biochemical, or endocrine systems.
© 2006 STEP Consortium
The Physiome Project
• The Physiome Project is a worldwide effort to define the
physiome through the development of databases and models
which will facilitate the understanding of the integrative function
of cells, organs, and organisms.
• The Physiome Project is a grass-root all-inclusive initiative, not
linked to a particular country, research institution, or research
community, that welcome anyone willing to contribute to the
development of the Physiome.
• The project has the following scopes:
– to promote the concept of Physiome and its scientific, industrial,
clinical and societal relevance
– to identify the research challenges to be met in order to advance
the general objective
– to promote the synergy between Physiome-related initiatives by
developing and promoting standards that ensure the creation of a
fully interoperable federation of physiome repositories.
© 2006 STEP Consortium
The Physiome Project
• aims to provide a computational framework:
– to facilitate the understanding of
• human physiology
• the integrative function of cells, organs and organisms
– multiscale in silico model of human physiology
• it is an international effort:
– loosely coupled actions of individual labs
– “grass roots” approach
• noticeably gaining momentum
© 2006 STEP Consortium
The EuroPhysiome initiative
• All Physiome-related projects managed by European
researchers have been recently coordinated under
the STEP Coordination action
• STEP: a Strategy for The EuroPhysiome aims to
coordinate European efforts toward the development
of the Virtual Physiological Human
• This effort will materialise into a VPH roadmap
document, written through a running consensus
process that will involve all European stakeholders
© 2006 STEP Consortium
Virtual Physiological Human
• The term Virtual Physiological Human (VPH) indicates a shared
resource formed by a federation of disparate but integrated
computer models of the mechanical, physical, and biochemical
functions of living human body in both physiological and
pathological conditions.
• This goal is coherent with those set by the international
Physiome Project.
• VPH models are both descriptive and predictive:
– large collections of anatomical, physiological, and pathological data
stored in digital format,
– predictive simulations developed from these collections
– services aimed to support the researchers in the creation and
maintenance of these models
– services aimed to empower clinical, industrial and societal users in
the use of the VPH resource
© 2006 STEP Consortium
VPH models
• span multiple dimensional scales (from the whole body down to
the cells and the proteins they synthesise)
• account for the inter-subject variability
• make possible the combination of patient-specific data with
population-based representations
• are implemented as computer models and services, designed
following community standards that make possible to exchange
information and to realise a developmental process based on the
federation of the various partial representations, each already
useful by itself, into what should become one day an exhaustive
and complete representation of functions of the human body
• To create the VPH we need brand new technologies, specifically
developed to pursue this scope; this is called VPH Technology.
© 2006 STEP Consortium
VPH Technology
• VPH Technology is an organised collection of
computational frameworks and ICT-based tools for
the multilevel modelling and simulation of the human
anatomy, physiology and pathology.
• Once sufficiently developed the VPH will provide an
essential technological infrastructure to the Physiome
Project, to pathology-specific initiatives in
translational research, and to vertical solutions for the
biomedical industry.
© 2006 STEP Consortium
The EuroPhysiome
• European effort currently at “grass roots” level
• “EuroPhysiome” was coined to reflect a more integrated
approach to the Physiome concept from Europe
– NOT isolationist
• maintain the ideals / principles of the Physiome project
• continue to work with labs outside Europe
– BUT increase coherence within Europe
• avoid redundancy/overlap
• seek to develop common European approaches/ standards/ software
tools/ database structures ….
• increase momentum in European Physiome work to make Europe the
world leader
• consistent with world-wide efforts wherever possible
© 2006 STEP Consortium
Europhysiome Projects
• Cardiome
– heart structure & function, based at Oxford
• Epitheliome
– epithelial tissue, based at Sheffield
• Giome
– gastroenterology, based in Aalborg
• Living Human
– musculo-skeletal, based at IOR
• ULB virtual human
– musculo-skeletal, based at ULB
• Renal Physiome
– kidney, based at CNRS-LaMI in Evry
• Physiological Flow Network
– physiological flows, based at Nottingham
© 2006 STEP Consortium
STEP Objectives
• To bring together all current Physiome-related activity
in Europe
• To create a roadmap that will ensure that future
European work will be coherent, integrated and
internationally competitive
• this implies that European projects:
– develops a broader perspective
– moves from a project-based outlook to a Physiome-based
outlook
• To provide the opportunity for all relevant work in
Europe to participate in the above process
© 2006 STEP Consortium
Boundaries
• attempting to consider the whole body is too
ambitious for a simple CA
– exclude brain and perceptual/cognitive aspects of the
sensorial apparatus
• concentrate on subsystems for which physicsbased modelling is a fundamental aspect
– cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, respiratory,
digestive, skin (within restrictions noted)
• this represents a broad, but relatively
homogeneous domain
– European work in this area is already recognised as
being strong
© 2006 STEP Consortium
Project structure
WP1
WP3
M0–M15
Discussion Groups & Mailing Lists
Co-ordination & management
WP2
M0–M4
Organisation of
the First
Conference
WP4
M3–M12
Organisation of
the Second
Conference
WP6
M0–M15
Dissemination
© 2006 STEP Consortium
M1–M15
WP5
M12–M15
Production of the
Road Map
The scope of the Roadmap
• Identify the Grand Challenges that we must
overcome to achieve the VPH objective
• Provide to the European Commission and to other
grant agencies a research roadmap for the Virtual
Physiological Human, to be used for strategic
planning of research funding
• Evangelise research, clinical and industrial
stakeholders on the concepts of Physiome, VPH and
VPH Technology
• Inform the citizens of Europe of the potential impact
that VPH research may have of their daily lives
© 2006 STEP Consortium
The road to the Roadmap
The road to the Roadmap
Strands
• we have already noted the importance of moving
from a project-based outlook to a Physiome-based
outlook
• however:
– considering the Physiome as a whole (even within the
boundaries described) would be highly complex
• so:
– break down the large problem into a set of smaller problems,
suitably defined
• STEP has defined a set of Strands
– suited to the restricted domain defined for the project
© 2006 STEP Consortium
Strands (cont’d)
• the strands defined cover tissue types:
– hard tissue (coordinator IOR)
– soft tissue (coordinator AAS)
– fluids (coordinator SHE)
• they also cover more general common
aspects across all tissue types
– anatomy & physiology (coordinator ULB)
– Multiscale modelling (coordinator OXF)
– VPH Technology (coordinator LUT)
© 2006 STEP Consortium
Expert Panels & Advisory
Board
• for each Strand Panel a group of world-known
experts will be invited to contribute to the
consensus
• there will also be an Advisory Board formed of
senior figures who will provide a strategic view
and will review all draft documents produced by
the panels
• all of these will have some members from outside
Europe to avoid too introspective a discussion
• all stakeholders should be represented:
– industrial, clinical, professional bodies, societal, etc
© 2006 STEP Consortium