IBEC Seminar: Agathe Chaigne
2024-03-08 10:00 - 11:00 (Europe/Madrid) | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Molecular and mechanical regulation of abscission in stem cells
Agathe Chaigne, PhD., Group leader. Cell Biology, Neurobiology and Biophysics department, Utrecht University, The Netherlands
Abscission is the last step of cell division leading to the complete separation of the two sister cells and consists in the cutting of a cytoplasmic bridge. Abscission is mediated by the membrane remodelling machinery ESCRT which also triggers the severing of a thick bundle of microtubules that needs to be cleared prior to abscission. Here, we use mouse embryonic stem cells, which transition from slow to fast abscission during exit from naïve pluripotency to investigate the molecular mechanism for abscission dynamics. We identify a feedback loop between the activity of Aurora B, mechanics, and microtubule stability as a main regulator of abscission speed.

IBEC Seminar: Emilio Parisini
2024-03-22 12:00 - 13:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Engineering enzymes for biomedical and biotechnological applications
Emilio Parisini, Latvian Institute of Organic Synthesis (Riga, Latvia), University of Bologna (Italy)
Enzyme engineering has the potential to improve the activity, the stability and the substrate recognition of enzymes. As such, it paves the way for the design of novel enzymes with improved performances for a wide range of applications. This rational approach can accelerate the production and the use of biocatalysts in different biotechnological sectors, thus in turn allowing the improvement of chemical processes through the application of green chemistry concepts. In this talk, two examples from our current research will be discussed:
Fructosyl Peptide Oxidases (FPOX) are deglycating enzymes that find application as key enzymatic components in diabetes monitoring devices. Indeed, their use with blood samples can provide a measurement of the concentration of glycated hemoglobin and glycated albumin, two well-known diabetes markers. However, the FPOX currently employed in enzymatic assays cannot directly detect whole glycated proteins, making it necessary to perform a preliminary proteolytic treatment of the target protein to generate small glycated peptides that can act as viable substrates for the enzyme. This is a costly and time consuming step. The rapidly growing demand for cheap, efficient and rapid diabetes monitoring tests could be met by developing enzymatic assays for glycated hemoglobin and albumin that do not require a preliminary digestion of the proteins. In our lab, we used an in silico protein engineering approach to enhance the overall thermal stability of the enzyme and widen it active site to improve its catalytic activity toward large substrates.
The fast and uncontrolled accumulation of plastic waste in the environment has long begun to impact on the natural ecosystems and to pose an existential threat to all forms of life on our planet. Advanced technical solutions to the plastic waste management problem are therefore in urgent demand. To this end, enzymatic approaches to plastic degradation hold great promises as novel and more efficient enzymes are constantly being developed. Leaf-branch Compost Cutinase (LCC), a naturally occurring PETase, has been reported to outperform all other known PET-degrading enzymes and to present a melting temperature (Tm) of 84.7°C. This enzyme has been noticeably engineered in 2020, leading to the so-called ICCG variant (Tm = 94.0°C), the current gold standard. In our lab, we engineered a LCC that features significantly enhanced PETase activity and thermal stability relative to the gold standard ICCG.

IBEC Seminar: Kevin Braeckmans
2024-04-12 10:00 - 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Delivering effector molecules in cells in vitro and ex vivo by photoporation.
Kevin Braeckmans, Biophotonics Research Group, Lab. General Biochemistry and Physical Pharmacy, Ghent University, Belgium
Delivery of bioactive compounds, such as proteins and nucleic acids, into cells in vitro or ex vivo is a generic requirement for many applications in the life sciences, such as for the engineering of therapeutic cells. Physical delivery methods are attractive in this context as they are well-controlled, and can accommodate a broad variety of effector molecules and cell types. Photoporation is such a recently developed physical delivery technology which combines laser stimulation with photothermal nanoparticles. Localized thermal effects upon laser irradiation can create pores in the cell membrane, allowing the influx of external molecules in cells. Importantly, photoporation is very gentle to cells, resulting in excellent cell viability and preservation of a cell’s phenotype and functionality. In this presentation I will give an overview of the most notable work that we performed on photoporation as a next-generation transfection technology in the past decade.

Kevin Braeckmans first studied physics before doing his doctoral studies in pharmaceutical sciences at Ghent University in Belgium. From early on he was passionate about developing biophotonics technologies for drug delivery and diagnostics. In 2008 he was appointed professor at Ghent University as the group leader of the Bio-Photonics Research Group. In 2015 he received a prestigious ERC Consolidator Grant and became full professor in 2018. His research presently focuses on studying biological barriers to nanomedicines by advanced microscopy techniques, and combining light with nanoparticles to enable light-triggered drug delivery and related therapeutic applications. He is a co-author of >250 publications, Clarivate Highly Cited Author in 2022 and 2023, and co-inventor of 17 patent applications. Presently he is a co-founder and CSO/CTO of the spin-off company Trince.

IBEC Seminar: Ovijit Chaudhuri
2024-05-03 10:00 - 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Cell migration and morphogenesis in viscoelastic matrices
Ovijit Chaudhuri, University of Standford
The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a complex assembly of structural proteins that provides physical support and biochemical signaling to cells in tissues. Over the last two decades, studies have revealed the important role that ECM elasticity plays in regulating a variety of biological processes in cells, including stem cell differentiation and cancer progression. However, tissues and ECM are often viscoelastic, displaying stress relaxation over time in response to a deformation, and viscoplastic, exhibiting irreversible deformations in response to mechanical stress. In this talk, I will discuss our recent findings on how matrix viscoelasticity regulates various biological processes, including collective invasion by cancer cells, morphogenesis of pluripotent stem cells, and monocyte migration.

IBEC Seminar: Aurora Hernandez-Machado
2024-05-07 12:45 - 13:30 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Biomicrofluidic analysis of hematological diseases by means of mathematical biomechanical models and statistical analysis: Cells and hydrogels in microchannels and microrheometers
Aurora Hernandez-Machado, Departament de Fisica de la Materia Condensada, Universitat de Barcelona
We have developed microfluidic devices for precise characterization of hematological diseases. By means of one drop of blood and mathematical models based on biomechanics, we analyze the properties of cells and microrheological properties such as the viscosity of blood. We will present a microrheometer to determine in a fast, chip and sensitive way the viscosity of a drop of blood. Experimental results of malaria infected red blood cells in microchannels with endothelial slits and hydrogels with organ-on-a-chip will be discussed. Sprouting is a fundamental cellular behavior that plays an essential role in vascular development and angiogenesis. Due to its relevance to many aspects of human health, the ability to accurately reproduce cell sprouting is of broad and multidisciplinary interest. We will present microfluidic experiments and compare with theoretical models in which endothelial cells chemotactically migrate into a fibrin-based porous hydrogel which mimics the extracellular matrix. By means of statistical analysis we improve the diagnosis of the hematological diseases. We predict if a sample of blood corresponds to healthy blood or to blood with a hematological disease. We have obtained different performance for the different methods, some of them with very good results and an accuracy of 94%.

IBEC Seminar: Nicolò Accanto
2024-05-09 12:00 - 13:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
2P-BRAINSCOPY: pushing the boundaries of two-photon microscopy to study large neuronal networks in behaving mice.
Nicolò Accanto, Inserm researcher at the in Insitut de la Vision (IDV), in the group of Valentina Emiliani, Paris
In the past 15 years, the synergy of two-photon (2P) microscopy and optogenetics has transformed neuroscience, enabling high-resolution imaging and precise photostimulation of neuronal activity. Today, understanding how neuronal networks in the brain interact to generate perception, memory and behaviour, or in other words, deciphering the neuronal code, requires to push the limits of 2P microscopy.
This involves studying the brain of freely moving animals engaged in natural tasks and accessing thousands of neurons on a very fast (100 ms) timescale, across large (> 5 mm) brain regions, while keeping individual neuron (5 µm) spatial resolutions.

In this presentation I will outline our recent endeavours towards these goals. I will first show how 2P holographic photostimulation based on spatial light modulators is capable to precisely target individual neurons within a large volume [1]. I will then describe how we can use minimally invasive GRIN lenses to access deeper brain regions [2], below the scattering limit. Finally, I will detail our most advanced technique: a novel fiber-based miniaturized microscope to image and photostimulate neuronal activity in freely moving mice [3,4]. In the last part of the talk, I will present future directions for further developments and applications in neuroscience.

References
[1] Accanto, N. et al. Multiplexed temporally focused light shaping for high-resolution multi-cell targeting. Optica 5, 1478 (2018).
[2] Accanto, N. et al. Multiplexed temporally focused light shaping through a gradient index lens for precise in-depth optogenetic photostimulation. Sci. Rep. 9, 7603 (2019).
[3] Accanto, N. et al. A flexible two-photon fiberscope for fast activity imaging and precise optogenetic photostimulation of neurons in freely moving mice. Neuron 111, 176-189.e6 (2023).
[4] Lorca-Cámara, Antonio, Blot, Francois & Accanto, N. Recent advances in light patterned optogenetic photostimulation in freely moving mice. Neurophotonics In press, 11, S11508 (2024).

Seminar “The Canadian health research following COVID-19 pandemic – artificial intelligence (AI), generative systems, quantum computing and beyond"
2024-05-14 15:00 - 17:00 | Aula Manuel Corachan (5th floor) · UB Faculty of Medicine Clinic (Carrer de Casanova, 143, Eixample, 08036 Barcelona)
We are glad to invite you to this seminar organized by IBEC where Marek W. Radomski, Vice-Dean Research College of Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada will talk about the Canadian health research following COVID-19 pandemic, the next Tuesday 14th of May at 15h at the Faculty of Medicine Clinic (UB).
Marek W. Radomski,
Vice-Dean of Investigation College of Medicine, University of Saskatchwan, Saskatoon, Canada and President of The Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada, Vice-Deans Research Committee.
He has developed his research career in Poland, the United Kingdom and Ireland (both in a pharmaceutical company and at Trinity College in Dublin), at the University of Houston and in Canada (in two universities)
The Canadian health research following COVID-19 pandemic – artificial intelligence (AI), generative systems, quantum computing and beyond.
The COVID-19 pandemic claimed millions of lives worldwide and greatly disrupted societal fabric across the globe.
Despite amazing achievements of vaccine research and development many areas of health research have been adversely affected by limitations caused by pandemic.
However, AI, generative systems and quantum computing are examples of a postpandemic research acceleration with substantial health research and service potentials.
The presentation will focus on these challenges and opportunities through the lens of the College of Medicine University of Saskatchewan and of the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada.

14/05/2024 · 15h

Aula Manuel Corachan (5th floor) · UB Faculty of Medicine Clinic (Carrer de Casanova, 143, Eixample, 08036 Barcelona)

IBEC

No registration needed

IBEC Seminar: Erika Ferrari
2024-05-17 10:00 - 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Beating Organs-on-Chip: leveraging on motion to mimic human organ physiological/diseased states in vitro
Erika Ferrari, Commercial Science Leader, BiomimX Srl
Beating Organs-on-Chip are in vitro miniaturized models developed within the uBeat® platform, which integrates microfluidics, 3D human cell culture and controlled mechanical stimulation to recapitulate,
with unprecedented precision and predictability, clinically relevant models reflective of human pathophysiology and complex diseases. Every tissue in the body is subject motion and this motion can be mimicked within the uBeat® platformplatforms, which provides 3D microtissues with controlled mechanical stimulation (e.g., stretching or compression) resulting in more reliable, responsive, and predictive in vitro model models to investigate new therapies. BiomimX lead model is uHeart Visone, Tox Sciences, 2023; +4 additional cardiac publications ), a functional beating heart on a chip for cardiotoxicity and safety testing. uHeart was recently qualified with 12 drugs as a predictor of functional cardiotoxicity, showing 83.3% sensitivity, 100% specificity, a nd 91.6% accuracy. BiomimX pipeline consists of predictive physiological and pathological models, engineered solely through mechanical stimulation, without the need for introducing exogenous compounds (e.g., cytokines) into the cell culture chamber. uKnee the first in vitro model of human osteoarthritis; Occhetta, Nature Biomed Eng, 2019 ) has successfully supported a recent IND application. Other key models include uScar cardiac fibrosis; Visone, Adv Healthcare Mat, 202 2023), uGut a barrier model of the intestinal epithelium & endothelium; Ballerini, Nature Biomed Eng, under review ), uLung and uLiver Heart a multiorgan platform used to study the off-target cardiotoxicity of liver-metabolized drugs; Ferrari, Adv Mat Tech, 2023 ).

IBEC Seminar: Sergi Garcia-Manyes
2024-05-24 10:00 - 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Single molecule insights into cellular mechanotransduction
Sergi Garcia-Manyes, Single Molecule Mechanobiology laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute and King’s College London

Cellular mechanostransduction relies on the conversion of mechanical cues into chemical signals, which propagate from the focal adhesion hub through the cytoskeleton to ultimately reach the nucleus through the Nuclear Pore Complex (NPC), and switch on specific force-dependent transcriptional programmes. However, how cellular mechanotransduction is regulated by the nanomechanical properties of the underpinning force-bearing proteins remains largely unknown. Here we first used a newly developed single-molecule magnetic tweezers combined with UV-light to demonstrate that oxidation of a previously cryptic methionine in the talin mechanosensor impairs vinculin binding. When translating the single-molecule findings into the cellular context, we found a loss in talin/vinculin co-localisation at focal adhesions of NIH3T3 mouse fibroblasts when exposed to µM concentrations of H2O2 and a decrease in the nuclear localisation of the YAP transcription factor (TF). In this vein, how the nuclear shuttling of mechanosensitive TFs is regulated by their mechanical properties remains also unclear. By using a combination of single-molecule mechanics and single-cell optogenetics, we discovered that proteins with locally soft regions in the vicinity of the nuclear-localization sequence exhibit higher nuclear-import rates. Inspired by these findings, we designed a short and easy-to-express unstructured peptide tag that accelerates the nuclear-import rate of stiff protein cargos. Altogether, our cross-scale experiments provide a single molecule perspective onto cellular mechanotransduction.

IBEC Seminar: Wenting Zhao
2024-05-31 10:00 - 12:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Engineering the Nanoscale Membrane Topography in Cells
Wenting Zhao, School of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore and Institute for Digital Molecular Analytics and Science (IDMxS), Singapore
Abstract.
Cell membranes serve as a central platform to host a variety of proteins essential for cellular activities such as cell signaling, morphogenesis, and membrane trafficking. At the same time, the membranes also undergo drastic morphological changes in a number of essential processes, such as endocytosis, intracellular trafficking, and cytokinesis, etc. An intriguing yet challenging question to answer is whether and how the shapes of the membrane impact the dynamics of membrane proteins or the periphery proteins interacting with the membrane. However, membrane shape changes often happen at sub-micro to the nanoscale, which is approaching the limit of conventional microscopy imaging resolution and difficult to examine quantitatively. In this work, we will introduce our efforts in employing vertically aligned nanostructures to generate defined membrane topography in live cells and in vitro. We will discuss our findings on the membrane curvature-guided accumulation of membrane proteins, including oncogenic Ras proteins and viral proteins, as well as the membrane-associated protein condensation. In addition to plasma membrane, we also explore the nanoscale topography guidance on nuclear membrane and its implication in differentiating malignant cancer cells. We envision more new insights would be revealed by bridging advanced nanotechnology to nanoscale dynamics at cell surfaces.

Short Bio
Dr. Wenting Zhao is currently an assistant professor in the School of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, and Biotechnology at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. She received her Ph.D. degree in Bioengineering at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and completed her postdoc training at Stanford University. Her research group aims to reveal the nanoscale interplay between membrane morphology and protein assembly using advance nanofabrication and nanomaterials. Specific focuses of her studies are on the nanoscale topography-guided protein clustering and complex assembly, and their impacts on disease progression, such as cancer progression, viral replication, and immune activation.
Group website: www.wtzhaolab.com.

IBEC Seminar: Irene Lázaro
2024-06-05 16:00 - 17:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Enhanced regeneration through in vivo cell reprogramming: lessons from the first decade of research and a success story in the mouse heart
Irene de Lázaro, PhD1,2,3
1 Department of Biomedical Engineering, NYU Tandon School of Engineering, New York University
2 Cardiovascular Research Center, NYU School of Medicine and NYU Langone Health
3 Harvard John A Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University

Our lab designs and deploys bioengineering strategies – including gene therapies and nanomedicines – to reprogram cell identity, differentiation and/or cellular responses in living organisms with the ultimate goal of helping tissues regenerate better. In this seminar, I will share the lessons learned after the first decade of in vivo cellular reprogramming research. Moreover, I will present our most recent data that demonstrates that on and off expression of stemness-related transcription factors induces partial reprogramming of cardiac myocytes to a rejuvenated state. In an age-dependent mouse model of heart failure, reprogramming the biological age of cardiac myocytes to a youthful state resulted in significant improvement of cardiac function.

IBEC Seminar: Jan Lammerding
2024-06-12 10:00 - 11:30 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Nuclear mechanobiology – from striated muscle disease to ultrarapid cellular mechanosensing
Jan Lammerding, PhD, Weill Institute for Cell and Molecular Biology & Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
Abstract. The nucleus is the characteristic feature of eukaryotic cells and houses the genomic information of the cell. The Lammerding laboratory is investigating how physical forces acting on the nucleus can challenge the integrity of the nucleus, alter its structure, and cause genomic, transcriptomic, and other functional changes. In this seminar, I will discuss our findings that highlight the importance of the nuclear envelope proteins lamins A/C in mediating nuclear stability and mechanotransduction in mechanically stressed cells and tissues, and how lamin mutations result in reduced nuclear stability and increased nuclear damage in striated muscle cells, which may explain the muscle-specific defects in many diseases caused by lamin mutations (laminopathies). Our data demonstrate that reducing cytoskeletal forces on the fragile lamin A/C mutant nuclei by disrupting the Linker of Nucleoskeleton and Cytoskeleton (LINC) complex is sufficient to reduce nuclear damage in striated muscle tissue and to improve cardiac function and survival in multiple mouse models of lamin A/C related striated muscle disease. Furthermore, by combining cyclic strain application with precision nuclear run-on sequencing (PRO-seq), a novel transcriptome sequencing technique that, unlike traditional RNA sequencing, enriches for nascent RNA transcripts and simultaneously provides a base-pair resolution map of active RNA polymerases, and Omni-ATAC, an improved chromatin accessibility assay, we recently established an experimental pipeline to detect rapid, genome-wide changes in chromatin organization and transcription in response to cyclic mechanical strain. Our studies indicate that cyclic strain application results in the transcription of numerous mechanoresponsive genes within less than 2 minutes, which is faster than the expected time for typical mechanoresponsive cytoplasmic signaling pathways to reach the nucleus, and that the mechanoresponsive genes are already poised for gene transcription. These findings point to an exciting, previously unrecognized role of the nucleus in regulating the activation of mechanoresponsive genes.

IBEC Seminar: Shahid Uddin
2024-07-05 10:00 - 12:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Developability assessment of biologics and formulation of novel molecules
Shahid Uddin, PhD, MBA, Senior Director of Drug Product, Formulation & Stability within the CMC department at Immunocore, UK
It’s vital to ensure appropriate assessment of molecules at the early research phase is carried out to risk mitigate movement into the development phase. This ensures the best risk of success with minimal usage of resources and finances. This presentation will highlight the procedures for assessing developability and also showcases the challenges associated with administering low-concentration biologics.

IBEC Seminar: Sabina Quader
2024-07-17 15:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Nanomedicine to Tackle Unmet Medical Needs in CNS Disorders
Sabina Quader, Innovation Center of NanoMedicine (iCONM), Kawasaki Institute of Industrial Promotion, Kawasaki, Kanagawa 210-0821 Japan
The brain is undoubtedly the body’s most essential and intricate organ, and brain disorders are closely tied to this intricacy. Categorized as “CNS diseases,” a wide range of brain-related conditions – including Alzheimer’s, dementia, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, stroke, brain tumors, and more – present daunting challenges. Regrettably, many of these diseases currently lack adequate treatment, underscoring the urgent need for innovative and multidimensional efforts to combat these persistent problems. In this regard, nanomedicine shows tremendous potential for diagnosing and treating many life-threatening diseases, including cardiovascular and genetic disorders, CNS diseases, and cancers1. The field of nanomedicine is constantly revolutionizing healthcare with innovative approaches to tackling severe health issues. However, it is also crucial to actively translate these novel approaches more effectively. In our laboratory at the Innovation Center of NanoMedicine (iCONM), we aim to effectively bridge innovation and translation. Our nanomedicine platform is based on polymeric micelles that are constructed from poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(amino acids) (PEG-PAA) copolymers and have already demonstrated significant promise through their clinical translation potential2. The PEG-PAA copolymers are highly biocompatible and have the unique ability to engineer versatile, dynamic covalent chemistry-based approaches to link the cargo with the carriers; this feature ultimately improves spatiotemporal control over drug release kinetics, which is one of the critical properties of drug-loaded nanocarriers, along with size and surface properties. In this presentation, optimal design features of nanomedicine will be discussed, focusing on treating CNS diseases, mainly brain cancers3,4. An overview of our Japan-Spain international collaborative research focused on drug delivery to hypothalamic neurons for tackling obesity will also be presented5.
References–

Quader and K. Kataoka*, Mol Ther, 25 (2017) 1501.
Cabral, K. Miyata, K. Osada, K. Kataoka*, Chem. Rev., 118 (2018) 6844.
Kinoh, S. Quader, H. Shibasaki, X. Liu, A. Maity, T. Yamasoba, H. Cabral*, K. Kataoka*,ACS Nano, 14 (2020) 10127.
Quader*, X. Liu, K. Toh, Y.-L. Su, A. R. Maity, A. Tao, W. K. D. Paraiso, Y. Mochida, H. Kinoh, H. Cabral, K. Kataoka*, Biomaterials, 267 (2021)120463.
J Garcia-Chica, WK D Paraiso, S Zagmutt, A Fosch, A Reguera, X Ariza, S Alzina, L Sanchez-Garcia, S Fukushima, K Toh, N Casals, D Serra, L Herrero, J Garcia, K Kataoka, X Ariza, S Quader*, R Rodriguez-Rodriguez*, Nanomedicine targeting brain lipid metabolism as a feasible approach for controlling the energy balance, Sci. 11 (2023) 2336-2346

Dr. Quader did her Ph.D. in Synthetic Organic Chemistry from Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia 2007. Following her Ph.D., she started working as a Research Chemist at Research Directions Pty Ltd, Brisbane, Australia. In 2010, she joined Professor Kazunori Kataoka’s world-renowned biomaterial research laboratory at the Materials Engineering Department of Tokyo University with a Japanese government -funded prestigious JSPS postdoctoral fellowship. After completing two years of JSPS fellowship, she continued her work at the same laboratory for another two years as Project Researcher. Since 2015, she has been an integral part of the Innovation Center of NanoMedicine (iCONM), Kawasaki, Japan, as a Senior Research Scientist and, as of 2023, as a Deputy Principal Research Scientist. Dr. Quader’s area of expertise lies in developing stimuli-sensitive nanomaterials tailored for targeted drug delivery to address challenging diseases. Dr. Quader is currently a principal investigator in multiple projects and overseeing international research activities at iCONM as Chief Coordinator of Global Partnership. One of her international collaborative research endeavors, “COnCorD,” was one of the three bilateral projects awarded by the Spanish State Agency for Research (AEI) and the Japanese Medical Research Agency (AMED) as a result of an invitation for joint project proposals from early-stage researchers in Japan and Spain in the “Nanomedicine” research area.

IBEC Seminar: Carlos Moreno Yruela
2024-07-19 10:00 - 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Semi-synthetic nucleosomes to stabilize and image enzyme-chromatin interactions
Carlos Moreno Yruela, Researcher in Chemical Biology, EPFL, Switzerland
Chromatin structure regulates gene expression and is tightly controlled by histone post-translational modifications. SIRT7 is a histone lysine deacylase found to maintain oncogenic gene expression profiles supporting tumor growth and
metastasis. Interestingly, the activity of SIRT7 is fully dependent on binding to nucleosomes within chromatin. This feature has limited the development of inhibitors and chemical probes to further dissect its role in cancer progression. Here, we develop nucleosome-based tools for structural characterization and high-throughput screening. Thanks to 2- and 3-fragment native chemical ligation methods, we introduced synthetic peptides into the structure of histone H3, to install either mechanism-based thiourea crosslinkers or fluorescence quenchers at the positions of known SIRT7 substrates. First, mechanism-based crosslinking nucleosomes allowed us to stabilize the interaction of SIRT7 with its nucleosome substrates and obtain structures by cryoEM. The different complexes revealed a multivalent and non-canonical nucleosome binding mechanism, and specific residues responsible for targeting different substrates within the nucleosome. Second, nucleosomes with acyllysine fluorescence quenchers and a neighboring fluorophore proved to be SIRT7-activated fluorogenic substrates and will be used for high-throughput screening and single-molecule biophysical characterization. All in all, we developed a strategy to stabilize enzyme-chromatin interactions for detailed structural studies, as well as a platform for the development of translatable SIRT7-targeting cancer therapeutics.

Carlos studied Chemistry at the University of Zaragoza and obtained his M.Sc. in Drug Discovery from the University of Surrey (UK). He obtained his Ph.D. in Chemical Biology from the University of Copenhagen in 2019, on the development of assays and chemical probes for histone deacetylases in the laboratory of Prof. Christian Adam Olsen. He stayed 3 more years in Copenhagen as postdoctoral fellow, working on the newly found lactyl-lysine modification of histones. In 2022, Carlos moved to EPFL Lausanne (Switzerland) thanks to a postdoctoral grant from the Independent Danish Research Council, where he uses protein semi-synthesis to generate complex in vitro systems for translatable biophysical studies and anticancer drug development. Carlos is now an independent postdoctoral fellow of the Swiss National Science Foundation.

IBEC Seminar: Prof Marcelle Machluf
2024-09-13 14:00 - 16:30 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Harnessing the power of stem cell therapy in an off-the-shelf nano-delivery platform for treating brain disorders
Prof Marcelle Machluf, Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering, Technion, Haifa, Israel
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have gained the most attention in cell therapy, owing to their ability to traverse physiological barriers, and target different sites of inflammation including neurological deseases and primary and metastatic tumors, while exhibiting relative allogeneic safety. However, once transplanted, MSCs undergo changes that alter their targeting capabilities and increase their immunogenicity, only permitting them to exert a short hit-and-run effect. We hypothesised that overcoming these challenges can be realised by combining the safety and inflamatory targeting capabilities of MSCs in an inanimate platform that can withstand limiting host influences. The foundations for this combination are laid by a novel class of nano-vesicles (200 nm), termed nano-ghosts (NGs), equipped with the membrane proteins of MSCs and can be engineered to express additional exogenous ones. The developed -cGMP compliant- technology for the production of NGs from the whole MSC membranes, allow us to load them with a diverse payloads and/or engineer them to express ligands that can combat brain tumors and neuroinflamatory deseas such as MS. Their abundance of natural targeting mechanisms allows the NGs, injected i.v., to bypass the BBB and penetrate the entire tumor bulk or inflamatory site, and rapidly deploy their payload directly into the targeted cells leading to unprecedented tumor growth inhibition and increased animals’ survival in intracranial glioma model. Surprising data also demonstrate that the NGs by themselves can modulate inflammation via cell-cell interaction and significaly reduce MS symtomes in EAE mice without any payload, paving the way for their use in other neuroinflamatory deseas such as Alzhimer and Parkinson. Thus, our results, so far, clearly demonstrate the translational potential of NGs, both as targeted delivery platform as well as a novel immunomodulatory biologic for brain diseass.

IBEC Seminar: Maria João Amorim
2024-09-18 12:00 - 13:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Advances in understanding and manipulating influenza A virus liquid inclusions
Maria João Amorim, PhD, Group Leader, Cell Biology of Viral Infection Lab, Católica Biomedical Research Centre, Universidade Católica Portuguesa, and Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Portugal
Many viruses form biomolecular condensates de novo as part of their replication programmes. Influenza A virus is an important human pathogen that has the genome divided into eight different RNA segments. Interestingly, each infectious particle contains no more than eight RNA segments and one of each type. Here, we show that during infection influenza forms liquid condensates named viral inclusions where the eight RNA segments accumulate. Viral inclusions are formed with a single RNA type, suggesting that these structures are formed before the genomic complex assembles and raises the hypothesis that these are specialized sites for the formation of influenza epidemic and pandemic genomic complexes. We will exchange views on why being liquid could constitute an interesting framework for understanding how influenza genomic complex forms. After, we will expose advances on how viral inclusions are formed and provide proof of the concept that condensate hardening blocks viral infection in cellula and in vivo. Since native or engineered transitions affect condensate behavior, phase transitions may offer novel antiviral opportunities for influenza, as well as for many other viruses that utilize biomolecular condensates during their lifecycle. Finally, we will show that our efforts to reconstitute in vitro influenza A virus inclusions give rise to a network of interactions built specifically during infection but, despite being dynamic, are not liquid but rather a gel-like state. We debate several hypothesis on why we have been unable for far to attain a liquid like character.

IBEC Seminar: Slav Bagriantsev
2024-11-15 10:00 - 11:30 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
3D architecture and mechanism of touch detection in the Pacinian corpuscle
Slav Bagriantsev, Associate Professor of Cellular & Molecular Physiology, Yale School of Medicine, USA
Pacinian corpuscles are specialized mechanoreceptor end-organs that detect transient touch and high-frequency vibration in the skin and viscera of many vertebrates. Corpuscles have a complex cellular organization, which includes a mechanoreceptor afferent surrounded by lamellar Schwann cells (LSCs) and several layers of outer core cells. How these components contribute to the sensory tuning of Pacinian corpuscles is unclear. We used Focused Ion Beam Scanning Electron Microscopy (FIB-SEM) to determine the detailed 3D architecture of an entire Pacinian corpuscle, including all corpuscular components, and utilized electrophysiology to reveal the contribution of each component to touch detection. In the prevailing model, the multilayered outer core serves as a mechanical filter that limits static and low-frequency stimuli from reaching the afferent terminal—the presumed sole site of touch detection in corpuscles. We show that the outer core is dispensable for the sensory tuning of Pacinian corpuscles to transient touch and high-frequency vibration; instead, these properties arise from the inner core. We show that LSCs express mechanically gated ion channels and form a gap junction-coupled syncytium around the afferent terminal. By acting as additional touch sensors, LSCs potentiate mechanosensitivity of the terminal, which detects touch via fast inactivating ion channels. We present a new model, in which the functional tuning of Pacinian corpuscles is enabled by an interplay between mechanosensitive LSCs and the afferent terminal in the inner core.

IBEC Seminar: Benoît Ladoux
2024-11-19 14:30 - 16:30 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Mechanical imprints of cell fate and cell competition
Benoît Ladoux, Institut Jacques Monot (IJM) Paris
Epithelia are communities of cells with close intercellular communications and of highly ordered coordination in their motion.
Mechanical properties of epithelial tissues are important for our understanding of many vital biological processes, including homeostasis, morphogenesis, and metastasis and are tightly regulated by cell-cell interactions. I will present examples highlighting the importance of mechanical forces during cell extrusion and cell competition. In the first part, I will focus on how cell extrusion and the fate of extruding cells from epithelial tissues can be determined by mechanical stresses. In the second part, I will show how cell competition, a mechanism by which the expansion of one cell population leads to the elimination of another, can be governed by the transmission of intercellular forces. Throughout the talk, I’ll discuss the close links between mechanics and cell biology, as well as possible analogies between physical and biological systems.

IBEC Seminar: Raül Andero Galí
2024-11-28 12:00 - 13:30 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Translating fear mechanisms between humans and mice
Raül Andero Galí, PhD, ICREA Research Professor at the Institute of Neurosciences of the Autonomous University of Barcelona
Sex-specific mechanisms in fear memory and extinction may explain certain neuropsychiatric disorders like Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). In male mice, chemogenetic silencing of centromedial amygdala (CeM)-Tac2 fibers in the lateral posterior part of the Bed Nucleus of the Stria Terminalis (BNSTpl) impaired fear memory, while optogenetic excitation enhanced inhibitory postsynaptic currents. In vivo calcium imaging in freely moving mice revealed a sex-dimorphic fear memory engram in the BNSTpl. In humans, the TAC3R single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) (rs2765) reduced CeM-BNST connectivity and impaired fear memory in men but not women. In a different study, female mice subjected to acute stress exhibited fear extinction impairments linked to hypothalamic Pacap and Pac1R upregulation. Similar fear extinction deficits were observed in women with PTSD carriers of the PAC1R SNP (rs2267735). Together, these studies highlight sex-differences in neural circuits regulating fear memory, which may influence vulnerability to PTSD.
Please contact Silvia Pittolo if you would like to meet the speaker: spittolo@ibecbarcelona.eu

IBEC Seminar: Prof. Yuval Ebenstein
2024-12-17 15:00 - 16:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Beyond NGS: A toolbox for single-molecule epigenetic analysis of DNA
Prof. Yuval Ebenstein, Department of Physical Chemistry, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Founder, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center Tel Aviv University, Israel.
DNA sequencing (NGS) is revolutionizing all fields of biological research. Still, it fails to extract the full range of information associated with genetic material and cannot resolve important variations between genomes. The information content of the genome extends beyond the base sequence in the form of chemical modifications such as DNA methylation or chromosomal association with DNA-binding proteins (chromatin). For the last decade, my lab has been developing tools for genomic analysis at the single-cell and single-molecule levels. I will show how the physical extension of long DNA molecules in nanofluidic channels reveals this information in the form of a linear, optical, or electrical “barcode,” like beads threaded on a string, where each bead represents a distinct type of observable. I’ll present a biochemical and physical toolbox for mapping epigenetic modifications in the genome and demonstrate its application in clinical cancer research. Finally, I will talk about a DNA chip developed in the lab and the adventure of building a startup based on this technology.

Short Bio:
Prof. Yuval Ebenstein is a scientist and entrepreneur with years of experience in translational research. Yuval is head of the NanoBioPhotonix Lab and the founder of the Tel Aviv University Entrepreneurship Center. In his lab, Yuval combines Chemistry, Physics, Biology, and bioinformatics in order to study the human genome. His lab explores genomes utilizing tools and reagents from the realm of nano-technology, zooming in on single cells, single chromosomes, and single molecules. Yuval is the winner of two ERC awards for developing genomic technologies and is the founder of JaxBio, a liquid biopsy methylation-based diagnostics startup.

IBEC Seminar: Sylvain Gabriele
2025-01-14 14:30 - 16:30 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Mechanobiology of epithelial cells: curvature, confinement and memory
Sylvain Gabriele, University of Mons
The directed migration of epithelial cell collectives through coordinated movements is fundamental to numerous physiological and pathological processes. While these dynamics are often studied in large, confluent monolayers, many migration phenomena involve the movement of small, polarized epithelial clusters and their interactions with external geometries. Additionally, epithelial monolayers must adapt to variations in local curvature during processes like tissue folding and morphogenesis, which are critical for development and homeostasis. Despite their significance, spatial confinement and curvature-induced adaptations remain poorly understood due to challenges in reproducing these conditions in vitro. We will first introduce a photopolymerization technique using optical photomasks to fabricate wavy hydrogels, allowing precise exploration of how concave and convex curvatures influence the mechanical properties of epithelial monolayers and induce nuclear deformations. Our findings highlight the pivotal roles of active cellular mechanics and nuclear mechano adaptation in regulating epithelial responses to substrate curvature. In the second part, we will employ well-defined in vitro systems based on micropatterned adhesive stripes to examine the migration of individual cells and small epithelial clusters with controlled geometries. We will demonstrate the critical role of geometry in defining the migration behaviors of cells and clusters, offering a framework to uncover the rules governing their interactions with physical boundaries. Notably, we will present evidence that migrating cells retain a “mechanical memory” of past morphological states, enabling enhanced navigation through confined environments. This long-term memory of confinement, mediated by actin cortex remodeling, provides new insights into how cells adapt to dynamic microenvironments and navigate complex spaces.
Please contact Manuel Salmeron Sanchez if you would like to meet the speaker: msalmeron@ibecbarcelona.eu

IBEC Seminar: Prof. Joo H. Kang and Prof. Jinmyoung Joo
2025-02-14 12:00 - 13:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Microfluidic Approaches for Infection Treatment and Vascularized Tissue Regeneration
Joo H. Kang, Ph.D., Associate Professor Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology
Extracorporeal blood treatments for severe bacteremic sepsis have shown limited success, primarily due to the lack of effective strategies to remove various pathogenic materials from the bloodstreams. This presentation will focus on two of the most recent approaches addressing this challenge. The first utilizes red blood cell (RBC) membrane-coated superparamagnetic nanoclusters (RBC-SPNCs) that target a broad spectrum of bacteria and viruses in infected whole blood. In a swine sepsis model, these RBC-SPNCs demonstrated rapid capture and magnetic separation of various pathogens, even at high blood flow rates. Treatment of swine infected with multidrug-resistant E. coli significantly alleviated severe bacteremia-induced organ dysfunction within 12 hours, suggesting potential therapeutic utility in large animal models and possibly in human sepsis treatment. The second approach enables efficient bacterial removal by leveraging RBC deformability, which induces their axial migration and promotes bacterial margination, thereby enhancing capture efficiency within the microscale flow path of the extracorporeal device.
Toward the end of the presentation, we will discuss fully vascularized implants created using autologous blood plasma through a microfluidic device. Our results show that implanting theses vascularized scaffolds onto cutaneous wound sites significantly facilitated wound healing in a rodent model, resulting in increased collagen deposition, higher hair follicle numbers, and improved wound closure rates. The microvascular structures we implanted were anastomosed with the host’s blood vessels, enabling rapid deployment of neutrophils to the wound site and promoting the polarization of M2 macrophages, which further facilitated the wound healing process.

Engineering functional nanoparticles for translational and precision medicine
Jinmyoung Joo, Associate Professor Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology
Nanotechnology is of great importance to molecular biology and medicine because life processes are maintained by the action of a series of biological molecular nanomachines in the cell machinery. Recent advances in nanotechnology offer great potential applications in biomedical research and clinical diagnostics, and the development of a novel toolkit is critical to understand the inner world of complex biological nanosystems at cell, tissue and whole-body level. In particular, the unique combinations of material properties that can be achieved with nanomaterials provide new opportunities in biomedical applications, in which a number of functional nanomaterials have been investigated and become a new interdisciplinary frontier between biomedical science and materials engineering.
In this talk, self-destructing hybrid nanoparticles based on porous inorganic scaffolds and lipids will be discussed. The material allows a modular approach to the design of imaging or therapeutic agents, which includes features such as: intrinsic photoluminescence; singlet oxygen sensitization; capacity for a wide range of payloads such as magnetic nanoparticles, large proteins, or oligonucleotides; tunable degradation rates; and large external surface to provide multivalent targeting. Luminescent nanoparticles offer a non-toxic alternative to heavy metal-based quantum dots, and they have been shown to be biodegradable and to safely image tumors and organs in live animals. The addition of a targeting ligand that selectively interacts with tissues can improve the efficacy of imaging and drug delivery. These effects can be further enhanced if the nanoparticle contains more than one copy of the targeting ligand, enabling multivalent interactions with the targeted tissue. The use of the feasible functionality and biodegradable characteristics of the nanoparticles for in vitro and in vivo imaging and drug delivery systems will be highlighted.

IBEC Seminar: Dr Stefano Angioletti Uberti
2025-02-20 10:00 - 11:00 | Torres I, Floor -1, Room 3
Multivalent interactions: Old concept, new tricks
Dr Stefano Angioletti Uberti, Senior Lecturer at Imperial College London
Arguably,multivalency has been used since the 1970s as a mechanism to increase the binding strength while using weak ligand-receptor pairs. While this (somewhat naive) view as a general approach to increase binding strength must be taken with a pinch of salt but, it also downplays the importance of multilvalent interactions for selectivity. In fact, multivalent interactions become crucial to obtain binding selectivity in scenarios where targets vs non-target entitites (cells, viruses, …) do not differ by the presence or lack of a specific receptor, but by receptors’ spatial distribution. In this seminar, I will describe some of our most recent research into this topic, focusing on two intriguing cases: the use of multivalent binding to enhance targeting in drug-delivery, and its (potential) role as a general mechanism to regulate how cells “sense” and react to their environment.

IBEC Seminar. Science and poetry
2025-03-21 00:00 - 13:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
El pròxim 21 de març, coincidint amb el Dia Internacional de la Poesia, l’IBEC ha programat una sessió poètica especial conduïda per Mireia Casanyes. Aquesta activitat forma part de Ciència Radical, un programa cultural creat en col·laboració amb el CCCB, que busca explorar les connexions entre ciència, humanitats i arts per repensar la realitat que ens envolta. El seminari s’inscriu també dins la residència poètica de Mireia Casanyes a l’IBEC.

Workshop 2. NET-AI: AI fundamentals and use cases in healthcare
2025-03-28 09:00 - 14:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
In this second workshop of the AI for Bioengineering thematic network (NET-AI), an introduction, both theoretical and practical, to the fundamental concepts and main algorithms of artificial intelligence applied to bioengineering will be given. To this end, a first seminar will introduce the fundamental concepts of AI. This will be followed by a practical programming activity in Python, in which attendees will be able to bring their laptop to practice the implementation of simple AI models. Finally, a second seminar will offer a more specific vision of AI use cases in the healthcare field for decision-making.

Schedule programme
09:00 – Registration and Welcome
09:15 – Santiago Marco, IBEC group “Signal and Information Processing for Sensing Systems”, “AI fundamentals”
10: 15 – Coffee Break
10:45 – Moritz Marquardt, University of Stuttgart, AI practical activity (own computer required)
12:15 – Short break
12:30 – Plenary: Alexandre Perera, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC),“From Ontology-Based Classifiers for Rare Conditions to Transformer-Based Models for Type 2 Diabetes – Opportunities and Risks”
13:30 – Final remarks and closing
To register, click here.
Health Data Science: From Ontology-Based Classifiers for Rare Conditions to Transformer-Based Models for Type 2 Diabetes – Opportunities and Risks
Alexandre Perera
Health data science is transforming disease prediction and diagnosis through advanced AI models. This talk explores two key frontiers: ontology-based classifiers for rare diseases and transformer-based models for type 2 diabetes prediction. Ontology-based methods, such as those leveraging the Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO), enhance diagnostic precision in rare conditions by mapping patient-reported symptoms to expert-curated knowledge bases (Manzini et al., 2022). Initiatives like Share4Rare promote citizen science and collaborative rare disease research, fostering data sharing and patient engagement (Radu et al., 2021). Additionally, expert models aid in the early identification of inherited kidney diseases, integrating clinical expertise with machine learning (Fayos de Arizon et al., 2023) For prevalent conditions like type 2 diabetes, deep learning models excel in trajectory prediction using longitudinal health records. Attention-based encoders and deep clustering approaches have demonstrated high accuracy in forecasting disease progression and personalizing treatment strategies (Manzini et al., 2022, 2025). However, the integration of AI in clinical decision-making presents both opportunities and risks, including model bias, explainability challenges, and ethical concerns regarding data privacy. This discussion highlights the transformative potential of AI-driven disease prediction while addressing the need for robust validation, transparency, and responsible deployment in healthcare.

Ibec Seminar. Emma Puighermanal Puigvert
2025-04-04 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Clearing the Haze: Cannabinoids in Brain Research and Therapy
Dra. Emma Puighermanal Puigvert, Group Leader at the Neuroscience Institute, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain
Cannabinoids—compounds found in the cannabis plant—are powerful modulators of brain function that interact with the brain’s endocannabinoid system, a key player in processes like memory, mood, and neural communication. Two of the best known cannabinoids, THC and CBD, have gained increasing attention for their exciting therapeutic potential, and in the case of CBD, complete lack of psychoactive effects. Understanding how these compounds affect neuronal processes is key to optimizing their medical use while minimizing side effects. In this talk, Dr. Puighermanal will take us inside the neural circuits to explore how cannabinoids act at the cellular and molecular level. She will reveal how repeated THC exposure reshapes gene expression and synaptic function in memory-related brain circuits, and how this can explain some of its cognitive effects. Shifting gears, she will then present compelling evidence for CBD’s disease-modifying action in mouse models of Leigh syndrome—a severe pediatric mitochondrial disorder with no approved treatments to date. From decoding memory modulation to uncovering novel therapeutic pathways, this research sheds new light on the brain’s response to cannabinoids—and what it could mean for future medicine.

PhD Discussion: Ángela Martínez-Mateos and Alice Perucca
2025-05-16 10:00 - 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
DnaA as a key regulator of ribonucleotide reductase genes in P. aeruginosa.
Ángela Martínez-Mateos, Bacterial Infections and Antimicrobial Therapies Group
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a highly adaptable opportunistic pathogen that exhibits both acquired and innate antibiotic resistance mechanisms. Due to its survival capabilities in various environments, discovering new therapeutic strategies is essential. Ribonucleotide reductases (RNRs), essential enzymes for dNTP synthesis, have become promising targets for fighting P. aeruginosa infections. There are three main RNR classes (I, II, III), each distinguished by how their radical is generated, the metal required, cofactor type, structure, and oxygen needs. P. aeruginosa encodes all three RNR classes in its genome and understanding them is crucial for comprehending its metabolic adaptability under different growth conditions, such as planktonic, during infection, or biofilm formation.
Our laboratory previously discovered that class Ia (nrdAB) is regulated by AlgR, a positive transcriptional regulator that controls mucoidy in P. aeruginosa, and by NrdR, the master negative regulator of RNR that regulates all three classes. However, significant gaps remain in our understanding of the regulatory network of the class Ia RNR, and we don’t fully understand which transcriptional regulators are involved in the fine-tuning of gene regulation for the different RNR classes.
This project aims to identify new transcriptional regulators through genomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic approaches. It has been suggested that DnaA, among other transcriptional regulators, could be involved in the regulation of these pathways. Comprehensive studies of these regulators are necessary to elucidate the complex regulatory networks and hierarchical organization of these factors. Understanding these interactions is crucial for developing effective strategies to combat P. aeruginosa infections

Engineering the tumour ecosystem on a chip: a new tool to test cancer immunotherapies
Alice Perucca, Integrative Cell and Tissue Dynamics group
Immunotherapy has emerged as a revolutionary approach in cancer treatment, offering the potential for durable responses and improved patient survival. However, a significant proportion of patients fail to respond to these therapies, highlighting the need for a deeper understanding of the factors that govern treatment success. The tumour microenvironment, a complex ecosystem comprising various cell types and extracellular components, plays a critical role in shaping anti-tumour immune responses and influencing immunotherapy efficacy. Understanding the intricate interplay between tumour cells, stromal components, and immune cells within this microenvironment is essential for identifying the mechanisms underlying treatment resistance and developing strategies to overcome it. This project focuses on the development of a novel microfluidic “cancer-on-chip” device, a promising approach to model and study these intricated interactions in vitro. The device recapitulates key aspects of the tumour microenvironment, including spatial organization and cellular interactions, including cells of the immune system. By recreating an in vivo-like environment, this platform provides insights into immune cell behaviour in the tumour ecosystem and facilitates the screening of novel immunotherapeutic strategies.

IBEC Seminar. Prof. Brendan Kennedy
2025-06-13 10:00 - 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Optical coherence elastography: imaging cell and tissue mechanics on the micro-scale
Professor Brendan Kennedy. Department of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering, School of Engineering, The University of Western Australia. Group Leader, BRITElab, Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research, Western Australia. Institute of Physics, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, Poland
Abstract: As the importance of mechanical properties in the origin and progression of disease becomes ever clearer, new elastography tools are required to map cell and tissue mechanics on the micro-scale. Elastography has been developed over a wide range of spatial scales, from the cellular, for example, using atomic force microscopy, through to the whole organ, using ultrasound elastography and magnetic resonance elastography. However, existing techniques are not capable of probing tissue mechanical properties on the intermediate micro- to milli-scale: a scale critical in the onset and progression of many diseases. Optical coherence elastography (OCE) aims to bridge the scale gap in elastography techniques. Through the utilization of optical coherence tomography (OCT) to measure tissue motion, OCE is endowed with spatial resolution as high as 1-10 mm, much higher than is possible using ultrasound or magnetic resonance imaging, and a sensitivity to tissue displacement on the nanometer-scale, providing the prospect to detect much finer changes in mechanical properties.
In this talk, I will describe methods we have developed at The University of Western Australia and Nicolaus Copernicus University to quantify tissue elasticity, ranging from mechanical loading methods to signal processing techniques to map the full strain tensor. I will focus on main two application areas. Firstly, the application of OCE to tumour margin assessment in breast cancer, where we have developed both ex vivo and in vivo OCE methods to detect tumour during surgery to enable surgeons to more accurately remove cancer. Secondly, in mechanobiology, I will describe the development of optical coherence microscopy-based elastography for imaging sub-cellular mechanics in three dimensions. I will describe a study we performed on tumour cell spheroids that reveals distinct stiffness in non-metastatic and metastatic spheroids embedded in both soft and stiff hydrogels.
Short Bio: Prof. Brendan Kennedy is Professor in the School of Engineering at The University of Western Australia (UWA) and is Head of BRITElab at the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research, also in Western Australia. He is currently Visiting Professor in the Institute of Physics at Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, Poland. Prof. Kennedy received his PhD from Dublin City University, Ireland, in 2006. His doctoral thesis focussed on the use of nonlinear polarization rotation in semiconductor optical amplifiers for all-optical switching. His current research focusses on the development of optical coherence tomography and optical elastography and their application in a range of fields, particularly in surgery, mechanobiology and tissue engineering. He has published 1 book, 15 book chapters and >100 peer-reviewed journal papers. Prof. Kennedy has delivered >30 invited talks at national and international conferences. He has been Principal Investigator on competitive research funding of >€12 million and industry-sponsored research contracts of >€3 million. His work has been cited >8,000 times and he has a H-index of 39 (source: Google Scholar). He has won a number of awards and recognitions, including being elected as Optica Fellow in 2025. Prof. Kennedy is co-founder of OncoRes Medical, a medical device company developing OCE for use in surgery. He served as Chief Scientific Officer at OncoRes from 2017 to 2021. OncoRes has received >€30 million in venture capital funding and currently employs >40 people. In 2021, the company received the breakthrough designation from the US Food and Drugs Administration. Prof. Kennedy holds >40 granted patents from 8 patent families.

Ibec Seminar. Dr. Maribel Vazquez
2025-06-26 12:30 - 13:30 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Microfluidic Modeling of Aging Retina
Dr. Maribel Vazquez,, Professor of Biomedical Engineering Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. https://vazlab.org
The dramatic rise of chronic and age-related eye diseases is expected to increase the number of adults with vision loss by 50% in the next decade. Health Disparities with age, sex, and geography will further exacerbate impacts of vision loss worldwide. The retinal neurovascular unit plays critical roles in preserving vision from dysfunction caused by common diseases of diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, and glaucoma. Our group has developed micro-physiological systems to examine cellular and molecular dysfunction across blood retinal barriers produced by food-derived, advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) in circulating blood. Current projects measure changes in the permeability and resistivity of diabetic retinal barriers, evaluate the use of electric fields to replace photoreceptors in the macula, and examine newfound roles of glia in mediating retinal integrity within age-related and chronic, pathological environments. Results highlight the role of microfluidics-based systems in identifying mechanisms of neurovascular response and evaluating effectiveness of pharmacology at different stages of disease. The laboratory also highlights the blending of Health Disparities in the development of biomedical therapies and training of biomedical engineers.
Dr. Vazquez is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. She began her career in industry at Intel Corporation and then completed a Doctor of Science in Mechanical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She is an inducted Fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineers (AIMBE) and Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) for the contributions of microfluidic systems in the visual system. She received the 2023 AIMBE Professional Impact Award for the inclusion of Health Disparities within under/graduate training and was honored as the 2024 Plenary Speaker to the BMES Council of Chairs for integration of health disparities in Biomedical Engineering. She is an invited speaker in the special session of Retinal Engineering at the 2025 Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society (TERMIS).
