PhD Discussions: Sefora Conti
2022-04-29 10:00 - 12:00 (Europe/Madrid) | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Mechanical phenotyping of colorectal cancer patient derived organoids based on LGR5 expression
Sefora Conti, Integrative cell and tissue dynamics group
Colorectal cancer (CRC) tumors are composed by heterogeneous cell populations comprising differentiated cells and a small pool of cancer stem cells (CSCs). The link between cancer cell differentiation states and their metastatic potential has been the focus of extensive investigation, with some studies pointing to microenvironmentally defined plasticity as a mechanism indispensable for metastasis formation. Another aspect that might be determinant in tumor cells ability to successfully disseminate, intravasate, survive in the blood stream, extravasate, colonize distant organs and form secondary tumors is their mechanical phenotype.
Adopting a bottom-up approach, we performed a broad biophysical characterization of CRC patient derived organoids (PDOs), engineered to fluorescently label cells expressing LGR5, a well-established marker for CSCs. We show that CRC cells differentiation states are associated with distinct biomechanical phenotypes, with potential repercussions on their metastatic ability.
At the single cell level, LGR5+ cells display a more elongated and polarized shape while the LGR5- cells exhibit higher roundness and a smaller asymmetry in the stress field. LGR5+ are stiffer compared to their differentiated counterparts and more prone to adopt a fast amoeboid-like migration under confinement. At the molecular level, cancer stemness is related to differential expression of the ERM protein family, responsible of tethering the cell membrane to the underlying actin cortex.
These distinct mechanical phenotypes translate to different migratory and morphological phenotypes at a cluster level. Clusters expressing high levels of LGR5 showed a more spread and flattened shape compared to more differentiated clusters. Moreover, LGR5 expression in clusters is negatively correlated with their migration speed and their polarization state. Hence, clusters containing more differentiated cells migrate faster, display higher roundness and higher polarization state.
At higher complexity levels, such as interactions with endothelial cells, LGR5 expression in CRC clusters affects their ability to adhere to an endothelial monolayer and form a gap through which they attach to the underlying collagen coating. Notably, we found that clusters expressing more LGR5 have an advantage while attaching to the endothelium as indicated by higher attachment rate and shorter time to form a gap.
Based on these findings relating distinct mechanical phenotypes to LGR5 expression, we speculate that mechanical adaptability coupled with cancer plasticity may be an indispensable mechanism for cancer progression.

Pint of Science 2022
2022-05-09 18:30 - 2022-05-11 21:00 | Careers at IBEC
Monica Mir de Nanobioengineering, Agustín Gutierrez de Signal and Information Processing for Sensing Systems y Silvia Pujals de Nanoscopy for nanomedicine participarán en el evento global de divulgación científica Pint of Science.
El festival Pint of Science, que se celebrará del 09 al 11 de mayo, tiene como objetivo ofrecer charlas interesantes, divertidas y relevantes sobre las últimas investigaciones científicas de la mano de las personas que las llevan a cabo.

Lunes, 9 de mayo:

Monica Mir “¿Como funcionan los test para detección de COVID?”
Agustín Gutierrez “Una nueva inteligencia para controlar el mundo”

Martes 10 de mayo:

Silvia Pujals “Nanopartículas para la medicina. ¿Promesa o realidad?”

Si quieres más información, visita: Eventos de Barcelona | Pint of Science ES.
Podéis ver el cartel aquí.

Research4Talent 2022
2022-05-12 10:15 - 14:00
On Thursday 12th May 2022 we’ll open our doors to UNDERGRADUATE & MASTER’s students interested in a research career

The day is a chance for you to talk to our researchers and ask them questions about their day-to-day work in the lab, career paths, work-life balance, mobility etc.
In 2021 IBEC signed more that 165 internship agreements for Undergraduate and Master Students with a wide range of national and international universities. If you are interested in IBEC’s eighth edition of reSEARCH4TALENT, please register now.

IBEC Seminar: Iris Batalha
2022-05-13 10:00 - 12:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Nanotherapeutics – ‘How we sometimes underestimate the influence of little things’
Iris L. Batalha, Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC)
Deaths caused by infections from antibiotic-resistant bacteria are expected to skyrocket over the next decades, with a staggering 10 million deaths per year projected for 2050. Treating infections by intracellular pathogens, such as M. tuberculosis, is ‘a perfect storm’. The WHO revealed that while some 50 new antibiotics and 10 biologics are under development, only half of those target WHO-priority pathogens and the majority have very limited benefits when compared to existing antibiotics. Reformulating existent drugs in nanocarriers may help achieving enhanced efficacy and safety while reducing dose frequency, by providing temporal and localised control of drug exposure. In this talk, I will present my work on the synthesis of dual-drug tunable nanoparticle-based antibiotics, which showed increased bacterial killing efficacy in a zebrafish larval model of mycobacterial infection when compared to free drugs at the same concentration. In addition, nanoparticles were able to efficiently penetrate mycobacterial cords and granulomatous lesions – shielded regions of difficult access by free drugs, improving the therapeutic effect.

Iris Batalha is currently a Junior Leader Research Fellow at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) in Barcelona, a Panel Tutor in Nanotherapeutics at the University of Cambridge Institute of Continuing Education, a freelance Senior Innovation Consultant at Inspiralia (Spain and USA), a Co-founder, Director and Editor-in-Chief of the non-profit organisation Women Ahead of Their Time (WATT), and a Research Associate at Peterhouse College. From 2017 to 2020, she was a joint Research Associate at the Department of Engineering Nanoscience Centre and Department of Medicine Molecular Immunity Unit, University of Cambridge. From 2014 to 2017, she worked at the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Cambridge, and the biopharmaceutical company MedImmune/Astrazeneca, followed by a brief experience as a healthcare/pharmaceutical consultant. Her research interests and expertise lie in medical and pharmaceutical research and development, particularly in the fields of nanobiotechnology, bio-inspired materials, downstream processing, formulation and drug delivery.

Sala Baobab, Tower I, 11 Floor, IBEC

PhD Discussions: Srivatsava Viswanadha Venkata Naga Sai and Madhura Murar
2022-05-27 10:00 - 12:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Mechanical characterization of murine pluripotency dissolution
Srivatsava Viswanadha Venkata Naga Sai, Cellular and Molecular Mechanobiology Group
Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells (mESCs) can be maintained in ground/naïve state when grown in a defined N2B27 media with the supplementation of two inhibitors (2i) for MEK/Erk and GSK3β. Upon 2i withdrawal, mESCs exit naïve state and become functionally mature, acquiring differentiation competence. From a mechanical point of view, the instruction for initiating ground state exit is the integrin mediated mechano-sensing of extra cellular matrix (ECM). Although laminin has been found to be the pivotal ECM ligand for pluripotency dissolution, the down-stream mechano-responses accompanying its sensing, their spatio-temporal evolution and, their regulatory role in mESC maturation remain unclear. In this work, we combine mechanical measurements, functional characterization, and live cell imaging to unravel the role of mESCs-ECM interactions during naïve state exit and pluripotency dissolution. We employ a Rex1::GFPd2 expressing mESC line to monitor naïve state exit in real time, combined with a laminin-rich ECM environment. During naïve state exit, we observe a progressive increase in cell-ECM interaction, marked by an increase in traction forces, growth of focal adhesions, and the reorganization of the basal actin from a mesh-like network into an oriented filamentous morphology reminiscent of stress fibres. Furthermore, inhibition of non-muscle myosin-II using blebbistatin significantly delayed naïve state exit, suggesting a regulatory role of cell contractility in mESC maturation. We finally investigate the role of these changes in cell-ECM interactions in mediating nuclear mechanoresponses, and their influence in mESC pluripotency dissolution.

Dual peptide-mediated design of polymeric nanoparticles: towards precision prostate cancer targeting
Madhura Murar, Nanoscopy for Nanomedicine Group
A key bottleneck of current cancer treatments is the lack of selective targeting of cancer cells to reduce undesirable side-effects. Nanoparticles (NPs) allow for the design of ligand-coated materials that can fulfil this function but have not yet shown consistent clinical results to make the ‘magic bullet’ theory a paradigm. The inconsistencies may be due to a range of biological factors like differences in disease models or expression levels of target receptor(s). NP design parameters could play a key role in alleviating these inconsistencies and significantly influence the therapeutic efficacy. To further improve this efficacy, multi-ligand targeting strategies have been proposed, however, they remain controversial as they involve an intricate interplay between multitude of factors such as choice of ligands, their receptor binding affinities, NP surface densities, stoichiometric ratios etc., thereby calling for a thorough understanding of the impact of these properties to improve their targeting potential.
Within this context, we employ two cell targeting peptides (WQP and GE11) having different binding affinities to PSMA and EGFR receptors, which are known PCa biomarkers. We evaluate the effect of multivalency of low affinity WQP peptide over its monomeric form on PSMA targeting. We find that by increasing the valency of WQP on NP surface, we observe a higher cellular uptake of WQP-NPs over the monomeric form, attributing to a stronger avidity. Next, we assess the effect of two conjugation strategies using the high affinity GE11 peptide and study their impact on EGFR targeting in a systematic manner. We observe that conjugating GE11 peptide to PLGA-PEG polymer prior to NP formulation (pre-conjugation) allows for a higher and more controlled GE11 content on NP surface than conjugating it to formulated PLGA-PEG NPs (post-conjugation), consequently leading to a higher cellular uptake.
Based on these findings, we report a synthetic strategy for dual peptide-NPs with systematically varied properties, specifically surface valencies and ratios, and establish their impact on selective targeting in a prostate cancer (PCa) model. First, we study the impact of peptide valencies on NP surface of dual NPs in comparison to single peptide-NPs on the selective cellular uptake in different PCa cell lines. Once we establish optimal surface valency, we check the effect of different surface peptide ratios on cellular uptake and determine the optimal ratio for enhanced targeting of only those cells over-expressing both receptors, by the virtue of improved selectivity. Somewhat counterintuitively, we observe an increase in tumor cell uptake of NPs with lower peptide density, which can be attributed to improved surface distribution of the peptide, allowing for an enhanced availability to react with target receptor. This increase in uptake is a result of the two peptides acting in co-operation, as opposed to simply an additive effect. Our findings demonstrate that through refined design and well-characterized NP formulations, dual-peptide targeted nanosystems hold potential to provide precise cancer treatments.

This PhD Discussion session will be held at Tower I, 11th floor Baobab room, at 10:00am.

Meet the editors: Christine Horejs and Kristy Hooper
2022-06-07 15:00 - 17:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Come and meet the editors of Nature Reviews Bioengineering and The Company of Biologists: Christine Horejs and Kirsty Hooper. In this seminar we will hear about the latest updates in their journals and we will discuss the future of scholarly publishing and the open access models.

Sala Baobab, Tower I, 11 Floor, IBEC

PhD Thesis Defence: Gerard Rubí Sans
2022-06-10 11:00 - 13:00 | Careers at IBEC
Development of an in vitro three-dimensional colorectal cancer model using cell-derived extracellular matrices
Author: Gerard Rubí Sans
Directors: Dra. Elisabet Engel López and Dr. Miguel Ángel Mateos Timoneda
This thesis defence will take place at “Sala d’Actes de la Facultat de Matemàtiques i Estadística (FME)” at 11AM.
If you wish to follow this defence online, you can do it through Google Meet here.

EMBL-IBEC Winter Conference Engineering Multicellular Systems
2022-06-17 08:30 - 2022-06-19 14:00 | Barcelona Biomedical Research Park (PRBB), Dr. Aiguader 88 , Barcelona, 08003
EMBL and IBEC aim to contribute to the discussion on challenges and opportunities in the expanding field of engineered multicellular systems

Recent breakthroughs in stem cell biology, organ-on-chip assays, 3-D bioprinting, and cell mechanobiology have revolutionized our ability to design and assemble multicellular living systems, from organoids to embryos.
This biennial series of will focus on how engineering multicellular living systems is boosting our understanding of tissue and organ function, with applications in disease modelling, drug screening, and tissue engineering.
The 2nd edition conference will take place in PRBB Auditorium (Barcelona Biomedical Research Park), in Barcelona from 9-11th February 2022. We expect to bring together 150 researchers including stem cell biologists, systems biologists, physicists and engineers.
IMPORTANT DEADLINES

Abstract submission deadline: 15/11/2021
Notification of acceptance: 30/11/2021
Early registration: 30/12/2021
Late registration: 30/01/2022
Abstract submission here
Registration here
#EIWC22

Biomedical signal interpretation and smartphone sensors for the assessment of trunk function and sleep disorders in patients with spinal cord injury
2022-06-27 10:00 - 14:00 | Sala d’Actes EEBE, Edifici A,, Av. Eduard Maristany 16, 08019 Barcelona
Author: Yolanda Castillo
Group: Biomedical Signal Processing and Interpretation
Directors: Raimon Jané

Abstract:
Spinal cord injury (SCI) is one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. SCI causes motor and sensory impairment below the level of the injury, but it is also associated with many other health complications. Two of these problems are trunk muscle impairment and sleep disorders. Impaired trunk function affects postural control and sitting balance, which are critical for activities of daily living. Disturbed sleep causes fatigue and sleepiness and can lead to serious comorbidities, impacting patient recovery and outcomes. However, due to the multiple health problems secondary to SCI and the limitations in current diagnostic tools, trunk function and sleep are rarely examined after SCI. The non-invasive acquisition and analysis of biomedical signals can help to overcome this issue, providing quantitative measures to assess patient condition. Smartphones can facilitate this task, thanks to their ubiquitous presence and powerful sensors.

The aim of this PhD thesis is to propose new smartphone-based tools and biomedical signal analysis techniques for the quantitative assessment of trunk function and sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) in patients with SCI. This thesis is divided into two parts, including four publications in high-impact journals. The first part addresses the characterization of trunk function in healthy subjects and patients with cervical (cSCI) and thoracic SCI (tSCI). The second part focuses on the development of a mobile health (mHealth) system based on smartphone audio signals for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) diagnosis, and the detection and monitoring of SDB in SCI patients.

The first part of the thesis introduces a novel methodology to quantitatively evaluate trunk function by combining electromyography (EMG) and smartphone accelerometry. In the first study, we characterized the muscle activity and movement patterns of trunk flexion during reaching in healthy humans and investigated if trunk stability was affected by a startling acoustic stimulus (SAS). We found that SAS markedly reduced the response time (RespT) and EMG onset latencies of all muscles (the so-called StartReact effect), either prime movers or stabilizers. In the second study, we evaluated trunk function and the effects of a SAS in patients with cSCI and tSCI. The results revealed deficits in postural control and compensatory strategies employed by SCI patients, such as delayed responses and high lateral deviations, with potential consequences for rehabilitation. This was the first study investigating the StartReact responses in trunk muscles in SCI. The SAS significantly shortened the RespT in tSCI, but not in cSCI, which suggests an increased cortical control in cSCI.

In the second part of the thesis, we present mHealth tools for monitoring sleep disorders and investigate the sleep patterns of SCI patients. In the first article of this part, we designed a smartphone system and novel algorithms based on acoustic analysis for OSA screening. This approach demonstrated good agreement with a commercial system for home OSA diagnosis, correctly detecting and stratifying all the OSA patients. In the last article, sleep studies were performed in SCI patients using the smartphone, showing a very high prevalence of moderate-to-severe SDB in SCI patients. This study highlighted the problem of SDB in SCI and provided simple cost-effective tools to improve the detection and management of SDB in SCI patients.

Overall, this thesis supports the use of smartphones and biomedical signal analysis for the assessment of trunk function and SDB in SCI patients. These novel approaches provide quantitative and objective measures for the evaluation and follow-up of patients in a simple and non-invasive way. We also give insights into the underlying mechanisms of postural control, respiratory function during sleep, and the changes occurring after SCI. Consequently, our results open the way for improving the management of health complications associated with SCI or other disabling conditions.

This thesis defence will take place at: Sala d’Actes de l’Escola d’Enginyeria Barcelona Est (EEBE), Edifici A, planta 0, Campus Diagonal-Besòs de la UPC, Av. d’Eduard Maristany, 16, 08019 Barcelona.
If you wish to follow this defence online, you can do it through this link: meet.google.com/roe-omfr-sse

Biomedical signal interpretation and smartphone sensors for the assessment of trunk function and sleep disorders in patients with spinal cord injury
2022-06-27 10:00 - 14:00 | Sala d’Actes EEBE, Edifici A,, Av. Eduard Maristany 16, 08019 Barcelona
Author: Yolanda del Castillo
Group: Biomedical Signal Processing and Interpretation
Directors: Raimon Jané

Abstract:
Spinal cord injury (SCI) is one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. SCI causes motor and sensory impairment below the level of the injury, but it is also associated with many other health complications. Two of these problems are trunk muscle impairment and sleep disorders. Impaired trunk function affects postural control and sitting balance, which are critical for activities of daily living. Disturbed sleep causes fatigue and sleepiness and can lead to serious comorbidities, impacting patient recovery and outcomes. However, due to the multiple health problems secondary to SCI and the limitations in current diagnostic tools, trunk function and sleep are rarely examined after SCI. The non-invasive acquisition and analysis of biomedical signals can help to overcome this issue, providing quantitative measures to assess patient condition. Smartphones can facilitate this task, thanks to their ubiquitous presence and powerful sensors.

The aim of this PhD thesis is to propose new smartphone-based tools and biomedical signal analysis techniques for the quantitative assessment of trunk function and sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) in patients with SCI. This thesis is divided into two parts, including four publications in high-impact journals. The first part addresses the characterization of trunk function in healthy subjects and patients with cervical (cSCI) and thoracic SCI (tSCI). The second part focuses on the development of a mobile health (mHealth) system based on smartphone audio signals for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) diagnosis, and the detection and monitoring of SDB in SCI patients.

The first part of the thesis introduces a novel methodology to quantitatively evaluate trunk function by combining electromyography (EMG) and smartphone accelerometry. In the first study, we characterized the muscle activity and movement patterns of trunk flexion during reaching in healthy humans and investigated if trunk stability was affected by a startling acoustic stimulus (SAS). We found that SAS markedly reduced the response time (RespT) and EMG onset latencies of all muscles (the so-called StartReact effect), either prime movers or stabilizers. In the second study, we evaluated trunk function and the effects of a SAS in patients with cSCI and tSCI. The results revealed deficits in postural control and compensatory strategies employed by SCI patients, such as delayed responses and high lateral deviations, with potential consequences for rehabilitation. This was the first study investigating the StartReact responses in trunk muscles in SCI. The SAS significantly shortened the RespT in tSCI, but not in cSCI, which suggests an increased cortical control in cSCI.

In the second part of the thesis, we present mHealth tools for monitoring sleep disorders and investigate the sleep patterns of SCI patients. In the first article of this part, we designed a smartphone system and novel algorithms based on acoustic analysis for OSA screening. This approach demonstrated good agreement with a commercial system for home OSA diagnosis, correctly detecting and stratifying all the OSA patients. In the last article, sleep studies were performed in SCI patients using the smartphone, showing a very high prevalence of moderate-to-severe SDB in SCI patients. This study highlighted the problem of SDB in SCI and provided simple cost-effective tools to improve the detection and management of SDB in SCI patients.
Overall, this thesis supports the use of smartphones and biomedical signal analysis for the assessment of trunk function and SDB in SCI patients. These novel approaches provide quantitative and objective measures for the evaluation and follow-up of patients in a simple and non-invasive way. We also give insights into the underlying mechanisms of postural control, respiratory function during sleep, and the changes occurring after SCI. Consequently, our results open the way for improving the management of health complications associated with SCI or other disabling conditions.

This thesis defence will take place at: Sala d’Actes de l’Escola d’Enginyeria Barcelona Est (EEBE), Edifici A, planta 0, Campus Diagonal-Besòs de la UPC, Av. d’Eduard Maristany, 16, 08019 Barcelona.
If you wish to follow this defence online, you can do it through this link: meet.google.com/roe-omfr-sse

Last minute Seminar: Laura Suter-Dick
2022-06-27 12:30 - 13:30 | Sala Baobab, Tower I - 11th floor
Liver and Kidney: 3D-in vitro systems for disease modelling and biomarker discovery
Prof. Laura Suter-Dick
FHNW University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland School of Life Sciences, Institute for Chemistry and Bioanalytics a Basel.

THERACAT Conference
2022-07-01 09:00 - 17:45 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Parc Científic de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Bio-orthogonal catalysis for cancer therapy (THERACAT)

THERACAT is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie European Training Network (MSCA-ITN-ETN) aiming to train a new generation of researchers on the innovative topic of bio-orthogonal catalysis for cancer therapy
The development of novel cancer therapies is a major challenge for academic research and pharmaceutical industries. Although the recent progress in traditional treatments such as surgery and chemotherapy improved the clinical outcome of cancer patients, there is a strong need for new and effective approaches as well as for a new generation of young scientists trained to tackle these challenges from a multidisciplinary perspective. THERACAT establishes an international training programme focused on the development of catalysis-based approaches towards the cure of cancer. In this strategy nano- and micro-particles bearing a catalytic unit are delivered to the tumour site and subsequently non-active prodrugs are administered to the patient. The prodrugs are non-toxic and therefore generate limited side effects. Only at the tumour site the catalytic particles convert the prodrugs into active anticancer compounds that generate a local and strong effect, as single catalytic species can uncage a large number of drugs. This approach presents several advantages on the classical drug delivery paradigm including limited side effects and prolonged efficacy.
The final aim of the THERACAT network is to consolidate Europe as the world leader in novel catalysis-based approach for cancer therapy.

PhD Discussions: Marc Azagra and Inês Sousa
2022-07-15 10:00 - 12:00 | IBEC, floor 11, Tower I, Baldiri Reixac 4-8, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Novel Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) applications in the clinical field
Marc Azagra, Molecular Imaging for Precision Medicine Group
When nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) was described more than half a century ago it appeared to be a curiosity of the quantum world. Since then NMR spectroscopy has become an essential tool not only for chemists, but also for biochemists, molecular biologists and even clinicians. Today we are going to explain what is Hyperpolarization NMR, main differences with thermal NMR acquisitions and two of the projects I am involved with: a new NMR application in clinical diagnosis stage for Liver disease and the first experiment ever performed with High-throughput Hyperpolarized Magnetic Resonance Imaging experiment with a multiwell microfluidic chips using Chemical Shift Imaging (CSI) pulse sequence.

Versatile gelatine-based biomaterials compatible with neuronal differentiation: Applications in different systems for brain modelling
Inês Sousa Pereira, Nanobioengineering Group
Tissue engineering has been focused on recreating the tissue environment of many organs, such as the brain, for modelling and for therapeutic approaches during the last years. Recently, 3D brain in vitro models have been explored as they resemble more accurately physiological conditions of this organ. However, neuronal cultures are challenging due to the high sensitivity of these cells to changes in their surroundings.
We present a hydrogel composed of methacrylated gelatine (GeIMA), alginate (AlgMA) and hyaluronic acid (HA) for neural progenitor cell culture in this work. Our goal was to assess the compatibility of GelMA and AlgMA composites with neuronal culture as these two materials are common in tissue engineering applications. HA was added to better mimic the stiffness of the brain tissue. Neuroprogenitor mouse cell line C17.2 was embedded in the gelatine-based formulations and cultured as 3D scaffold in a drop shape or inserted in a microfluidic device. They were also used as bioinks for extrusion bioprinting. We performed the physical characterization of both formulations, viability studies, immunostainings to assess the differentiation process and calcium imaging to validate the activity of the cells.
Results show that hydrogels with and without hyaluronic acid have good porosity, allowing nutrient and oxygen diffusion. They also present low Young Modulus, especially for hyaluronic acid formulation, rendering values similar to the brain tissue., the viability of the cells as well as the cell differentiation and connectivity were high after 28 days in culture In the assays with the formulations as scaffolds. The activity of the cells was assessed at day 8 and increased by day 15 for both formulations, showing that cells were differentiating, and the neuronal network was maturating. In the bioprinting assays, the formulations presented high cell viability up to 15 days after printing and day 15 immunostaining showed the expression of neuroprogenitor marker nestin and early neuron marker β-III tubulin. On 3D-brain on the chip assays, the both formulations had high cell viability up until day 15 of culture, increasing expression of β-III tubulin as well as cell activity.
In conclusion, our formulations allow long-term cell culture, including high expression of neuronal markers, cell connectivity and activity and the presence of HA gave the hydrogel physical characteristics closer to brain tissue while permitting a high cell viability and allowing the differentiation of C17.2 cells. These biomaterials are also suitable as bioinks for extrusion in a bioprinter as proven by the good viability of the cells and the compatibility with the differentiation process. The formulations were also tested in a microfluidic system, maintaining the viability, differentiation, and activity capacities of the cells. Overall, these results make these hydrogels a promising scaffold for brain modelling, applicable to 3D long-term culture and differentiation of cells, such as iPSC-derived neurons.

This PhD Discussion session will be held at Tower I, 11th floor Baobab room, at 10:00am.

2022 BIST Conference on Precision Medicine
2022-07-22 08:00 - 17:00
Precision Medicine: Putting discoveries to work

The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST) is pleased to announce its 2022 BIST Conference to discuss the latest developments in an area of priority for BIST research, this year focusing on Precision Medicine.The Conference will take place on November 10, in the city of Barcelona. It will include keynote talks, round-tables, and selected flash-talks and posters on the topic of Precision Medicine. As in the past year, the Conference will include satellite events.

Call for abstractsThe main Conference session on November 10 will include selected 5-minute-long flash talks and a poster session on topics related to Precision Medicine. We invite you to submit your abstract though the form by September 10, 2022.Instructions for abstract submission:

Prepare your abstract in a word document to submit. The abstract should include: title, authors with affiliations, and a summary of maximum 250 words.During the abstract submission, you will be asked to choose one of the following topics:DevicesGenetics and genomicsHigh-throughput technologiesModeling (e.g.: stem cells, organoids, systems biology)Non-invasive monitoring and imagingPrecision therapies (e.g.: CAR-T)Testing and biomarkers

A public book of abstracts will be prepared for the Conference.

You can submit your abstract here.

There is no registration fee for this Conference.

The abstracts will be evaluated by the Conference Scientific Committee, composed by Jorge Ferrer from CRG; Núria Montserrat and Irene Marco Rius from IBEC; Turgut Dururan from ICFO; José A. Garrido and Víctor Puntes from ICN2; and Patrick Aloy and Cayetano Gonzalez from IRB Barcelona.The 2022 BIST Conference, and especially the Satellite Sessions, are being prepared by the Organizing Committee, formed by Gloria Lligadas from CRG; Anke Kleff from IBEC; Lydia Sanmartí from ICFO; Mónica H. Pérez-Temprano from ICIQ; Àlex Argemí from ICN2; and Zoila Babot, Marta Llorens and Gabby Silberman from BIST.

IBEC-IFIBYNE joint seminar
2022-09-08 10:00 - 13:00 | Sala Baobab, C/Baldiri Reixac 10-12, Barcelona, 08028, Spain
10:00Institutional WelcomeJosep SamitierIBEC10:10Presentation by IFIBYNE directorAdali PecciIFIBYNE10:30Training-on-a-Chip: a multi-organ device to study the effect of muscle exercise on insulin secretion in vitroJavier RamónIBEC10:50Coffee Break11:20Genomic regulation in pancreatic beta cell development and regenerationSantiago RodríguezIFIBYNE11:40TBDRomén RodríguezIBEC12:00Closing

The seminar will be held at Tower I, 11th floor Baobab room, at 10:00am.
