IBEC Seminar: Shahid Uddin
2024-07-05 10:00 - 12:00 (Europe/Madrid) | 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.

Animal welfare VS human welfare: To what extent do we want to protect them? (Spanish)
2024-09-25 18:00 - 19:00 | Biblioteca Gabriel García Marquez
Animal welfare VS human welfare: To what extent do we want to protect them?
The use of experimental animals is widely accepted within the scientific community and although there are differences in regulations between countries, they all follow the guidelines set by the 3Rs: Replace, Reduce and Refine. This event will be held in Spanish.

El uso de animales de experimentación está ampliamente aceptado dentro de la comunidad científica y a pesar de que hay diferencias en regulaciones entre países todos siguen las directrices que marcan las 3.os: Reemplazar, Reducir y Refinar. Por lo tanto, la primera pregunta que nos tenemos que hacer cuando estamos diseñando un experimento con animales es:
Podemos usar otro sistema que no involucre el uso de animales de experimentación para responder nuestra pregunta científica?
Afortunadamente esta pregunta cada vez es más fácil de responder gracias al desarrollo de sistemas biomimètics que imitan ciertos órganos como por ejemplo la piel, el intestino o el páncreas.
Proponemos la siguiente estructura para la mesa redonda:
Presentación
Exploración de la situación con los asistentes a través de preguntas:
• Qué impacto ha tenido durante la historia el uso de animales de experimentación?
• Qué nos motiva a reducir el uso de los animales de experimentación?
• Hasta qué punto estamos dispuestos a reducir su uso?
• Qué alternativas tenemos?
Lluvia de ideas: Buscamos soluciones
Antes que nada se explicarán las premisas por el buen funcionamiento de la lluvia de ideas. A continuación, exploraremos las opciones que tenemos para reemplazar el uso de animales de experimentación.
Con que nos quedamos?
Qué sueño las propuestas que entre todos los asistentes creemos que pueden tener más éxito?
Cierre
Ponentes: Marcel Sorribas Adriana González Anna Martínez y Daunis Xiomara Gislen Fernández Garibay Nuria Camarero (moderadora), del IBEC.
Para registrarse haz click aquí.

Emerging Leaders in Biomedicine Symposium
2024-09-26 09:00 - 17:00 | Vall d’Hebron, Barcelona, Spain
The second edition of the Emerging Leaders in Biomedicine Symposium will take place on September 26th, 2024 at the Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology. This exceptional event is a collaborative effort between:

Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO)
Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute
Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC)
Institute of Molecular Biology of Barcelona (IBMB)
Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG)
University Pompeu Fabra, Department of Medicine and Life Science
Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona)
Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB)

The primary objective of this symposium is to provide a platform for senior postdocs and junior principal investigators (PIs) to come together and receive valuable scientific and logistical support from the local scientific community.
During the symposium, we will host several short talk sessions, round tables, and networking opportunities, allowing you to showcase your research, share the challenges you face, present your scientific interests, and explore potential synergies and collaborations.
Registration closed.
Full programme here.

PhD Thesis Defense: Marco Vigo
2024-09-26 10:00 - 13:00 | Facultat de Medicina de la Universitat de Barcelona – Aula 4.1
Investigating therapeutic targeting to intercellular adhesion molecule 1 through epitope, isoform, and cross-reactivity selection

Author: Marco Vigo, Targeted Therapeutics and Nanodevices and Nanobioengineering group

Reading date: 26/09/2024
Reading time: 10:00

Reading place: Facultat de Medicina de la Universitat de Barcelona – Aula 4.1
If you want to join online, you can connect via Teams here.

17th IBEC Symposium
2024-10-21 15:00 - 2024-10-22 18:00 | AXA Auditorium, L'illa Diagonal, Av. Diagonal 547 , Barcelona, 08029
The 17th IBEC annual Symposium brings together high-profile international experts for an open forum for interdisciplinary discussions and networking. This year the symposium is dedicated to Bioengineering for emergent and advanced therapies, one of IBEC’s three major application areas.
Scientific community is invited to participate. Attendees from IBEC and abroad are welcome to present their research or projects in poster format. Moreover, some of these contributions will be selected by the scientific committee for an oral flash presentation.
POSTER SESSION
As a new initiative this year, the poster session will be held in a pre-symposium event on October 21st at Citilab.
The poster session will provide an opportunity to showcase your work to the IBEC community in a relaxed environment. We will also enjoy refreshments during the poster session.
SATELLITE EVENT
To bring our research closer to the society we have organized a satellite outreach session, where selected researchers will have the opportunity to present their poster to secondary school students. The best outreach speech will receive a prize, which will be awarded during the symposium. If you are interested in participating in this satellite activity, please select this option in the registration form.

For those interested in participating, our Strategy and Communication units will conduct a workshop to help you adapt your poster content for a secondary school. audience.

Information and registration here.

BMBC meeting
2024-10-24 16:00 - 18:30 | PRBB (Parc de Recerca Biomèdica de Barcelona), Ramon y Cajal Room
Please mark your calendars! The next BMBC meeting will be held on Thursday 24th of October 2024, from 4-6:30pm at PRBB, Ramon y Cajal Room.
When: Thursday, October 24th, 2024 at 16.00h
Where: PRBB, “Ramon y Cajal” Room (inner square)

Program (abstracts of the talks at the end this email)
16h – 16h30 Anna Aragay (Group Leader, IBMB-CSIC, Signaling Transduction Group, IBMB-CSIC) — G protein intracellular signaling: effects on mitochondria motility and mitophagy
16h30 – 17h Cristina González-Estévez (Senior Researcher, IBUB, Lecturer Serra Húnter, Lab planarian Barcelona, IBUB) — Autophagy and senescence as early events required for planarian regeneration
17h-17h30 —– Coffee Break ——
17h30-18h Nina Kostina (Senior Researcher, Bioinspired Interactive Materials and Protocellular Systems, IBEC) — Harnessing nature’s blueprints to design interactive synthetic cells.
18h-18h30 Deborah Naon (Postdoctoral fellow, Complex Metabolic Diseases and Mitochondria, IRB) — Alternative Splicing of Mfn2 modulates organelle morphology
You can also visit https://felixcampelo.wixsite.com/bmbc

nanoBio&Med2024
2024-11-05 08:00 - 2024-11-07 17:00 | Auditori Antoni Caparrós, PCB, Tower D, c/Baldiri Reixac 4-8, Barcelona, Spain
The nanoBio&Med2024 International Conference (www.nanobiomedconf.com) will take place in-person in Barcelona (Nov 05-07, 2024). This event is going to present again the most recent international developments in the field of Nanobiotechnology and Nanomedicine and will provide a platform for multidisciplinary communication, new cooperations and projects to participants from both science and industry.
The call for abstracts is currently open (deadline: September 13, 2024) and abstracts can be submitted online through the website.
Upcoming Deadlines
Abstract Submission (Oral request): September 13, 2024
Student Grant (Travel bursary) Request: September 13, 2024
Author Submission Acceptance Notification: September 16, 2024
Student Grant Notification: September 16, 2024
Early Bird Registration Fee: September 20, 2024
Abstract Submission (Poster request): September 20, 2024

The conference will offer during this week an impressive list of Invited, Keynote & Plenary speakers.

News, Updates and opportunities for funding at the European Research Council (ERC)
2024-11-07 15:00 - 16:30 | Sala Félix Serratosa – PCB, c/ Baldiri i reixac 10-12, Barcelona, Spain, 08028, Spain
News, Updates and opportunities for funding at the European Research Council (ERC)
András Badacsonyi, Scientific Officer European Research Council Executive Agency
The European Research Council (ERC is the premier European funding organisation for excellent frontier research. I was set up by the European Commission responding to a demand from the scientific community in 2007. The ERC’s mission is to encourage the highest quality research in Europe through competitive funding and to support investigator-driven frontier research across all fields, based on scientific excellence.
Through its long-term grants, it provides scientific freedom and financial stability to its grantees and the reputation of excellent research. ERC projects have led to more than 200’000 articles published in scientific journals, over 2’200 patents and other IPR applications, and ERC grantees founded or co-founded over 400 start-ups so far.
The presentation will introduce ERC, its grants and the evaluation process. I will explain the recently introduced changes in the evaluation and I will try to give some pragmatic advice to those who intend to apply for ERC funding. At the same time, I will also clarify some misunderstandings and incorrect information about ERC evaluations.

AGENDA
15:00-15:05 – Welcome
Commercialization & Communications Director PCB & Samuel Sánchez ICREA Professor and Group Leader Deputy Director for the Internationalization and Institutional relations IBEC.
15:05 – 16:00 – Seminar
News, updates and opportunities for funding at the ERC, Dr. András Badacsonyi, ERC Scientific Officer at the European Research Council Executive Agency.
16:00 – 16:20 Q&A session
Click here to register

Thematic Network Workshop: “AI for Bioengineering”
2024-11-08 09:00 - 13:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Thematic Network Workshop: “AI for Bioengineering”
Today, healthcare technology collects a huge amount of raw data whose interpretation and analysis are beyond human capabilities. AI integration into bioengineering and personalized medicine is crucial to allow complex data analysis, to enhance predictive models, to integrate multiscale data, and to automate tasks. These capabilities are vital for advancing biological understanding and disease management.
IBEC “Artificial Intelligence for Bioengineering” Thematic Network (NET-AI) aims to equip IBEC researchers with knowledge about the latest machine learning (ML) techniques for bioengineering and create a specialized ML toolkit tailored for IBEC’s needs. Through a series of designed workshops, NET-AI aims to address common challenges and integrate machine learning at IBEC.
The aim of this first workshop is to explore and share AI use cases and needs within IBEC groups. Each group will have the opportunity to present its AI use cases and needs. Groups willing to participate should prepare a brief presentation (10-15 min max). After the presentations, we will engage in an open discussion to exchange ideas and identify future opportunities for collaboration and workshops.

Join us to shape the next steps in AI for bioengineering together!
Workshop held in the framework of the IBEC Thematic Networks.

Programme
09:00 – Welcome and introduction
09:15 – Presentations by the network groups
10:30 – Coffee break
10:50 – Presentations by other IBEC groups
11:45 – Roundtable discussion
13:00 – Closure

Registrer here (mandatory)

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

Complementary Skills Session: "Science: Comedy and Communication"
2024-11-29 10:00 - 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Science: Comedy and Communication
Dr Matthew Murtha, https://drmurtha.com/
Dr Matthew Murtha earned his PhD at Ohio State University where his work contributed to several therapies that have passed clinical trials. He completed post-docs at NYU and IBIDELL where his pioneering functional genomics techniques were used to investigate molecular causes of autism. He has since left the lab to devote himself full time to science communication.
In his talk, a combination of stand up and story telling, he’ll talk about how he came to be a scientist and then communicator and will give some tips on how to communicate sciecne and make it more understandable and attractive for a non-scientific audience.

PhD Discussion: Anna Panteleeva and Miguel Gonzalez Martin
2024-12-13 10:00 - 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
Advancing Neurodegenerative Disease Research with Enhanced Brain-on-a-Chip Technology and Integrated Biosensor Systems
Anna Panteleeva – Nanobioengineering
Neurodegenerative disorders (NDDs), such as Alzheimer’s disease, remain a critical global health challenge. A key obstacle in drug development is the blood-brain barrier (BBB), which plays a crucial role in regulating the exchange of substances between the bloodstream and the brain. While the BBB protects the brain, its dysfunction contributes to NDD progression, and it hinders drug delivery, leaving most therapeutic candidates unsuccessful in clinical trials.
Traditional animal models have provided valuable insights into NDDs, but they fall short in fully replicating the complexity of human neural responses. Brain-on-a-chip (BoC) technology has emerged as a promising tool, offering controlled environments to study neuronal networks. Integrating a BBB component into BoC systems significantly enhances their physiological relevance, enabling the study of complex BBB properties.
Our research advances BoC technology by combining a microfluidic device, multi-electrode array (MEA) technology and biosensors to create a comprehensive BBB model. By co-culturing endothelial cells, pericytes, astrocytes, and neurons, we replicate key BBB elements and neural interactions. This setup allows real-time monitoring of BBB permeability and neural activity via MEA electrodes, and neuronal degradation using biosensors. Preliminary results demonstrate promising outcomes, though further optimization is required.
This innovative approach improves the physiological relevance of BoC systems and accelerates drug development and personalized therapies for NDDs, providing a pathway toward more effective treatments.
Designing synthetic mechanosensitive molecules for the mechanical control of cellular transcription
Miguel Gonzalez Martin – Cellular and Molecular Mechanobiology
Cells sense mechanical signals in the process of mechanotransduction, activating pathways that govern cell behavior. However, it remains a challenge to engineer mechanotransduction pathways in a controllable and predictable manner. Here we aim to engineer a synthetic mechanosensitive transcription factor (msTTA). To this end, we exploit the force induced changes in nuclear transport, linking nuclear mechanical perturbations to gene expression. To do so, we are mechanically tuning the passive and facilitated transport properties of the synthetic msTTA. Through this we aim to recapitulate the localization behavior of endogenous mechanosensitive proteins such as YAP or Twist, but with a synthetic factor that activates genes of choice in a controlled way. Optimizing our reporter cells, we have set up a novel screening platform with substrates of different rigidity, from which we expect to identify highly mechanosensitive TF candidates that function in a tunable manner, as well as to elucidate which features make a transcription factor mechanosensitive. Overall, we expect to unlock precise transcriptional control through mechanical forces, and a state-of-the-art directed evolution platform for msTTAs. With the simplicity of this engineered regulatory module, we expect to describe the minimal elements of mechano-regulation of gene expression, as well as enabling the use of mechanotransduction in gene circuits control. This will open the field to use mechanotransduction approaches for complex synthetic biology applications.

PhD Thesis Defence: Betsy Verónica Arévalo Jaimes
2024-12-13 10:00 - 14:00
Biofilms microbianos: virulencia e interacciones hongo-bacteria
Betsy Verónica Arévalo Jaimes, Bacterial infections and Antimicrobial Therapies group
This thesis defence will take place at the Aula de Grados de la Facultad de Biología de la Universidad de Barcelona.
Friday 13th December at 10:00h

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.

PhD Thesis Defence: Albert Parra Martínez
2025-01-13 11:00 - 15:00
Integrating AI with Multiphoton Autofluorescence-Based Hyperspectral Imaging for Enhanced Embryo and Oocyte Analysis
Albert Parra Martínez, Bioengineering in Reproductive Health Group
This thesis defence will take place at the Centro universitario de la visión (CUV). Passeig del Vint-i-dos de Juliol, 660, 08222 Terrassa, Barcelona. Auditori Joan Salvado.
Monday 13th January at 11:00h

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

PhD Discussion: Kristin Fichna and Gian Marco Tuveri
2025-01-24 10:00 - 11:00
Kristin Fichna – Smart nano-bio-devices
Gian Marco Tuveri – Molecular bionics

Workshop 1 NET-NANO: Tools to study biological systems
2025-02-03 09:10 - 16:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, Parc Científic de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
This first workshop will focus on cutting-edge tools and techniques used to investigate cellular processes and disease. The event will feature two plenary lectures by leading external experts, along with a series of presentations by IBEC researchers.
Speakers will present on a range of topics, including nanomechanics, atomic force microscopy, electron microscopy, surface nanopatterning, membrane protein function, interprotein charge transfer, and single-molecule imaging. The event will offer numerous opportunities for networking, discussion, and knowledge sharing.
Scheduled Programme:
09:10 – Marina Giannotti, IBEC group “Nanoprobes and Nanoswitches”, “Nanomechanics in seek for disease indicators”
09:40 – Aurora Dols Pérez, IBEC group “Nanoscale Bioelectrical Characterization”, “AFM as a tool for the study of drug delivery systems”
10:10 – Nisha Pawar, IBEC group “Molecular Bionics”, “Liquid phase Transmission Electron Microscopy and Machine Learning to understand structure and protein aggregation”
10:40 – Plenary: Elisabetta Ada Cavalcanti-Adam,University of Bayreuth (Germany), “Surface Nanopatterning for Investigating Receptor Clustering and Crosstalk in Cell Adhesion and Migration”
11:40 – Coffee Break & Challenge Board
12:10 – Anna Lagunas, IBEC group “Nanobioengineering”,“Unveiling membrane protein function with nanotools”
12:40 – Pau Gorostiza, IBEC group “Nanoprobes and Nanoswitches”, “Interprotein charge transfer in respiratory and photosynthetic chains”
13:10 – Networking Lunch
14:10 – Plenary: Prof María García-Parajo, Institute of Photonic Science (ICFO) & Catalan Institute for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA), “Single molecule imaging tools to unravel spatiotemporal compartmentalisation in living cells”
15:10 – Roundtable Discussion 15:40 – Farewell from Network Representatives

Plenary talks details:
Prof. Elisabetta Ada Cavalcanti-Adam, Chair of Cellular Biomechanics, Faculty of Engineering Science, University of Bayreuth, Germany.

Surface nanopatterning for Investigating Receptor Clustering and Crosstalk in Cell Adhesion and Migration
Advances in nanotechnology have provided powerful tools for precisely controlling the physical and chemical microenvironment and for guiding cellular behavior and communication. This talk will explore the use of surface nanopatterning techniques and their functionalization with adhesive ligands to study receptor clustering and its implications for crosstalk in the adhesion and migration of single and collective cells. We aim to elucidate the mechanisms underlying integrin signaling, cadherin-mediated cell-cell junctions, and their interplay during migration. Examples will highlight how these approaches provide understanding of fundamental cell biology and their potential implications in tissue regeneration and cancer metastasis.
Prof. Dr. E. Ada Cavalcanti-Adam is currently a full professor for Cellular Biomechanics at the University of Bayreuth, Germany. Education: doctor degree in Dental Medicine from Italy, M.Sc. degree in Biology from University of Pennsylvania (USA) and PhD in Biosciences at Heidelberg University.
She was Postdoctoral Fellow and later project leader at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart. After completing her Habilitation, from 2017 until 2023 she was research group leader at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg and head of the Central Scientific Facility “Cellular Biotechnology; she also served as adjunct faculty at the Heidelberg University.
In 2004 she received the Marie Curie Intra-European fellowship, in 2008 a fellowship from the „Christiane Nüsslein-Volhardt Foundation“ and the Prize „For Women in Science“. Her research focuses on the mechanobiology of cell adhesion, investigating how cells interact with their physical environment at the molecular level.

Prof. Dr. María García-Parajo, Institute of Photonic Science (ICFO) & Catalan Institute for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA).
Single molecule imaging tools to unravel spatiotemporal compartmentalisation in living cells
Organisation by compartmentalisation is a general property of natural systems that efficiently facilitates and orchestrates biological events in space and time. Super-resolution microscopy and single molecule dynamic approaches have revealed that compartmentalisation starts at the nanometre scale with molecules organising and interacting transiently with each other following modularity principles. In this talk, I will provide an overview of recent super-resolution and single molecule dynamic approaches ideally tailored to study biological systems with exquisite spatiotemporal resolution. I will describe the combination of multicolour single particle tracking (SPT) at different labelling densities to resolve in real time multi-molecular interactions in living cells. Low density SPT conditions allows to reconstruct the mobility of individual molecules and their transient interactions, while high density conditions provide unique information on the spatial and temporal length scales of cellular regions re-visited (or forbidden) for molecules. We find that molecular diffusion, transient multi-molecular interactions and dynamic re-modelling of the environment play key roles regulating biological function.
Maria Garcia-Parajo is an ICREA Research Professor at ICFO-Institute of Photonic Sciences, leading the Single Molecule Biophotonics group. Her research focuses on the development of advanced optical techniques to the study of biological processes at the single molecular level on living cells. She obtained her PhD in Physical Electronics in 1993 at Imperial Colleague, UK. Previous experience includes research at L2M-CNRS Paris (France) and University of Twente (The Netherlands). To date she has published more than 200 publications and delivered more than 250 talks at international conferences and workshops upon invitation. She coordinates several international research projects, and is member of various international scientific advisory, executive and editorial boards. She has received several prestigious awards, including the Young Academy Research fellow award from the Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences (1998), National Prize in Biophysics (2017), Advanced ERC grant (2017) and Emmy Noether Laurate from the European Physical Society (2020). She is co-coordinator of the Winter School in Advanced Microscopy Techniques for the Master in Interdisciplinary Sciences at BIST. Maria is actively involved in (inter)national actions to promote gender equity in Science.

Contexto y oportunidades de cooperación científico-tecnológica con China
2025-02-04 09:30 - 12:00 | PCB
This event will be held in Spanish.
Nanomed Spain junto con CDTI organizan esta jornada para ofrecer una visión integral del estado actual de la cooperación científica entre España y China, incluyendo los avances de la hoja de ruta acordada en la Comisión Mixta Bilateral de octubre de 2024 y las nuevas líneas estratégicas de colaboración. También se presentarán oportunidades de financiación para proyectos conjuntos, como las derivadas del reciente Memorando de Entendimiento firmado entre la Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) y la Fundación Nacional de Ciencias Naturales de China (NSFC), y se discutirán los retos relacionados con la securización de la cooperación internacional. Una excelente oportunidad para avanzar juntos en la innovación y la colaboración internacional.
Registro e información aquí.

Nanodía Mundial Contra el Cáncer
2025-02-07 09:30 - 13:00 | Vall d’Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Pg. de la Vall d'Hebron, 119-129, Horta-Guinardó, Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
This event will be held in Spanish.
El Nanodía Mundial Contra el Cáncer es un evento organizado en el marco del Día Mundial contra el Cáncer donde se darán a conocer las últimas innovaciones en materia de NANOMEDICINA contra el CÁNCER, con temas que van desde el diagnóstico precoz, la liberación controlada de fármacos o la radioterapia con nanopartículas.
Un año más, expertos en NANOMEDICINA de diferentes campos -investigadores, empresarios, médicos oncólogos, pacientes, etc.-, expondrán los últimos avances y nos darán la oportunidad de descubrir el generador de progreso que la NANOMEDICINA significa para la salud como creador de nuevas oportunidades en el diagnóstico y el tratamiento del cáncer y como podemos contribuir en la misión Europea contra el cáncer.
NANOMED Spain organiza la edición de este año con el Vall d’Hebron Instituto de Investigación (VHIR).
Registro e información aquí.

Complementary Skills session: "Artificial Intelligence in Scientific Practice: From Research Labs to Lecture Halls"
2025-02-07 10:00 - 11:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, IBEC, Baldiri i Reixac, Barcelona
“Artificial Intelligence in Scientific Practice: From Research Labs to Lecture Halls”
Salva Ferrer, Eduscopi, Barcelona.
Discover how AI is reshaping the landscape of scientific research, teaching, and public engagement. This seminar covers a wide range of uses for AI, including content generation, data analysis, and information management tailored to scientists’ needs. Attendees will learn prompt engineering techniques, compare AI models suited for reliable scientific text generation, and navigate key ethical challenges like transparency and legalities. Featuring real-world tools for research, social media, and educational applications, this session provides a comprehensive overview of responsible AI use in science. (Of course, this title and description were generated by an AI).

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.

Barcelona Health Innovation Week 2025
2025-02-19 12:00 - 14:00 | Sala Dolors Aleu, Cluster II, Parc Científic de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Al Barcelona Health Innovation Week, explorarem casos reals de dos projectes que estan fent el salt del laboratori a la clínica i al mercat per generar un impacte tangible a través de la col·laboració público-privada i la creació d’spin off. Coneixerem la iniciativa liderada per Catalunya per accelerar l’adopció de la medicina personalitzada als estats membres de la Unió Europea, i analitzarem les estratègies clau per assolir la transferència del coneixement a la societat.
Aquesta sessió serà una cita imprescindible per als que volen conèixer de prop les claus de l’èxit en la translació de la medicina personalitzada, connectar amb agents de l’ecosistema d’innovació i formar part de la conversa sobre el futur de la nostra salut.

Aquest esdeveniment tindrà lloc en català.

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.
