Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia

Online IBEC Seminar: Paolo Arosio
2021-03-12 10:00 - 12:00 (Europe/Madrid)
Membraneless compartments based on intrinsically disordered proteins: from biology towards new protein materials
Paolo Arosio, Institute for Chemical and Bioengineering, ETH Zurich
In the last few years, discoveries in biology are revealing that a class of intrinsically disordered protein sequences plays an important role in the formation of cellular membraneless compartments by spontaneous liquid-liquid phase separation of proteins and nucleic acids. These compartments underlie several important functions and can act as microreactors, in which environment and composition are carefully regulated in space and time. These observations inspired us to exploit these biological sequences to mimic these membraneless compartments on the bench, towards the development of high-performance open microreactors, with applications for instance in biocatalysis. With these sequences we can regulate not only the dynamic process of phase separation but also several properties of the resulting compartments, including uptake of client molecules, polarity and material properties. With this control we can, in turn, regulate biochemical reactions occurring within the compartments.
We further show the development of droplet microfluidic platforms to characterize multiple properties of the open compartments, including both thermodynamics and dynamics of phase separation. We illustrate these concepts by investigating an established in vitro model of Processing bodies consisting of the phase separation of the DEAD-box protein ATPase Dhh1 in the presence of ATP and RNA.
This seminar will take place online
Know more about Paolo Arosio’s research here

Clinical Colloquia: Anna Novials
2021-03-19 10:00 - 12:00
Diabetes, where are we?
Anna Novials, PI of the group “Pathogenesis and Prevention of Diabetes” at IDIBAPS/Clinic Hospital of Barcelona and member of CIBERDEM network.
Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a group of chronic metabolic disorders all characterized by hyperglycemia. It occurs either when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or when the peripheral tissues cannot effectively use the insulin it produces. The global prevalence of diabetes and impaired glucose tolerance (the intermediate transition between normal blood glucose levels and diabetes) has been increasing over recent decades. The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) reported that in 2019 there were 463 million people between 20-79 years worldwide with diabetes, accounting for the 9.3 % of the global adult population. If this trend continues, it is expected to increase to 700 million by 2045. Furthermore persistent high blood glucose levels cause generalized vascular damage affecting the kidneys (nephropathy), the eyes (retinopathy), the nerves (neuropathy) and the heart (cardiovascular disease), leading to disabilities and premature death. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported diabetes to be the seventh leading cause of death. As a consequence the economic burden of diabetes has a high impact on the global health-care system.
The first national study in Spain published in 2012 (the Di@bet.es Study) revealed that the overall prevalence of DM in individuals ≥18 years old in our country was 13.8% and, about a half of them (6%) had unknown diabetes. In addition to this alarming values, the prevalence rates of isolated impaired fasting glucose (IFG) and isolated impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) 3.4% and 9.2%, respectively (2). Taken together, this study uncovered that almost 30% of the study population had some carbohydrate disturbance.
Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) accounts for the vast majority (around 90%) of diabetes worldwide. It can be effectively managed through education, adoption of healthy lifestyles, combined with medication as required. The pathogeny of T2D is extremely complex and comprises all the organs that work coordinately to maintain energy and glucose homeostasis. It is established that when the cross-talk between organs (pancreas, liver, muscle, adipose tissue, brain ,etc )is altered, then the main pathogenic events which are insulin secretory defects and insulin resistance appear as a hallmark of T2D. All current treatment for T2D are adressed to target molecular pathways in different tissues.
Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is the major cause of diabetes in childhood. Patients need an uninterrupted supply of insulin for life. The pathogeny of diabetes consists in alteration in the autoinmunity. The main cause is not yet been stablished. The advances in the treatment remain dissapointing . Although technology applied to diabetes is in continuos progress, patients are still using the same treatment as 100 years ago, when insulin was discovered.
Collectively, these results evidence the need for more clinical and preventive intervention programs and highlight the importance of carrying out more basic research in order to understand the underlying mechanisms of the disease.

Dr. Anna Novials is endocrinologist at Hospital Clinic de Barcelona and leader group of research at IDIBAPS. She received her PhD from the University of Barcelona, in 1989, focusing her studies on the chronic effect of glucotoxicity on pancreatic function in patients with type 2 diabetes. A postdoctoral stay at the University of Cambridge and collaborations with the University of Oxford enriched her scientific and technical knowledge of molecular biology, turning her research objectives toward the molecular mechanisms that affect pancreatic islet function in diabetes, which she would then develop at the Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, going on to lead her own research group.
From 1998 to 2008, Dr. Novials conducted her clinical activity at the Sardà Farriol Foundation in Barcelona, first as Head of the Diabetology Unit and later as Executive Director. Here she devoted her efforts to promoting educational tools to help patients adhere to exercise programs as part of their diabetes treatment plan. In 2008, she rejoined the IDIBAPS as leader of a clinical and basic research team. Since 2010, she has also served as an Executive Committee member of the Spanish Biomedical Research Centre in Diabetes and Associated Metabolic Disorders (CIBERDEM). Finally, Dr. Novials is the former President of the Spanish Diabetes Society and as served as member of the EASD-EU Committee of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes to advocate for diabetes research.
This clinical colloquia will take place online at the GoToMeeting platform

PhD Discussions Sessions: Héctor López Carral
2021-03-26 10:00 - 12:00
Subjective ratings of emotive stimuli predict the impact of the COVID-19 quarantine on affective states
Héctor López Carral, SPECS lab, IBEC
The COVID-19 crisis resulted in a large proportion of the world’s population having to employ social distancing measures and self-quarantine. Given that limiting social interaction impacts mental health, we assessed the effects of quarantine on emotive perception as a proxy of affective states. To this end, we conducted an online experiment whereby 112 participants provided affective ratings for a set of normative images and reported on their well-being during COVID-19 self-isolation. We found that current valence ratings were significantly lower than the original ones from 2015. This negative shift correlated with key aspects of the personal situation during the confinement, including working and living status, and subjective well-being. These findings indicate that quarantine impacts mood negatively, resulting in a negatively biased perception of emotive stimuli. Moreover, our online assessment method shows its validity for large-scale population studies on the impact of COVID-19 related mitigation methods and well-being.
The PhD discussions session will be held ONLINE at the GoToMeeting platform

PhD Thesis Defence: Patrica Prado Peralta
2021-04-07 10:00 - 12:00
Developing new strategies to understand human kidney development and target human disease
Patricia Prado Peralta, Pluripotency for organ regeneration group
The defence will take place online using the BBCollab platform

Online IBEC Seminar: Núria Montserrat
2021-04-16 10:00 - 12:00
Study on the of the interplay between glucose metabolism and SARS-CoV-2 infection exploiting human kidney organoids

Núria Montserrat, group leader “Pluripotency for organ regeneration” at IBEC
Severe acute respiratory syndrome 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection leads to a high risk of hospitalization and mortality in diabetic patients. SARS-CoV-2 binds to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor, which is expressed in key metabolic organs such as pancreas, muscle, heart, adipose tissue, the small intestine, and the kidneys. As a result, it is likely that SARS-CoV-2 may cause alterations of glucose metabolism that could complicate the pathophysiology of pre-existing diabetes or lead to new mechanisms of disease.
Thanks to an international collaboration we have previously shown that SARS-CoV-2 can directly infect engineered human blood vessel organoids and human kidney organoids. In these last months we have started to collectively addressed how to study on the interplay between glucose metabolism and SARS-CoV-2 infections making use of kidney organoid technology. We have first developed culture regime conditions in human kidney organoids mirroring cellular responses similar to those encountered in the human diabetic kidney. Through an exhaustive characterization including single cell RNA profiling and ulterior validation in organoids and kidney patient cells we are starting to dissect the different transcriptional programs that are differently regulated in these different contexts. To further assess on the key role of ACE2 in these processes we have make use of CRISPR/Cas9 technology to generate human pluripotent stem cells lines knock out (KO) for ACE2. Kidney organoids ACE2KO have been further subjected to SARS-CoV-2 infections in normoglycemic and oscillatory glucose conditions further demonstrating the central role of ACE2 in early steps of infection in these organoid model systems. Thanks to our international collaborators we have also explored on the role of ACE2 in early steps of SARS-CoV-2 infection in other organoid platforms including gastric and vascular organoids.
Together, our results provide evidence that SARS-CoV-2 infection altered glucose metabolism and support the use of kidney organoids as a platform to investigate the cellular susceptibility, disease mechanisms, and treatment strategies for SARS-CoV-2 infection in hyperglycaemic condition.
More information about Núria Montserrat’s research here
This seminar will be held using the GoToMeeting Platform

PhD Thesis Defence: Núria Blanco-Cabra
2021-04-16 10:00 - 12:00
Noves metodologies per al tractament de bacteris creixent en forma de biofilm
Núria Blanco-Cabra, Bacterial infections and antimicrobial therapies group at IBEC
The defence will take place online, if you wish to attend to this defence, write an email to doctoratmedicina@ub.edu at least 48 hours before the defence.

PhD Thesis Defence: Laura Moya
2021-04-26 10:00 - 12:00
Deciphering the utility of Galleria mellonella as an infection and toxicity in vivo model
Laura Moya, Bacterial infections: Antimicrobial therapies
The defence will take place online, if you wish to attend to this defence, you will find the link to access and all the information here

PhD Discussion Sessions: Teodora Andrian and Xavier Arqué
2021-04-30 10:00 - 12:00
Correlating super-resolution microscopy and transmission electron microscopy for nanoparticle characterisation
Teodora Andrian, Nanoscopy for nanomedicine group
The functionalization of nanoparticles with surface functional moieties is a key strategy to achieve bioactivity and cell targeting in nanomedicine. The interplay between size and ligand number and distribution is crucial for the formulation performance and needs to be properly characterized to understand nanoparticle structure-activity relations. However, the particle-to-particle heterogeneity poses a serious challenge due to the lack of methods able to measure both size and ligand number and distribution at the same time and at the single particle level. Here we address this issue by introducing a correlative method combining super-resolution microscopy (SRM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) imaging. Correlative light and electron microscopy (CLEM) techniques proved their potential in structural biology but to the best of our knowledge, they have not yet been explored for the structural characterization of nanoparticles. Here we apply our super-resCLEM method to characterize the relationship between size and ligand number, and ligand density in PLGA-PEG nanoparticles at the single particle and single-molecule level. We highlight how heterogeneity found in nanoparticle size can impact ligand distribution, and we discuss the implications on formulation performance. We show how a significant part of the nanoparticle population goes completely undetected in the single-technique analysis, demonstrating that the characterization of nanomaterials using a multiparametric correlative method outplays the information obtained compared to a one-method-at-a-time approach. Using SRM alone, we demonstrated how PEG architecture can influence ligand conjugation efficiency and accessibility. The applicability of our method spans beyond PLGA-PEG nanoparticles and holds great promise for the multiparametric analysis of several other parameters and nanomaterials.
Unraveling the fundamental aspects of enzyme-powered micromotors
Xavier Arqué, Smart Nano-Bio-Devices group
Enzyme-coated micro- and nanomotors self-propel by the biocatalytic conversion of substrates into products and show great promise as actively navigating agents in the fields of biomedicine and environmental applications. However, many of the fundamental aspects underlying enzyme-powered self-propulsion have yet to be fully understood and are crucial for their optimal implementation. Under this framework, this research is focused on elucidating and studying the intrinsic (catalytic turnover or structural flexibility) and extrinsic (bulk and local ionic media) enzymatic properties that lead to an improved active motion powered by bio-catalysis. This is enabled by exploring novel types of both i) enzymes that can act as active motion engines and ii) platforms with appealing properties to be used as chassis of enzymatic micro- and nanomotors. Overall, this work contributes to a better understanding of the mechanism of motion of enzymatic active motion, expands the current library of enzymatic engines and chassis materials available, and provides new insights into the feasibility of implementation of enzyme-powered micro- and nanomotors.
The session will be held online using the GoToMeeting Platform

PhD Thesis Defence: Martina Di Muzio
2021-05-11 10:00 - 12:00
Nanoscale dielectric mapping of biomembranes with in-liquid Scanning Dielectric Microscopy
Martina Di Muzio, Nanoscale bioelectrical characterization group
The defence will take place online, if you wish to attend to this defence, you can find the link to access here and you can find more information here
Please join the meeting few minutes before the mentioned time to avoid session interruption.
If you are joining after the mentioned time, please make sure your microphone is muted before joining the session.

PhD Thesis Defence: Harishankar Balakrishnan
2021-05-12 10:00 - 12:00
Nanoscale Tomography based in Electrostatic Force Microscopy
Harishankar Balakrishnan, Nanoscale bioelectrical characterization group
The defence will take place online, if you wish to attend to this defence, you can find the link to access here and you can find more information here
Please join the meeting few minutes before the mentioned time to avoid session interruption.
If you are joining after the mentioned time, please make sure your microphone is muted before joining the session.

Online IBEC Seminar: Mónica Marro
2021-05-14 10:00 - 12:00
A new molecular dimension: exploiting Raman spectroscopy in Biomedicine
Mónica Marro, ICFO, The Institute of Photonic Sciences

Raman spectroscopy is a promising optical technique that enables the investigation of the molecular content of biological samples in a rapid, non-invasive, label-free and multiplexed approach. In the biomedical field, it is of special interest because the device can be portable and cost-effective.
In this seminar, I will show my work exploiting Raman spectroscopy in a broad range of biomedical applications from the molecular, to cellular and tissue level. I will present how Raman spectroscopy can represent a step forward into different fields, namely: cancer diagnosis, patient stratification, and personalized medicine; neurodegeneration; and mechanobiology. I will show also optical developments that can improve Raman spectroscopy in the speed of image acquisition, like the Raman light sheet approach, or Surface Enhanced Raman spectroscopy.
Overall, I will show how Raman spectroscopy coupled with data science and developments in photonics and nano-engineering could revolutionize the biomedical field in the next years, providing new and other-wise inaccessible molecular information, and giving an unprecedented step towards a more rapid, accurate, personalized diagnosis and treatments.

Research4Talent 2021
2021-05-21 09:30 - 13:30
On Friday 21st May we’ll open our doors virtually 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, as well as a visit to our labs.
In 2020 IBEC signed more that 120 internship agreements for Undergraduate and Master Students with a wide range of national and international universities.
This year’s edition will be held virtually. If you are interested in IBEC’s seventh edition of reSEARCH4TALENT please stay connected, we will soon provide more info with the links to acces the event.
Visit the website here

PhD Thesis Defence: Enara Larrañaga
2021-05-25 03:00 - 17:00
Effects of substrate-derived cues in driving the self-organization of organoid-derived intestinal epithelia
Enara Larrañaga, Biomimetic systems for cell engineering
The defence will take place online, if you wish to attend to this defence, you can find the link to access here and you can find more information here

M-CELS Workshop Barcelona Satellite
2021-06-04 14:30 - 18:00
EMBL and IBEC aim to contribute to the discussion on challenges and opportunities in the expanding field of Multi-cellular engineered living systems (M-CELS).
We have organized a satellite session to the M-CELS Workshop 2021 organized by the Center for Emergent Behaviors of Integrated Cellular Systems. The session aims also to be an appetizer to the 2nd EMBL-IBEC Winter Conference on Engineering Multicellular Systems to be held on 9-11th February 2022 in Barcelona.

Multi-cellular engineered living systems are purpose-driven living systems with multiple interacting living components. They are engineered for specific goals or functions but take emergence into account during the design process, allowing the final system to emerge through natural and non-natural biological processes. M-CELS research is intended to provide a fundamental engineering understanding that enables a quantitative approach bridging between single cells and organs or organisms. The field is still developing, so M-CELS as a field of research is still rapidly expanding
Registration here

Biennal Ciutat i Ciència
2021-06-08 08:00 - 2021-06-13 17:00
Durant els dies 8 i 13 de juny tindrà lloc la segona edició de la Biennal Ciutat-Ciència de Barcelona, i l’IBEC serà un dels centres que hi contribuirà, a través dels seus experts. A més a més, aquesta Biennal culmina amb la 14ª edició de la Festa de la Ciència, amb moltes propostes per viure la ciència en primera persona.

Des de l’IBEC, diversos experts participen en les activitats programades per enguany:

Samuel Sánchez, Professor de Recerca ICREA, i líder del grup “Smart Nano-bio-devices”, paraticipa a – “Pecha Kucha express: art, ciència, tecnologia”
Nuria Montserrat, participa amb una micro-xerrada sobre “Miniòrgans humans per entendre la covid-19”
L´Anke Kleff, Senior HR Development Officer a l´IBEC, participarà en una taula rodona sobre “Expandim l´influència de la dona a la ciència”, dins d’una nova Trobada de #100tífiques

IBEC Online Seminar: Jessica Ilenburg
2021-06-18 10:00 - 12:00
Tissue Engineering in Microgravity
Jessica Ilenburg, Gravitational Biotechnologist at Yuri gravity
Tissue Engineering and regenerative medicine are two fast growing and fast moving research fields. With the invention of bioprinting and tissue chips two breakthrough innovations have been made and now research in microgravity (for example on the ISS) promises even more and faster progress. A lot of advantages, like less contact inhibition and unrestrained growth in all 3 dimensions make the cell structures grow bigger and more complex. This presentation focuses on the qualities of the unique research environment of microgravity and introduces a couple of research findings.
Jessica Ilenburg is doing her master studies in molecular biotechnology at Bielefeld University in Germany. Currently she is working at yuri GmbH as a gravitational biotechnologist focusing on Tissue Engineering, bioprinting and protein crystal growth in microgravity. Previously she has worked at the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability in Copenhagen working with thermophilic organisms and isolating proteins of the butanol pathway.

PhD Thesis Defence: Xarxa Quiroga
2021-06-23 10:00 - 12:00 | Auditori Antoni Caparrós – PCB
Plasma membrane mechanosensing upon stretch-induced topography remodelling
Xarxa Quiroga, Cellular and molecular mechanobiology group.
The thesis defence takes place tomorrow at 10AM in the “Antoni Caparrós” auditorium, located at the PCB Tower D, with limited capacity.

PhD Thesis Defence: Maria Arista
2021-06-28 10:00 - 12:00
Unveiling viral structures by single-molecule localization microscopy
Maria Arista, Nanoscopy for nanomedicine group
The defence will take place online, if you wish to attend to this defence, you can find the link to access here and you can find more information here

PhD Thesis Defence: Ferran Velasco
2021-07-01 09:30 - 12:00
Carboxymethyl cellulose-based cryogels as scaffolds for pancreatic and skeletal muscle tissue engineering
Ferran Velasco, Biosensors for bioengineering group
The defence will take place online, if you wish to attend to this defence, you have to send an email to doctoratmedicina@ub.edu and you can find more information here

PhD Discussions: Ignasi Granero
2021-07-02 10:00 - 12:00
Ignasi Granero, Celular and molecular mechanobiology group
In eukaryotic cells, the cell nucleus contains the DNA and directs the reaction to important signalling cascades, both biochemical and biomechanical. At the Cellular and Molecular Mechanobiology lab we study how forces and the physical characteristics of the cell environment affect cell behaviour and homeostasis. In my case, I am interested in how the cell nucleus senses physical changes and triggers a cell response to them.
For this purpose, we have engineered a battery of fluorescent proteins, which change their location depending on the physical state of the nucleus. Higher forces in the nucleus correspond with higher nuclear accumulation of these proteins. Indicating that these proteins react to mechanical/morphological stimuli. Then, we have chosen the variant that can be used as a mechano-sensor. Currently, we are testing the sensor in single- and multi-cell approaches to understand its behaviour in different systems and the ruling principles under its functioning.
This PhD Discussion will be held online using the GoToMeeting app

Online IBEC Seminar: Xavier Fernàndez-Busquets
2021-07-09 10:00 - 12:00
Nanomalaria group: 20 years at IBEC
Xavier Fernàndez-Busques, group leader of the Nanomalaria group at IBEC
We will start by briefly looking at the origins of our group back in 2001 as part of IBEC’s embryo, the Research Center for Bioelectronics and Nanobioscience. Our current activities integrate two decades of cumulative research oriented to the development of targeted nanocarriers for parasitic diseases with focus on malaria but currently expanding to leishmaniasis.
Because eventual antimalarial nanomedicines need to be deployed in low per capita income regions, their final components must take into account this particular economic landscape. Liposomes and polymeric nanocarriers offer advantages and suffer from limitations depending on the severity of the disease in each particular clinical case. Entering erythrocytes, the host cell of Plasmodium in the blood circulation, is a challenge in itself due to their lack of endocytic processes. Antibodies, polysaccharides like heparin, synthetic polymers and DNA aptamers have been used to target and eventually penetrate red blood cells.
Finally, we have recently launched an effort to discover new antimalarial drugs that should constitute the third and final element in the design of targeted nanocarriers for malaria. The know-how acquired in the development of nanocapsules, targeting elements and drugs has the capacity of being exported to other infectious diseases. Because, no matter how cost-efficient you can make a nanomedicine, clinical trials will significantly increase its cost, we are exploring a radical alternative: designing nanocarriers to target the parasites in their arthropod vectors.
More information about Xavier’s research here
This seminar will be held using the TEAMS app

Online IBEC Seminar: Pau Gorostiza
2021-07-16 10:00 - 12:00
Electrochemically Gated Charge Transport in Redox Proteins and Photosynthetic Complexes

Pau Gorostiza, group leader of the Nanoprobes and nanoswitches group at IBEC
Interprotein electron transport is an essential process in cell respiration and photosynthesis. It takes place between redox proteins and complexes, and it displays an outstanding efficiency and environmental adaptability. Although the biochemistry of electron transport processes is well characterized, nanoscale experimental methods are needed to understand electronic pathways in these redox protein structures, both for fundamental and for technological purposes. Electrochemical scanning tunneling microscopy (ECSTM) is an excellent tool to study electronic materials and redox molecules including proteins. It offers single molecule resolution and allows working in aqueous solution, in nearly physiological conditions in the case of proteins, and under full electrochemical control. ECSTM also allows performing conductance measurements by current-potential and current-distance tunneling spectroscopy. An overview of these methods and current projects in the laboratory will be presented, with special emphasis on cytochromes of the respiratory chain and on photosystem I complexes.
More information about Pau Gorostiza’s research here
This seminar will be held using the TEAMS app

PhD Thesis Defence: Ana Candida Lopes Hortelão
2021-09-03 11:00 - 13:00
Enzyme Powered Nanomotors Towards Biomedical Applications
Ana Candida Lopes Hortelão, Smart Nano-bio-devices group
The defence will take place online, if you wish to attend to this defence you can find the link and more information here

PhD Thesis Defence: Adrianna Glinkowska
2021-09-09 11:30 - 13:30
Formulation and screening of drug nanocarriers using microfluidic technology
Adrianna Glinkowska, Nanoscopy for nanomedicine
The defence will take place online, if you wish to attend to this defence you can find the link and more information here

Online IBEC Seminar: Daniel Gonzalez-Carter
2021-09-17 10:00 - 12:00
Delivering Nanoparticles Specifically to the Brain by Generating Artificial Brain Targets
Daniel Gonzalez-Carter, Molecular Bionics group at IBEC
Achieving efficient therapy delivery to the brain is one of the most pressing medical issues today. Therapy brain delivery is severely hampered by the protective blood-brain barrier (BBB), composed of the highly impermeable endothelial cells lining the brain vasculature. To overcome the BBB, therapies may be loaded onto nanoparticles functionalized with ligands which bind to target proteins expressed at the surface of brain endothelial cells (BEC), thereby increasing brain uptake. However, such strategies have inherent brain-specificity limitations, as the target proteins are also expressed on the vasculature of other organs, resulting in increased ‘off-target’ nanoparticle accumulation.
To achieve truly selective brain targeting, our group is developing a strategy to generate artificial targets exclusively at the BBB. This is done by exploiting the low endocytic rate of BEC, a key requirement for their high impermeability, to selectively retain exogenous targets on their surface. By generating nanoparticles capable of efficiently recognizing the artificial targets, we hope to increase nanoparticle delivery exclusively to the brain with minimal ‘off-target’ nanoparticle accumulation. Furthermore, we are developing an mRNA delivery platform to continuously re-generate the artificial targets from within the BEC to allow for repeated dosing in chronic diseases like Alzheimer’s disease.

PhD Thesis Defence: Alexandre Gomila
2021-09-20 10:00 - 13:00
Development and characterization of in vivo models for photopharmacology
Alexandre Gomila, Nanoprobes and Nanoswitches
The defence will take place online, if you wish to attend to this defence you can find the link here

Online IBEC Seminar: Veronika Magdanz
2021-10-08 10:00 - 12:00
Development of biohybrid and bioinspired microrobots toward biomedical applications
Veronika Magdanz, Smart Nano-Bio-Devices
Autonomous motion and precise control on the microscale is one of the main challenges in developing non-invasive medical microrobots. In this seminar, I present my approaches of how to develop artificial, biomimetic and biohybrid microrobots. We can be inspired by nature’s solutions to achieve such propulsion on the microscale. Specifically, sperm cells offer beneficial features as components of microrobots: as propulsion sources, as templates and as cargo. By combining smart microstructures with spermatozoa, new ways to control and manipulate sperm cells emerge.
This seminar will be held using the GoToMeeting app

Online IBEC Seminar: Mohit Kumar
2021-10-15 10:00 - 12:00
Peptide based nanomaterials with life-like functions
Mohit Kumar, Molecular Bionics group at IBEC
Chemists’ curiosity to create life de novo has sought inspiration from biological systems. In nature, self-assembled nanostructures constantly form and degrade which provides unique features like on-demand function, adaptation, temporal and spatial control. Such processes are enabled by the metabolism and the ability to consume chemical energy to perform useful work. However, these features are not trivial to obtain in synthetic systems. My talk will show that now peptide based self-assembled materials can also form and degrade over time and their nanostructures and functions can be regulated in time by consuming chemical fuel. Furthermore, by using super-resolution imaging dynamic transformations in solution can be probed in real-time, in situ.
This seminar will be held using the GoToMeeting app

Hybrid IBEC Seminar: Cesar Rodriguez-Emmenegger
2021-10-22 10:00 - 12:00
Bio-inspired soft matter at the service of interactive biointerfaces and synthetic cells
Cesar Rodriguez-Emmenegger, Group Leader, DWI-Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials
Nature achieves unmatched functionality by the self-assembly of (macro)molecular building blocks in a hierarchical manner. All information necessary for the function is encoded at the molecular level. Unraveling such blueprints serves as a powerful paradigm in the bio-inspired synthesis of materials that can seamlessly interface with living matter or perform non-natural functions. In this talk, I will present a selection of research studies from my lab addressing the overarching task of developing bio-inspired interactive materials and their application in the biomedical field. Three themes will be considered. Firstly, I will present hydrophilic arborescent polymers, a new class of quasi-dendritic macromolecules in which the topology codes for extreme flexibility and enables a myriad of multivalent interactions. Secondly, I will present highlights of the antimicrobial Kill&Repel and Adaptive hemocompatible nanocoatings and our efforts in translating them to medical devices. The last part of the talk will focus on the development of Membrane Machines, tailor-made synthetic vesicles capable of recapitulating some fundamental biological properties and performing specific tasks. We take advantage of these systems to study how biological selectivity can emerge from the lateral organization of ligand in static and dynamic systems such as the bacterial divisome. We are also developing synthetic macrophage-mimetic microrobots capable of endocytosing bacteria and viruses, including SARS-CoV-2.
This seminar will be hybrid, using the GoToMeeting app and also at the Baobab meeting room located at Tower I, 11th floor. Very few people will be able to attend this seminar in person due to the capacity of the meeting room. If you wish to attend this seminar please write an email to ibeccommunications@ibecbarcelona.eu the free spots will be assigned on a first come first served basis.. The seminar will also be available on streaming, by using the GoToMeeting app, available in this link.
More information about his research team here

PhD Thesis Defence: Ignasi Ferrer Lluís
2021-10-25 15:30 - 17:30
Novel mHealth and multimodal physiological biomarkers for non-invasive monitoring and home healthcare of obstructive sleep apnea and COPD patients with comorbidities
Ignasi Ferrer Lluís, Biomedical Signal Processing and Interpretation
he defence will take place online, using the “Google Meet” app. If you wish to attend to this defence you can find the link here
