A study led by the University of Barcelona in collaboraiton with the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia reveals that the functional assay dynamic BH3 profiling (DBP) can predict whether specific treatments will be effective in non-small cell lung cancer patients. The technique helps determine which therapy will be most effective by testing it directly on living cells, improving personalised therapies.
A study led by the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) and Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) in South Korea describes the development of urea-powered nanomotors that improve immunotherapy for bladder cancer. The nanomotors activate the immune system more efficiently and exceed the efficacy of currently used treatments, opening up new possibilities in oncology.
IBEC spin-off Nanobots Therapeutics has been selected in the AECC’s 2024 call for IMPACTO grants. This is an initiative of the Spanish Association Against Cancer (AECC) aimed at technology-based micro-enterprises and SMEs to accelerate the arrival of new treatments in the clinic. The grants were awarded in Barcelona today.
The Micro Immune Response On chip (MIRO) allows tumours and their environment to be replicated in order to understand their response to treatment. The device, which has already been successfully tested on breast cancer samples, could be key to developing new treatments and determining the most appropriate therapy for each patient in a personalized way. The work, published in Nature Communications, is the result of a collaboration between the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia and the Research Institute of the Hospital del Mar.
An IBEC-led study has demonstrated the ability of colorectal cancer stem cells to change their mechanical properties, facilitating the successful metastatic process. They did this using tumour organoids derived from patient cells. These findings could contribute to the development of new strategies to treat and prevent metastasis in colorectal cancer.
Last Friday IBEC hosted an exclusive talk with distinguished bestselling author Siddhartha Mukherjee. At the event, which was attended by more than 120 people, Mukherjee presented his latest book “The Harmony of Cells” and shared an interesting talk about the latest advances in advanced therapies with IBEC researchers.
Two studies led by IBEC have successfully mimicked the transdifferentiation process of the neuroblastoma vasculature in in vitro models. These models, one in 2D and the other on a microfluidic chip, provide platforms for identifying new biomarkers and designing effective therapies against this type of cancer.
The project focuses on developing a chip that will serve as a model for testing new drugs to treat neuroblastoma, a childhood brain cancer. The research has received €200,000 in funding and is led by Aránzazu Villasante, Senior Researcher at IBEC.
Once again, experts in nanomedicine from various fields gathered in Barcelona on the occasion of World Cancer Day. The meeting provided an opportunity to showcase the latest innovations in nanomedicine for combating cancer, covering topics such as early diagnosis, controlled drug release, and radiotherapy employing nanoparticles.
The research, which was conducted on mice, demonstrates how these tiny nanomachines are propelled by urea present in urine and precisely target the tumour, attacking it with a radioisotope carried on their surface. Led by the IBEC and CIC biomaGUNE, the study opens the door to new, more efficient treatments for bladder cancer.