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NANBIOSIS U12 researchers modify contact lenses to reduce the risk of bacterial infection

Researchers from NANBIOSIS U12 Nanostructured liquid characterization unit, from CIBER-BBN at the IQAC-CSIC have chemically modified contact lenses, incorporating antibacterial properties. Contact lenses, especially soft ones, pose a risk of ocular microbial infection that can eventually lead to loss of vision.

“These new contact lenses inhibit the formation of bacterial biofilms and could prevent ocular keratitis” explains Jordi Esquena, a researcher at the CIBER-BBN at the IQAC-CSIC and one of the coordinators of the work.

In the study, published in Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, bactericidal activity was introduced into hydrogel contact lenses, through antimicrobial peptides that were anchored on the lens surface. The publication describes the obtaining, efficacy and biocompatibility of these contact lenses.

“We have been able to show that peptide functionalized contact lenses can dramatically reduce bacterial adhesion and viability when exposed to Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus,” explains Dr. Esquena.

The authors conclude that these systems offer the potential to minimize corneal bacterial infection and represent a suitable platform for future ophthalmic devices.

The characterization of functionalized contact lenses and the studies by fluorescence optical microscopy were carried out mainly in the Nanostructured Liquids Characterization Unit (U12) of the ICTS NANBIOSIS.

Article of reference:

Emiliano Salvagni, Clara García, Àngels Manresa, Claudia Müller-Sánchez, Manuel Reina, Carlos Rodríguez-Abreu, Maria José García-Celma, Jordi Esquena. Short and ultrashort antimicrobial peptides anchored onto soft commercial contact lenses inhibit bacterial adhesión.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfb.2020.111283

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COVID-19 detection system: a fast, cheap and easy to use alternative to PCR.

PCR (acronym in English for “Polymeric Chain Reaction”), is a type of diagnostic test for the detection of infectious diseases. The PCR diagnosis of COVID-19 used since the outbreak of the pandemic offers a high level of specificity and sensitivity but presents a certain degree of complexity, requiring specialized personnel and is expensive.

Researchers from Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV), the Foundation for the Promotion of Health and Biomedical Research of the Valencian Community (FISABIO), the La Fe Health Research Institute (IIS La Fe) and the consortium Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Bioengineering, Biomateriales y Nanomedicina (CIBER-BBN) has been working, during the pandemic. Within the framework of the Diacovid project, different tests have been carried out with a first prototype of a rapid point-of-care (POC) test, based on nanosystems with molecular gates, that would detect quickly, reliably and easily, SARS-CoV-2.

Ramón Martínez Máñez, Scientific Director of Nanbiosis U26 NMR: Biomedical Applications II explains the advantages of POC techniques as their ability to diagnose in sites with limited infrastructure, without specially qualified staf and without the requirement to transport the sample to a centralized facility. In addition, POC technologies are global detection tools for surveillance against possible new outbreaks in the future. Its use would allow the rapid implementation of containment measures, reduction of therapeutic response times, in situ detection and the use of a low sample volume.

Further information and News in UPV TV

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Combination of stem cell therapy and laparoscopy for the treatment of congenital hernia

Researchers of CCMIJU and NANBIOSIS Unit 14 Cell Therapy, led by Javier García Casado, have recently published a study with the purpose to combine stem cell therapy and laparoscopy for the treatment of congenital hernia in a swine animal model proposing an easy and feasible method to combine stem cell therapy and minimally invasive surgical techniques for hernia repair, the first preclinical study evaluating the use of stem cell therapy in the field of abdominal hernias in a clinically relevant swine model with congenital hernia

Surgical procedures and imaging diagnoses were performed at the ICTS NANBIOSIS Unit 21 Experimental operating rooms, led by Francisco M. Sánchez Margallo

“We developed an experimental approach to test whether the use of stem cells for abdominal hernia treatment is viable in a clinically relevant animal model. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first preclinical study where pigs with congenital abdominal hernias were treated with surgical meshes seeded with adult stem cells. Additionally, the surgical approach was performed with minimally invasive procedures to avoid complications related to open surgery. An exhaustive follow-up was performed at different time points using different evaluation methods: ultrasonography, gene expression analysis, complete histological evaluation, and cellular characterization by flow cytometry of infiltrated leukocytes.”

Article of reference:

Laparoscopy for the Treatment of Congenital Hernia: Use of Surgical Meshes and Mesenchymal Stem Cells in a Clinically Relevant Animal. Federica Marinaro, Javier G. Casado, Rebeca Blázquez, Mauricio Veloso Brun, Ricardo Marcos, Marta Santos, Francisco Javier Duque, Esther López, Verónica Álvarez, Alejandra Usón and Francisco Miguel Sánchez-Margallo. ModelFront. Pharmacol., 25 September 2020 https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2020.01332

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How Nanophotonic Label-Free Biosensors Can Contribute to Rapid and Massive Diagnostics of Respiratory Virus Infections: COVID-19 Case

An accurate and explanatory review recently published in ACS Sensors. led by Prof. Laura Lechuga, Scientific Director of Nanbiosis U4 Biodeposition and Biodetection Unit from CIBER-BBN and ICN2, discusses current diagnostic techniques for COVID-19 and possible future developments in this field. In particular, after highlighting the advantages and limitations of the methods available at present, the article introduces optical biosensors and illustrates how nanophotonic label-free devices can contribute to meet the emerging needs in this context.

For further information at ICN2 website

Reference article:

Maria Soler, Maria Carmen Estevez, Maria Cardenosa-Rubio, Alejandro Astua, and Laura M. Lechuga, How Nanophotonic Label-Free Biosensors Can Contribute to Rapid and Massive Diagnostics of Respiratory Virus Infections: COVID-19 Case; ACS Sensors, August 2020. DOI: 10.1021/acssensors.0c01180

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II Conference on Nanotoxicity. “Dosis sola facit venenum”

NANBIOSIS has participated in the organization of the on-line Conference on Nanotoxicity in collaboration with, CIBER-BBN, Nanomed Spain and Materplat, to debate about the efect of nanotoxicity of nanoparticles and nanotechnologies in health.

The session has been started by Ramon Martinez Mañez, Scientific Director of CIBER-BBN and NANBIOSIS U26 NMR: Biomedical Applications II.

Isabel Rodriguez (GAIKER Technlogy Center) has taking about tools for risk management of nanomatials differentiating between tools and strategies and explaining their experience in studies carried out.

Luis Rojo del Olmo investigador del Grupo de Biomateriales del Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Polímeros del CSIC y del CIBER-BBN) has spoken about the physical-chemical characterization of micro and nanoplastics, explaining biodegradation and bioelimination techniques and their relationship with nanotoxicity.

Ariel Ramírez from the Nanotoxicology Unit of the Aragon Health Research Institute (IIS Aragón) has spoken about preclinical characterization of micro and nanoplastics.

Finally, Ciro Luis Salcines from the University of Cantabria spoke about the practical application of NanoPrevention and Nanotoxicology.

The talks have been followed by a round table of great scientific interest. Ernesto Caballero Garrido, from the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products (AEMPS) has shown that sometimes the evaluation of “nano” goes through the evaluation of “macro”, as there is a lack of specific regulation, in this case the two additional aspects to be taken into account to determine nanotoxicity are accumulation and elimination.

Ramón Martínez Mañez closed the session thanking the organization of the Conference and inviting to continue with these Annual Conference on Nanotoxicity, a topic of great interest to the CIBER-BBN

The Conference was moderated by Teresa Sanchis, executive coordinator of Nanomed.

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NANBIOSIS Expertise in the IQAC-CSIC Symposium dedicated to the fight against Covid-19 Pandemic

The 4th Annual IQAC Symposium will take place on September 23, 2020. This year will be dedicated to the research projects on COVID-19 that are being carried out in the IQAC-CSIC. It will be a dissemination day aiming to inform the general public about some of the lines of research that are currently being developed in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The event will be live streamed in Facebook: facebook.com/iqac.csic.es/

Three of the speakers, members of CIBER-BBN NANBIOSIS units at IQAC-CSIC, will explain their work. Pilar Marco and Roger Galve (NANBIOSIS U2 Custom Antibody Service (CAbS) will talk about “Wearable Devices for Detection rapid SARS-CoV-2” and Miriam Royo (NANBIOSIS U3 Synthesis of Peptides Unit shall inform about “Peptide-based chemical tools as diagnostic and therapeutic agents of COVID-19″

Further information and program: http://bit.ly/2ZLVT0o

The Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC) is one of the research centers of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC). The Institute is located in Barcelona and it was created in 2007 with the mission to perform research of excellence in Chemical Sciences with the broad goal of improving the quality of life. The research developed at IQAC is organized around two main nodes: Biological Chemistry and Nanobiotechnology, many of the investigations carried out by the Research Groups at IQAC lie at the intersection between nodes.

Since 2007 CIBER-BBN and IQAC-CSIC have created four Units of equipment and resources for research wich are part of NANBIOSIS and have been recognized by Spanish Goverment as ICTS (scientific and technical infrastructures, unique in its kind, that are dedicated to high quality research and technological development). The other two units Besides U2 an U3 are: U12 Nanostructured liquid characterization unit, led by Prof. Carlos Rodriguez Abreu and Unir29 Oligonucleotide Synthesis Platform (OSP), led by Prof. Ramón Eritja.

One on the projects in which NANBIOSIS units at CSIC are working in the fight against COVID-19 is CSIC POC4CoV project to develop diagnostic technologies for SARS-COV-2 in which participate 3 of our Units.

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Scientists of Bionand, University of Malaga and CIBER identify a new drug that could mitigate the consequences of COVID infection.

Researchers from Bionand, partner of NANBIOSIS and ​​the University of Malaga toguether with Red de Terapia Celular, CIBER-BBN and CIBER-NED have taken another step in the search for new rapidly implantable therapies to stop the pandemic caused by the coronavirus disease, identifying a new drug that could prevent or mitigate the consequences of the SARS-CoV-2 infection.

The team, led by UMA researchers Iván Durán and Fabiana Csukasi, will study over the next year how treatment with 4-Phenylbutyrate (4-PBA) modulates the inflammatory response that occurs in the most severe cases of COVID-19.

The first results have already been published in the scientific journal ‘Cytokine and Growth Factors Review’

The inflammatory process that is identified in the most serious cases of coronavirus causes uncontrolled and excess cytokines – molecules responsible for organizing the body’s defenses – even triggering vascular hyperpermeability and multi-organ failure. Precisely, the control of this “storm” of cytokines, through those who control them, that is, the infected cells, is the proposal of the researchers from the University of Malaga.

“When cells are stressed by the infection they call up the cytokines and, the more stressed they are, the more insistently they call them, causing that uncontrolled inflammation. For this reason, one possibility to treat COVID-19 is to reduce the stress on the cells, “explained Durán.

According to the researcher, repositioning with the anti-stress drug ‘4-PBA’, approved for clinical use against other diseases and, therefore, easy to take to the clinic, could modulate this cellular stress, which is also present in pathologies such as diabetes, aging or carcinogenesis, in turn, classified as risk for Covid-19.

For further information click here

Other members of the Bioengineering and Tissue Regeneration Laboratory (Labret), led by Professor José Becerra, and of which the researchers Manuel Mari-Beffa, Gustavo Rico, José Miguel Tejeiro, Rick Visser and David Baglietto are also part of the team of researchers in this project granted by de Andalucía Government with 90.000€.

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New project to alleviate the effects of Covid will be developed by JUMISC, partner of NANBIOSIS

The Jesús Usón Minimally Invasive Surgery Center (JUMISC), partner of NANBIOSIS, will develop an R&D project aimed at alleviating the effects of the health and social crisis of COVID-19, thanks to a collaboration agreement with Banco Santander.

The project “Analysis of ligands for SARS-CoV-2 in lymphocyte subpopulations with application for disease staging and patient stratification“, will be developed for a year with the collaboration of researchers from from the San Pedro de Alcántara Hospital in Cáceres, the University of Extremadura, the Reina Sofía Hospital and Mount Sinai in New York.

This research initiative aims to provide a reliable prediction of the development of the disease through the study of certain molecules related to the mechanisms of entry of the virus and how they are altered depending on the age and immune status of the individual. The result of the characterization of SARS-CoV-2 receptors and their correlation with the degree of differentiation of lymphocytes of patients could allow, by means of cytometric analysis, the stratification of patients.The project includes three phases: the first will define a panel of antibodies to identify, by cytometry, those subcellular populations with high levels of expression of ligands for the virus; in the second, the panel of markers already defined will be analyzed and the third will allow to establish groups of patients according to the stage of the disease and predict the evolution of those diagnosed.

For further information, click here

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Maastricht Simulation Award to Konstantinos Mountris and Esther Pueyo

Konstantinos Mountris and Esther Pueyo, (NANBIOSIS Unit 27 High Performance Computing), have been awarded with the Maastricht Simulation Award for their participation in the CinC 2020.

Researchers of BSICoS Group, from CIBER-BBN and I3A of Zaragoza University, have participated in the 47 Computing in Cardiology Conference, which took place in Rimini, Italy, during the days 13-16 of September. Alba Martín, was awarded with the Best Remote Poster Presentation for the poster entitled “Model-based characterization of atrial fibrilation episodes and its clinical association“. And the work “Next-generation in-silico Cardiac Electrophysiology through Immersed Grid Meshfree Modelling. Application to Simulation of Myocardial Infarction” by Konstantinos Mountris and Esther Pueyo has been awarded with the CinC Maastricht Simulation Award (MSA).

This work proposes a novel Meshfree Immersed Grid method for cardiac electrophysiology simulation and its application in the simulation of myocardial infarction. Usually, cardiac electrophysiology simulation is performed using mesh-based techniques like the Finite Element Method. Such techniques implicate the generation of a mesh discretization of the domain of interest that can be a time-consuming process, especially for complex anatomical models. The Meshfree Immersed Grid alleviates the necessity for mesh generation and allows eliminating the mesh-related limitations. Using the HPC services of NANBIOSIS U27 High Performance Computing, – explains Konstantinos Mountris – we were able to validate the Meshfree Immersed Grid method as a promising alternative to Finite Element Method performing large-scale simulations of myocardial infarction in biventricular swine models.

The goal of this award (and its $500 prize) is to recognize the best submission to the conference each year on the topic of cardiovascular simulations.

2020 Is the second consecutive edition of the CinC Conference in wich members of Bsicos Group and NANBIOSIS U27 are awarded with the MSA. In 2019 the winner was Violeta Monasterio with the work Influence of the Stimulation Current on the Differences between Cell and Tissue Electrophysiological Simulations.

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OITBs OPEN CALL TO FIGHT COVID19 – SafeNMT OITB project

JOINT OITBS OPEN CALL TO FIGHT COVID 19

SAFE-N-MEDTECH OITB project in which CIBER-BBN is a partner througth its ICTS NANBIOSIS, gathers expertise from 28 partners around the World focused in enabling the safe translation of nano-enabled medical technologies from Proof of Concept to markets and clinical practice. The sudden COVID-19 outbreak has meant an unforeseen challenge that requires rapid answers from the Science, Technology and Innovation Community. These is a framework where SafeNMT could deploy all its potential: first, because nanotechnology is a Key Enabling Technology that can contribute to innovative approaches to fight COVID 19 and/or other viral pandemics. Second, because the integration of capabilities in SafeNMT should be a key driver to integrate, accelerate and translate nanotechnology innovations from TRLs 4-5 to TRLs 6-7.

In this context, and in the frame of the Joint OITBs Open Call to fight COVID 19, we aim in opening our services, at no cost, for selected proposals which accomplish the following conditions:

  • Innovations for prevention, diagnostic and/or therapy for COVID 19 based on the use of nanotechnology applied to Medical Devices and In Vitro Diagnostic
  • The expressions of interest should present a solid S&T background and a sufficient technological maturity (starting TRLs 4-5)
  • A clear development pathway, with an initial identification of product needs is encouraged

What we offer (non-exhaustive list, to be agreed with the selected expressions of interest – Consult the services in our catalogue):

  • First evaluation of the project/product based on Health Technology Assessment (HTA) and Healthcare system needs provided by our pool of experts
  • Technology scanning to identify redundancies/synergies
  • Nanomaterial characterization
  • In vitro preclinical research
  • Access to clinical samples and Biobanks
  • Assistance in prototyping and qualification of manufacturing facilities
  • Regulatory advice and support in the adapted European regulation for COVID 19 medical technologies
  • Links to clinical networks
  • Business development coaching, links with business angels, investors, capital risk, etc.

Typically, the project will cover costs related to activities mentioned above, according to the budget limits available. If outstanding expenses beyond the available budget are needed, these will need to be covered by the user. The project won’t be able to cover formal regulatory costs, production costs, clinical development costs or any external costs that might be needed for the testing and production of the nano-enabled Medical Technology/ies.
Please note that all information provided will be treated confidential and is stored only for the purpose of this call.

Submission deadline: October 2nd, 2020, 5:00 p.m. CET.

Applicants will be informed about the outcome of their application in mid October. Activities are envisaged to start beginning of November.
APPLY HERE!

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