News U26

New test trials to diagnose Covid 19: Ramon Martinez, Scientific Director of CIBER-BBN is interviewed by Spanish Television

Ramón Martinez, Scientific Director of CIBER-BBN and NANBIOSIS unit 26 NMR: Biomedical Applications II is interviewed by Spanish Television about the research he is coordinating at the Polytechnic University of Valencia to develop new tests as an alternative to PCR.

Dr. Elena Aznar CIBER researcher at IQMA-IDM-UPV group explains how work these test that allow to diagnose quickly, easily, reliably and cheaply if a person is or has been infected by the SARS-COV-2 virus. Ramón Martínez Máñez, leader of the project, reports on the point where the investigation is, as well as the difference of these tests with PCR or antigen tests. These tests implement a technology of the research group that has already been used for other pathogens and that they try to adapt to the COVID virus. “My impression – explains Dr. Martínez – is that the time will come when these tests can be sold in pharmacies and can be used by the users themselves. At the moment we have to see if they work in patient samples and then adapt it so that be a marketable kit by an interested company “

The interview can be whatched here:

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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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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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Seminar on Molecular probes and gated materials in biomedical applications by Ramón Martínez, now in youtube

Last June 8, 2020, Ramón Martínez Máñez, Scientific Director of CIBER-BBN and NANBIOSIS U26, gave an on line seminar, hosted by Jaume Veciana and Anna Roig will from ICMAB-CSIC on Molecular probes and gated materials in biomedical applications and communication between nanoparticles.

If you missed the seminar, you can see it now on YouTube:

More information at the ICMAB website.

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NANBIOSIS researchers featured in the 15th Edition of Spanish Researchers Ranking

The 15th edition of the Webometrics Ranking of World Universities has been published, ranking researchers in Spain as well as Spaniards doing research abroad. A total of 11 Directors of NANBIOSIS units appear on the most recent list, featured on the top 2000. The list is ordered by the h-index, a metric that calculates research impact based on a correlation of papers published and number of citations, and then by number of citations. The result is a list of whose’s publications have had more impact online.

NANBIOSIS researchers featured are Fernando Albericio (#207), scientific director of U3 Synthesis of Peptides Unit, Ramón Martínez Máñez (#342) U26 NMR: Biomedical Applications II, Jaume Veciana (#459) U6 Biomaterial Processing and Nanostructuring Unit, José Luis Pedraz (#906) U10 Drug Formulation unit, Jesús Santamaría (#912) U9 Synthesis of Nanoparticles Unit, Ramón Eritja (#1022) U29 Oligonucleotide Synthesis Platform (OSP), Pablo Laguna (#1153) U27 High Performance Computing, Antoni Villaverde (#1249) U1 Protein Production Platform (PPP), Laura Lechuga (#1511) U4 Biodeposition and Biodetection Unit M.Pilar Marco (#1517), U2 Custom Antibody Service (CAbS), and Josep Samitier (#1836) U7 Nanotechnology Unit.

This list reflects on the impact online publication can have as a tool to share knowledge.

For further information: here

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Peptide‐Capped Mesoporous Nanoparticles: Toward a more Efficient Internalization of Alendronate.

Osteoporosis is an illness which appears when the osteoblast/osteoclast activities are unbalanced taking place bone resorption (caused by osteoclasts) in higher extension than bone formation (induced by osteoblasts). Alendronate is one of the most used drugs for osteoporosis treatment despite its scarce bioavailability. In an attempt to improve it, gated mesoporous silica nanoparticles, for the controlled release of alendronate, have been synthesized and characterized. These hybrid nanoparticles include labelled alendronate inside the porous, those porous are capped with a peptide designed to be selectively cleaved by cathepsin K enzyme (overexpressed in osteoclasts).

Two CIBER-BBN units of the ICTS NANBIOSIS were implied in the research: the peptide was prepared by U3 Synthesis of Peptides Unit and substances were characterized at U26 NMR: Biomedical Applications II Unit at University of Valencia.

The nanoparticles were internalized by RAW 264.7 macrophages (which could differentiate in osteoclasts) and were able to release its entrapped cargo in the presence of cathepsin K added in the macrophage lysates. From the set with aminopropyl functionalized silica, loaded with nitrobenzofurazan labelled alendronate and capped with the same peptide, 4.2% of the total alendronate amount in contact with the cells is liberated inside them and could produce its therapeutic effect.

Article of reference:

Elena Añón, Ana M. Costero, Pedro Amorós, Jamal El Haskouri, Ramón Martínez‐Mánez, Margarita Parra, Salvador Gil, Pablo Gaviña, M. Carmen Terencio, María Alfonso. Peptide-Capped. Mesoporous Nanoparticles: Toward a more Efficient Internalization of Alendronate. Chemistry Europe, March 2020

https://doi.org/10.1002/slct.202000417

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New therapy for triple negative breast cancer is successfully tested in preclinical animals

Researchers CIBER-BBN and NANBIOSIS Unit 26, the Príncipe Felipe Research Center (CIPF), the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) and the Institut de Recerca Biomèdica (IRB) of Barcelona manage to inhibit tumor growth, reduce metastasis and decrease the toxicity of the antitumor drug Navitoclax in preclinical animal models of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC).

These types of TNBC tumors do not express any of the three receptors involved in most breast cancers (estrogen, progesterone, and HER2), so the most common treatments such as hormone therapy are not viable in these patients.

This new study, led by Mar Orzáez, principal investigator of the CIPF Peptides and Proteins Laboratory and Ramón Martínez Máñez, scientific director of CIBER-BBN, NANBIOSIS Unit 26, member of the CIPF-UPV Joint Unit in Mechanisms of disease and Nanomedicine and researcher at the Interuniversity Institute of Research on Molecular Recognition and Technological Development (IDM) at UPV, shows that a combined treatment of a senescence inducer and a senolytic nanoparticle, selectively removes senescent cells, delays tumor growth and reduces metastasis in a mouse model of aggressive breast cancer.

Until now, the application of senescence inducers represents a successful treatment strategy in patients with breast cancer, although the accumulation of senescent cells in the body can sometimes promote tumor recurrence.

Cell senescence or aging takes place in both physiological and pathological situations. When a cell goes into senescence, it stops dividing and releases substances that cause inflammation.

When an uncontrolled accumulation of these senescent cells occurs, the excess of inflammatory factors can end up damaging healthy cells, thereby contributing to aging, the appearance of pathologies such as diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases or promoting the development of tumors and promoting metastasis.

With this new approach, after the induction of senescence, the cells are eliminated by treatment with a senolytic nanoparticle, and a new therapeutic opportunity opens up to improve the results in patients with breast cancer and a new combined treatment is proposed that may be relevant to other senescence-inducing chemotherapeutic drugs.

The results, published in the Journal of Controlled Release (JCR), offer new therapeutic approaches to advance in later phases and clinical trials and allow different tumor types to be addressed.

Orzáez and Máñez have pointed out that “the induction of senescence in tumors represents an advance in the treatment of cancer, which may be even greater in combination with this type of senolytic treatments that eliminate senescent cells and help reduce metastasis.”

Manuel Serrano from the Institut de Recerca Biomèdica (IRB) in Barcelona has also collaborated in the study.

Article of reference:

Irene Galiana, Beatriz Lozano-Torres, Mónica Sancho, María Alfonso, Andrea Bernardos, Viviana Bisbal, Manuel Serrano, Ramón Martínez-Máñez, Mar Orzáez, Preclinical antitumor efficacy of senescence-inducing chemotherapy combined with a nanoSenolytic, Journal of Controlled Release, Volume 323 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconrel.2020.04.045

Sourse of information: CIBER-BBN

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NAV-GAL, a new senolytic drug against cancer, on spanish TV

The work carried out by the team of researchers of CIBER-BBN and Politecnic University of Valencia, led by, Ramón Martínez Máñez, Scientific Director of NANBIOSIS U26 NMR: Biomedical Applications II, is highlighted by the Spanish TV.

This team has developed a new drug against lung cancer that, along with other therapies, eliminates cells that have been bottled prematurely without harming healthy ones. The drug has been successfully administered in mice, now it comes the challenge of finding a way to administer it without damaging the patient’s healthy organs, and they propose inserting it into a capsule that would be released only in the intestine, thus preventing it from passing through the stomach even if it was administered orally.

This new drug called Nav-Gal , is part of the drugs called “senolytics”, those that are capable of killing only cancer cells.




Further information here

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“Molecular probes and gated materials in biomedical applications and communication between nanoparticles” by Ramón Martínez

Next June 8, 2020, 12 pm, Ramón Martínez Máñez, Scientific Director of CIBER-BBN and NANBIOSIS U26, give an on line seminar, hosted by Jaume Veciana and Anna Roig will from ICMAB-CSIC.

The development of optical molecular probes and probes based on gated nanoparticles has been an area of interest during the last decades. Optical probes are able to transform chemical information in the environment into a suitable optical signal, usually a change in colour of fluorescence. Moreover, gated materials have also been widely used for the development of drug delivery systems.

Some examples of optical probes and gated materials for sensing and controlled delivery in biomedical applications will be described. From another point of view, the talk will also describe how nanoparticles are able to communicate each to another via the exchange of chemical messengers. Communication between nanodevices may find applications in different areas and a number of future new results are envisioned in this research field.

Register HERE to attend the seminar via Zoom.

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A new compound removes senescent cells and reduces toxicity in cancer treatment

Scientists of NANBIOSIS unit 26 NMR: Biomedical Applications II, (of CIBER-BBN and the Universitat Politècnica de València), together with researchers from the Principe Felipe Research Center and the University of Cambridge confirm the therapeutic potential of using a new conjugated drug, Nav-Gal, in combination with chemotherapy

Nav-Gal selectively removes tumourigenic senescent cells without attacking healthy cells and reduces the toxicity of platelets

The accumulation of senescent cells plays a significant role in cancer pathogenesis and other diseases. However, senolytic drugs (intended to remove senescent cells) present significant toxicity, which limits their therapeutic benefits.

Now, a new international study involving researchers at CIBER-BBN, the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) and the Principe Felipe Research Center, in collaboration with the University of Cambridge, have just proved the efficiency of a new conjugated drug, Nav-Gal, which selectively removes senescent cells, minimising the effect on healthy cells and reducing toxicity through this therapy. The use of this drug in combination with chemotherapy could be confirmed as a promising strategy in treating cancer. The auspicious results of this study have been published in the journal Aging Cell.

Senescent cells: the target

Senescence is a response to cell damage and stress characterised by the arrest of the cell cycle. When aging, cells permanently stop dividing, thus preventing the propagation of damaged and dysfunctional cells. However, eventually, a massive quantity of senescent cells accumulate in tissues, resulting in the onset and progression of multiple disorders, including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, lung fibrosis, neurological disorders or cancer. Moreover, in the case of cancer, several chemotherapies result in cell senescence, and this accumulation of senescent cells due to the treatments has been related to tumourigenesis, associated with metastasis and the recurrence of tumours in different types of cancer. That is why the search for new drugs that remove senescent cells induced by cancer treatments is a key question in order to guarantee the total eradication of the tumour and prevent them from recurring.

On this front, senolytic drugs (compounds that kill senescent cells using several mechanisms) are a promising therapeutic alternative in oncology and for treating other diseases related to the accumulation of senescent cells. However, today senolytics present a low specificity because they also damage healthy cells, and have significant toxicities, which reduce their therapeutic benefits.

Reducing toxicity and preventing “collateral damages”

In this new study, published in Aging Cell, researchers at CIBER-BBN, the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) and the Principe Felipe Research Center, in collaboration with researchers from CRUK, at the University of Cambridge, worked on the design of a second-generation senolytic, which is more specific and less toxic. They focused on Navitoclax, a drug validated in preclinical models that proved to have a high capacity to destroy senescent cells, modifying it with acetylated-galactose.

The new compound, called Nav-Gal, results in a drug with selective, wide-ranging senolytic activity, which induces the death of senescent cells while preserving the activity of healthy cells.

“To summarize, we suggest the galactose conjugation with certain drugs as a versatile methodology to develop second-generation prodrugs with high senolytic activity and reduced toxicity,” explains Ramón Martínez Máñez, member of the Interuniversity Research Institute for Molecular Recognition and Technological Development (IDM) of the Universitat Politècnica de València, Scientific Director of CIBER-BBN and one of the study’s coordinators.

The researchers tested this drug in combination with chemotherapy (cisplatin) in human lung cancer cells, proving that treatment with cisplatin and Nav-Gal results in the eradication of senescent lung cancer cells and significantly reducing tumour growth. “This study provides evidence of the potential clinical application of combining senescence-induction chemotherapies with senotherapies in cancer,” explains Daniel Muñoz Espín from the CRUK Early Detection Programme of the University of Cambridge. Moreover, the compound Nav-Gal reduced platelet toxicity and the thrombopenia (reduction of the platelet circulation in bloodstream) caused by the previous drug, Navitoclax.

Reference article:

Galacto‐conjugation of Navitoclax as an efficient strategy to increase senolytic specificity and reduce platelet toxicity

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/acel.13142

About CIBER-BBN

CIBER (Consorcio Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red, M.P.) belongs to the Institute of Health Carlos III of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, and it is also funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The CIBER de Bioingeniería, Biomateriales y Nanomedicina (CIBER-BBN) is made up of 46 research groups, selected for their renowned international scientific prestige, that mainly work within three scientific programmes: Bioengineering and Biomedical Imaging, Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering, and Nanomedicine. Its research work is oriented toward the development of prevention, diagnosis and monitoring systems as well as technologies for specific therapies such as Regenerative Medicine and Nanotherapies.

Further information

CIBER Communication Department

comunicacion@ciberisciii.es / 91 171 8119

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