News

Researchers from the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Cancer Biology have discovered which cancer subpopulations are responsible for the growth of tumors and subsequent metastasis in melanoma using cutting-edge technology at single cell resolution. A paper published in Nature by Jean-Christophe Marine and his colleagues from the Marine Lab shows for the first time, that the proximity of endothelial cells acts as a catalyst for cancer cells in their ability to stimulate tumor growth. Moreover, using spatial imaging technologies, the team was able to identify a rare type of cancer cells that lies at the basis of metastatic dissemination, providing new targets for the prevention of metastasis.

Flamingo Therapeutics, founded by VIB, KU Leuven, Ghent University, and the University of Michigan, and investors Kurma Partners (FR) and PMV, is pioneering RNA-targeted therapies for oncology with state-of-the-art chemistries. The scientific teams broke new ground on non-coding RNA genes in cancer and were among the first to show a role for lncRNAs as disease drivers in oncology. Today, Flamingo announced that it has expanded its relationship with US company Ionis Pharmaceuticals to further develop RNA-targeted therapies.

Cancer cells can develop resistance to therapy through both genetic and non-genetic mechanisms. But it is unclear how and why one of these routes to resistance prevails. Understanding this 'choice' by the cancer cells may help us devise better therapeutic strategies. 

Congratulations to Chris Marine
Chris has been elected as an Embo - Excellence in Life Sciences member! Chris is one of the 63 leading scientists that EMBO gives the lifetime honour of membership in recognition of his remarkable achievements in life sciences.
The Marine team performs world-leading research on the analysis of pathways that underlie the genesis, progression and maintenance of cancer. Their interests focus on the mechanisms by which cancer-specific non-mutational (i.e. epigenetic and (post-)transcriptional) events modulate tumor initiation, progression and therapy outcome.

LifeTime and improving European Healthcare through cell-based interceptive medicine
LifeTime aims to track, understand and target human cells during the onset and progression of complex diseases and their response to therapy at single-cell resolution. This mission will be implemented through the development and integration of single-cell multi-omics and imaging, artificial intelligence and patient-derived experimental disease models during progression from health to disease. Analysis of such large molecular and clinical datasets will discover molecular mechanisms, create predictive computational models of disease progression, and reveal new drug targets and therapies. Timely detection and interception of disease embedded in an ethical and patient-centered vision will be achieved through interactions across academia, hospitals, patient-associations, health data management systems and industry. Applying this strategy to key medical challenges in cancer, neurological, infectious, chronic inflammatory and cardiovascular diseases at the single-cell level will usher in cell-based interceptive medicine in Europe over the next decade.

Read the full article on Nature