Project description
Drug screening in tumour spheroids
Drug development for cancer must take into consideration the three-dimensional and hypoxic nature of tumours. Funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the ImageTumor project will use tumour cell spheroids to recapitulate the conditions of the parental tumour and test the efficacy and permeability of candidate drugs. The work will focus on metal-based anticancer compounds and examine their cellular localisation using X-ray fluorescence imaging as well as interaction with various proteins. Results will lay the groundwork for a more representative drug screening process that will help bring to the market the next generation of anticancer treatments.
Objective
According to estimates from the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2019, cancer is the second leading cause of death after heart failure before the age of 70. The field of metal-based anticancer drugs has been on the rise ever since the discovery of the anticancer properties of cisplatin in 1965, which is in daily clinical use against various types of cancer. Many compounds failed to enter clinical studies since their anti cancer activity is mainly studied in two dimensional (2D) monolayer cells which does not mimic the complex tumor micro environment in humans. In the human body the cancer tumors grow in 3-dimensional structure, hence it is vital to study the anticancer activity of a drug molecules in the 3D tumors rather in 2D mono layer cells. Next, tumor hypoxia (1% Oxygen), a situation where tumor cells are deprived of oxygen, is a major challenge for oncology. In this project we propose the synthesis of N-Heterocyclic Carbene/1,8-naphthalicanhydride conjugated series of metal complexes (Gold, Rhodium, Iridium) to study the anticancer activity and penetration depths in 3D tumor spheroids under hypoxia. We also investigate the activation by reduction mechanism in presence of cellular thiols and cytotoxicity in vitro (3D cell spheroids) and compare the results among the three metal centers. The metal protein interactions play key role in many biological processes; hence we also investigate the metal-protein interaction studies using capillary electrophoresis inductively-coupled mass spectrometry (at secondment). We will investigate the structure activity relationship between metals and of related coordinating ligands in 3D spheroid under hypoxic conditions. We mainly utilize X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) imaging and synchrotron radiation to test the cellular localizations and penetration depth for the proposed metal complexes. This project is expected to yield unique insights towards optimization of next-generation anti-tumor drugs.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences chemical sciences inorganic chemistry transition metals
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules proteins
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine oncology
- natural sciences biological sciences biological behavioural sciences ethology biological interactions
- natural sciences chemical sciences electrochemistry electrophoresis
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2021-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
44801 Bochum
Germany
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.