Project description
Novel nanobodies help treatment target cancer cells over healthy ones
Cancer is a heterogeneous family of diseases, and accordingly, the treatments available are many and varied. They include surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted drug therapy, and more recently, photodynamic therapy (PDT). However, no single therapy is successful across the board. PDT is one of the simplest interventions, with few and mild complications. A photosensitising agent injected into the bloodstream is absorbed by all cells, but remains in cancer cells longer. Once the agent has cleared from healthy cells, light of a specific wavelength is used to activate the agent and kill cancer cells. The EU-funded READY project targets the photosensitisers directly to cancer cells, killing tumours while also boosting the immune system for long-term protection. The team is now developing a path to market.
Objective
Unfortunately, current cancer therapies often fail to cure patients, or are associated with severe side effects. Ideally, a therapy should locally eradicate cancer cells without damaging healthy tissue and should induce long term protection through activation of the immune system. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a treatment approach which can do both, through the local light activation of photosensitizers. However, current photosensitizers lack cancer specificity, which limits therapeutic efficacy and prolongs photosensitivity in patients.
Recently, Dr. Oliveira has developed an improved version of targeted PDT that uses small antibody fragments, i.e. nanobodies, to target the photosensitizer to cancer cells. Nanobodies distribute homogenously, bind rapidly and specifically to cancer cells, and are quickly eliminated when unbound. Within the ERC StG KILLCANCER project, the team has been focusing on better understanding the mechanism of nanobody-targeted PDT, its potential to induce tumor regression in vivo, and its capacity to trigger the immune system for long term protection. Results indicate this treatment could lead to improved selectivity and reduced side effects, compared to conventional PDT and antibody-targeted PDT.
The fundamental objective of this ERC PoC is to ascertain the technical and commercial viability of nanobody-targeted PDT for treatment of head and neck cancer. Within this project, the aims are to:
1. Humanize the lead nanobody, validate the results, and explore GMP production
2. Perform an IP landscape analysis and establish freedom-to-operate (FTO)
3. Execute an extensive market, competitor, and stakeholder analysis, and
4. Develop a detailed business plan based on this information to accurately guide commercialisation.
Together, these steps will be essential for nanobody-targeted PDT to be ready for the translation to humans, so that cancer patients and society as a whole can benefit from this promising alternative treatment.
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.
- medical and health sciences basic medicine immunology
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine oncology head and neck cancer
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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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H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)
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Topic(s)
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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.
ERC-POC - Proof of Concept Grant
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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) ERC-2019-PoC
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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.
3584 CS Utrecht
Netherlands
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.