Project description
Targeted macrophage therapy against solid tumours
Macrophages are emerging as drug delivery vehicles against cancer given their inherent ability to infiltrate even the most hypoxic regions of the tumour. Previous work by the partners of the EU-funded TROJAN project has demonstrated the capacity of macrophages to take up ferritins loaded with anti-cancer drugs and transfer them to the cancer site, like a 'Trojan horse'. In this project, scientists will optimise the technology for commercialisation and clinical testing. Considering that millions of people around the world are suffering from cancer, this novel approach has the potential to maximise the performance of anti-cancer drugs and improve clinical outcomes.
Objective
New therapeutic approaches have led to significant improvements in cancer treatment, but none have been able to overcome the limited efficacy of solid tumor treatment due to poor tumor delivery and the presence of hypoxic tumor cells. Macrophages represent a promising vesicle to deliver cancer therapeutics to solid tumors as they are continuously recruited into the tumor mass, even the most hypoxic regions. Our pioneering research demonstrated that macrophages are able to take up ferritins loaded with anti-cancer drugs, creating Macrophage-Drug Conjugates (MDCs), and transfer these to cancer cells and kill them, a phenomenon we named TRAIN.
In my ongoing ERC STARTING GRANT PROJECT ‘MCHAP’, we have proven that MDCs can be used as a ‘Trojan horse’ to efficiently deliver drugs directly to the cancer cells via TRAIN.
Now we aim to turn the MDC technology into a COMMERCIAL and SOCIAL VALUE PROPOSITION by confirming our findings in a PDX model, which is crucial to raise interest of and establish a co-development (or licensing) deal with big pharma’s to realize commercialization and clinical uptake of our IP-protected MDC technology. During the ERC PoC project, we determine the optimal efficacy of MDC delivery, examine the concentration of the drug delivered to the tumor and other organs, validate the efficacy of MDC delivery in PDX mice after MDC treatment,and optimize our business case. This project will thus provide PROOF OF CONCEPT for the efficacy and pharmacokinetics of, and establish the viability, feasibility, commercialization and overall direction for our innovative MDC technology.
This project will substantially contribute to bring our MDC technology to the market and in clinical practice, where our MDC technology has the promising potential to improve prognosis of cancer patients, improve the performance of anti-cancer drugs, and reduce healthcare costs. THE NEW, INNOVATIVE MDC TECHNOLOGY CAN THUS REALIZE SIGNIFICANT BENEFITS FOR OUR SOCIETY AND OUR ECONOMY.
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 clinical medicine oncology
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pharmacology and pharmacy pharmacokinetics
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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)
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.
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-2020-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.
02 787 WARSZAWA
Poland
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.