Projects

The tumour microvasculature consists of a disorganised network of immature blood vessels with aberrant dynamics and high permeability, which play a critical role in tumour growth, metastasis, and resistance to therapy. Despite its importance, studying blood flow dynamics and cell migration within this environment remains challenging due to the microvasculature's complexity, minute size, and structural irregularities. NanoFLOW aims to bridge this gap by integrating finely tuned single nanoparticle-based nanomedicines with advanced imaging technology.

This project has four main objectives:

1. To engineer nanoparticles with extended circulation times and tumour cell-targeting capabilities;
2. To achieve exceedingly high specific activity radiolabelled nanoparticles;
3. To develop microfluidic-based methods for accurate quantification and isolation of single nanoparticles;
4. To validate PEPT in a fibrosarcoma mouse model.

By addressing critical challenges in the application of nanomedicines, NanoFLOW will provide ground-breaking insights into tumour progression and metastasis, redefining the boundaries of nanomedicine and setting a new benchmark in cancer imaging and diagnostic precision with far-reaching implications for related fields including drug delivery, molecular imaging and image-guided therapy. 

Pneumonia remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. According to the 2021 Global Burden of Diseases, its annual incidence reaches 344 million cases, causing 2.2 million deaths. Pneumonia often progresses to Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). Current treatments, including antibiotics, antivirals or supportive treatment, face significant limitations such as antimicrobial resistance and the lack of therapies addressing the regeneration of the acute lung injury induced by pneumonia. Carri-Air proposes an innovative therapeutic strategy based on PLGA nanocapsules designed to deliver three immunomodulatory and regenerative miRNAs, directly to the lungs, via inhalation, named here as nanocapsules for pneumonia (N4P). Building on our consortium’s previous research and patented findings, Carri-Air aims to provide an effective alternative to current pneumonia treatments, reducing hospital stays, mechanical ventilation dependency, and AMR-related complications. By restoring immune homeostasis, enhancing pathogen clearance and promoting lung regeneration, N4P will offer an innovative therapeutic approach for pulmonary infections and ARDS, paving the way for future miRNA-based nanomedicines.

Radiolabelled nanoparticles (NPs) emerged as a promising solution to overcome the key limitations of traditional molecular-based radiopharmaceuticals, including rapid clearance, limited specificity, and poor targeting efficiency. Over the past two decades, radiolabelled NPs have demonstrated significant potential in advancing cancer imaging and therapy. However, critical challenges persist, such as high accumulation in organs of the mononuclear phagocytic system (MPS), inconsistent tumour uptake via the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect, and a lack of precision in patient dosimetry. NanoACCURATE addresses these challenges by systematically investigating the influence of NP dose on pharmacokinetics, biodistribution, and EPR-driven tumour targeting.

BACtive aims to develop innovative bioactive materials using bacterial cellulose (BC), a highly versatile and sustainable natural polymer with exceptional biomedical potential. This project aligns with pressing societal challenges, including promoting sustainable bioeconomy practices and addressing critical health issues such as 3D cell culture, antimicrobial resistance, and the need for advanced tissue engineering solutions.

The project has three specific objectives:

1. Biofunctionalization of BC for cell harnessing: This involves enhancing the ability of BC scaffolds to support cell adhesion and proliferation by cell
   culturing in 3D physiomimetic environments, essential for the success of cell therapies.
2. Development of antimicrobial BC composites: Recognizing the global challenge of antimicrobial resistance, this objective focuses on creating BC-based
   materials with intrinsic antimicrobial properties.
3. Engineering living materials (ELM): BActive will pioneer the development of BC-based living materials by incorporating probiotic bacteria.

These living BC composites aim to address vaginal dysbiosis and skin infections by leveraging the therapeutic benefits of encapsulated bacteria in controlled, prolonged-release systems.

BACtive methodology combines BC biosynthesis, functionalization, and advanced characterization techniques. In vitro and in vivo models, including Caenorhabditis elegans will be used to evaluate the bioactivity, biocompatibility, and therapeutic potential of the materials.

Low-cost, large-surface printing technologies to fabricate all sorts of electronic devices is an extremely dynamic field with many prospects in mid-term. A current barrier for the materialization of mass-consumer applications is the excessive cost of conductive inks based on metals or carbon nanomaterials. A strategy for solving this problem which is in line with the shift to circular economy is using inexpensive waste feedstocks while trying to reduce the energetic budget in the ink production processes. The vision of UPCYCLING-NOW is exploiting environmentally-friendly approaches to develop innovative inks for printed electronics by upcycling biopolymer waste. The aim is transforming biopolymers into carbon materials by means of energy efficient processes. In particular, we focus on cotton, a natural fiber widely used in textiles and on woody biomass, which is another biopolymer waste of relevance in the Spanish context. Two strategies will be followed to achieve the carbonization of these materials at lower temperatures and/or in faster processes: i) hydrothermal/solvothermal processing and ii) catalyzing the chemical transformations needed for the reduction of organic matter with the presence of metal nanoparticles. We will combine these green chemistry strategies with standard pyrolysis in inert atmosphere at high temperatures which yields highly conductive graphitic materials. This will allow comparing the different process to evaluate its potential for reducing the energy consumption of the overall process.

With the upcycled carbon materials we will prepare inks that will be assessed in two specific applications. On the one hand we will try to provide a proof of concept on their potential in the sector of smart textiles. On the other hand, we will produce single-use biodegradable electrodes for monitoring water contamination with a simple onsite electrochemical sensing techniques. Finally, we will use these sensors for analyzing water eutrophication as an educational tool to set the basis for a communication and outreach initiative to be fully developed beyond the scope of the project.

MAGMUF aims at developing magnetoelectric multiferroics with strong coupling even above room temperature, which could enable fast, energy- and cost-efficient devices to revolutionize Information Technologies (IT). The project focuses on New spin induced magnetoelectric (ME) multiferroics (MFs), some encouraging families of ferroic Fe-based oxides presenting rather unique magnetic phases at ambient temperatures. This is in particular the case of ε-Fe2O3, displaying a huge coercivity (20 kOe) and one of the few room-temperature magnetoelectric multiferroics. However, many central aspects of the physics of ε-Fe2O3 are still not well understood and the potential of the ε-MxFe2-xO3 ferrites remains almost unexplored. The project also focuses on the magnetization reversal induced by electromagnetic waves which can either excite magnetic resonances and natural frequencies of phonons or magnons which typically are in the THz range. This project is in collaboration with Prof. José Luis Garcia Muñoz (Co-PI of MAGMUF) from CMEOS group at ICMAB (https://cmeos.icmab.es).

https://www.nextgem.eu/

https://www.nextgem.eu/consortium/

Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) produced by man-made devices are all around us. Especially with the next generation of radiofrequency EMFs, further investigations regarding EMF and possible health risks are required. In this context, the EU-funded NextGEM project will generate relevant knowledge of EMF exposure in residential, public, and occupational settings. The project will design a new framework for generating health-relevant scientific knowledge and data on new scenarios of exposure to EMF in multiple frequency bands. Its aim is to provide a healthy living and working environment under safe EMF exposure conditions

Robust disruptive materials will be essential for the “wireless everywhere” to become a reality.  This is because we need a paradigm shift in mobile communications to meet the challenges of such an ambitious evolution. In particular, some of these emerging technologies will trigger the replacement of the magnetic microwave ferrites in use today. This will namely occur with the forecasted shift to high frequency mm-wave and THz bands and in novel antennas that can simultaneously transmit and receive data on the same frequency. In both cases, operating with state-of-the-art ferrites would require large external magnetic fields incompatible with future needs of smaller, power-efficient devices.
To overcome these issues, we target ferrites featuring the so far unmet combinations of low magnetic loss and large values of magnetocrystalline anisotropy, magnetostriction or magnetoelectric coupling. 

The objective of FeMiT is developing a novel family of orthorhombic ferrites based on ε-Fe2O3, a room-temperature multiferroic with large magnetocrystalline anisotropy. Those properties and unique structural features make it an excellent platform to develop the sought-after functional materials for future compact and energy-efficient wireless devices.

In FeMiT we are exploring the limits and diversity of this new family by exploiting rational chemical substitutions, high pressures and strain engineering. For that we are using soft chemistry and physical deposition methods.  We characterize functional properties and selection of the best candidates to be integrated in composite and epitaxial films suitable for application. The expected outcomes are proof-of-concept self-biased or voltage-controlled signal-processing devices with low losses in the mm-wave to THz bands, with high potential impact in the development of future wireless technologies.