H2020 funding for exploration of the secretory pathways to identify candidate biomarkers or therapeutic targets

The project SECRET (Exploration of the SECRETory pathway for cancer therapy) has been funded 4 mill EUR from H2020 to establish a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network (H2020-MSCA-ITN). The objective of SECRET is to improve the understanding of the mutual regulation of the secretory pathway and cell signaling to identify and interrogate novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for application in breast- and colorectal cancer. Two Norwegian researchers are partners, Prof Gunhild M. Mælandsmo, Institute for Cancer Research (ICR), Oslo University Hospital and Prof Hesso Farhan, Institute of Basic Medical Science (IMB), University of Oslo, together receiving funding for three Early Stage Researchers (ERS).

The H2020-funding encompasses support for 15 ERS positions all over Europe (11 beneficiaries and 7 partner organizations form 9 countries) aiming for a PhD in medical science. The project is coordinated from University of Stuttgart and the ERSs will be trained in the field of translational cancer biology and systems medicine through a highly interdisciplinary training program. The training network will inspire them to exploit the SECRETory pathway to design novel therapeutic strategies against cancer.

The ERS projects that will be performed in Norway are as follows:

  1. Systematic analysis of the role of Golgi fragmentation in triple negative breast cancer progression (PI: Farhan, IMB)
  2. Cleaved proteins in exosomes and their contribution to the establishment of the metastatic niche (PI: Farhan, IMB; collaborator: Mælandsmo, ICR)
  3. Secretome mediated tumor-macrophage interactions and treatment resistance (PI: Mælandsmo and Prasmickaite, ICR)

For more information;

SECRET webpage: https://secret-itn.eu/

Job application portal: https://euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/437988

Mælandsmo webpage: https://www.ous-research.no/malandsmo/

Senior scientist Lina Prasmickaite and Prof Gunhild M. Mælandsmo are among the partners in a European training network funded from H2020 that will study the SECRETory pathway searching for novel biomarkers or therapeutic targets in breast cancer.