Masters student wins “Innovate Competition” Prize funded by the AstraZeneca Foundation
Following recognition of her work at IJUP in June this year, Cecília Ferreira, a Biochemistry master's student researching in the Nanomedicines and Translational Drug Delivery group, was again recognised at the 16th iMed Conference. She received the Innovate Competition Award in the Translational Research category (poster format), funded by the AstraZeneca Foundation.
For the student, this award holds “very special meaning”, representing “recognition of the scientific value and personal dedication to this project, in which I believe very much. In the last two years, coinciding with the completion of my bachelor's degree and the commencement of my master's degree, I had to reconcile the development of this work with classes and assessments, as I did not want to stop dedicating myself to a research project of which I am so proud.”
“Among so many excellent works, the fact that my project has been recognised as the best is an honour and a motivation to continue growing in the world of science”. Cecília Ferreira added, “this award will allow me to continue developing this work.”
Under the supervision of researcher Cláudia Martins, also a member of the Nanomedicines and Translational Drug Delivery group led by Bruno Sarmento, the master's student has developed "a new in vitro model of glioblastoma; that is, a model artificially created in the laboratory to accelerate the process of testing and validating potential new drugs."
Glioblastoma is the most aggressive and lethal brain tumour in adults. Furthermore, there are currently no adequate and effective therapeutic strategies, which is why Cecília Ferreira's work is particularly important. "This research began in my final-year project for my Biochemistry bachelor's degree in 2022 (FCUP/ICBAS) and will now be the preliminary support for my Biochemistry master's dissertation (FCUP/ICBAS)".
"The artificial glioblastoma model we propose to develop will have a multi-layer format: the upper layer will represent the brain with the tumour (glioblastoma), while the lower layer will represent the bloodstream. Between the two layers, we will recreate the highly complex barrier separating the brain from the blood. This barrier, called the blood-brain barrier, protects the brain from aggressive agents, but inevitably also prevents the passage of drugs needed to combat brain diseases, such as glioblastoma", explains the young researcher.
The model the team is creating in the laboratory "will allow multiple tests to be carried out on permeability (from the blood to the brain) and efficacy of new drugs, with a high predictive value and degree of physiological relevance". This means, adds Cecília Ferreira, that "it will allow the identification of potentially more promising candidates at an early stage". It is also expected that it will "actively contribute to the 3Rs policy (reduce, replace and refine), improving management of the number of subsequent animal tests required".