i3S researches receive ECCO grant to study inflammatory bowel diseases

i3S scientists were awarded with two ECCO Grants by the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO). Sofia Barros and Inês Alves will receive 80 thousand euros each to develop innovative projects associated with inflammatory bowel diseases.

Sofia Barros’ project proposes a novel therapeutic approach for the treatment of Crohn’s disease, a chronic inflammatory disease that can affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract.

The research is based on the development of a dual-action oral treatment which combines two drugs; budesonide - to control inflammation, and teduglutide to promote epithelial regeneration. These will be delivered by reactive oxygen species-responsive nanoparticles. This system allows the drug release to be targeted at the sites of inflammation, increasing the therapeutic effect and reducing side effects.

“This grant represents the recognition of the work that I’ve been developing and allows me to consolidate my research into new therapeutic approaches for Crohn’s disease," emphasises Sofia Barros, from the Nanomedicines & Translational Drug Delivery group led by Bruno Sarmento.

Inês Alves’ project focuses on understanding the early immunological mechanisms that drive development of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (which includes Crohn’s disease and Ulcerative Colitis).

Recent results from the i3S group Immunology, Cancer & Glycomedicine (led by Salomé Pinho) show that specific changes in the surface sugars (glycans) presented by intestinal cells can trigger harmful immune responses several years before the first clinical symptoms of disease appear.

With this ECCO Grant, Inês Alves wants to identify which immune cells are responsible for recognizing these sugars and characterizing which antibodies are involved in this process, opening the path to identify blood biomarkers that could permit early detection of the disease, monitoring its progression, or even its prevention.

“This grant represents a unique opportunity to deepen our knowledge of Chron’s disease and develop new diagnostic and prevention approaches, with a direct impact on the quality of life of patients”, said the researcher.