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06/11/2024 - Press release

Hospital del Mar to Coordinate a €10 Million Study to Develop Blood Stem Cells in the Laboratory

• This study will be conducted in collaboration with the Josep Carreras Leukemia Research Institute, and researchers from Finland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom will participate.
• The goal is to develop and validate protocols and systems for generating laboratory-derived stem cells to regenerate patients' blood.
• The European Research Council, which provides these grants, is the leading funding organization for advanced and excellent research on the continent. It is an organization created by the European Union.

The team led by Dr. Anna Bigas at the Hospital del Mar Research Institute and the Josep Carreras Leukemia Research Institute will coordinate a European project, MakingBlood, to develop a system that enables the generation of blood stem cells in the laboratory. The project, funded by one of the European ERC Synergy Grants awarded by the European Research Council, has a total budget of €10 million, with nearly €3 million directly allocated to Catalonian research centers. The winning projects from the latest round of these grants were announced yesterday.

Members of the team led by Dr. Anna Bigas

Dr. Bigas acknowledges it as "an ambitious and risky project." In collaboration with Brunel University in London, the UK, the Dutch Blood Bank, the University of Turku in Finland, and the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, the team will work over the next five years to develop the protocols and technology needed to artificially replicate the natural process by which blood stem cells are created-the foundation for blood production. Each project partner contributes its expertise, whether in the biological processes that enable the generation of these cells or in the technology to make it possible.

These cells are generated at different times and locations within the body during embryonic development, eventually accumulating in the bone marrow, where they remain until needed. To manufacture them, Dr. Bigas explains, "we will first try to understand this entire process using different research tools. Then, we will attempt to simulate each step to create a platform for their creation." If successful, they will be able to establish the first flexible, customizable platform for producing pluripotent blood stem cells-cells capable of becoming any type of blood cell (such as white blood cells, red blood cells, and others), matching the quality of those generated naturally.

Having a tool like this would facilitate the treatment of multiple conditions, from leukemia and myelomas to various forms of anemia and other genetic disorders. Currently, the treatment of these diseases relies on donations from family members or volunteers, but 25% of patients lack a compatible donor. The MakingBlood project's proposed platform could offer a solution, both for specific cases and more broadly, opening doors to blood production. "The goal is to develop clinically usable hematopoietic stem cells, whether for transplant or other purposes," says Dr. Bigas.

Experience of Hospital del Mar and IRJC

The team led by Dr. Bigas at the Hospital del Mar Research Institute and the Josep Carreras Leukemia Research Institute has developed several research lines related to laboratory blood generation. This year, they published two articles in Nature Communications identifying two types of molecular signals involved in generating hematopoietic stem cells. These signals, including the Notch pathway and the IκBα protein, are essential for these cells to maintain their stem cell potential, remaining inactive and undifferentiated.

ERC Grants

The ERC Grants are awarded by the European Research Council, an organization established by the European Union in 2007. It is the primary funding body for high-level and advanced research in Europe, with a budget of over €16 billion for 2021-2027. It is part of the EU's Horizon program and is overseen by the Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education, and Youth. Its mission is to drive high-quality research across Europe through competitive funding and support cutting-edge research led by investigators in all fields, grounded in scientific excellence.

Related Articles

• Thambyrajah, R., Maqueda, M., Neo, W.H. et al. Cis inhibition of NOTCH1 through JAGGED1 sustains embryonic hematopoietic stem cell fate. Nat Commun 15, 1604 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-45716-y
• Thambyrajah, R., Maqueda, M., Fadlullah, M.Z. et al. IκBα controls dormancy in hematopoietic stem cells via retinoic acid during embryonic development. Nat Commun 15, 4673 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-48854-5

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