The University of Coimbra (UC), a Portuguese public institution founded in 1290 and recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage in 2013, focuses on education, research, and knowledge transfer. Leading UC’s participation in the DREAMS project, Lino Ferreira, Investigator Coordinator at the Faculty of Medicine and affiliated with research Centre for Innovative Biomedicine and Biotechnology, directs a research group dedicated to generating knowledge to better understand and treat age-related diseases. A key objective of the group is to create in vitro tissue models to study human biology and simulate age-related diseases, aiming to deepen understanding of these conditions and identify new therapeutic agents.
Innovations in Disease Modeling and Drug Discovery
In disease modeling and drug discovery programs, cells are a critical component of experimental assays. While cells derived from patient biopsies or immortalized human cell lines are often used as screening models, they come with significant limitations such as limited availability, finite capacity for in vitro expansion, and genetic or metabolic differences from the original cells.
Moreover, animal models, particularly mouse models, are commonly employed to study functional changes in diseases caused by genetic mutations. However, these models do not always replicate the phenotypes observed in humans. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) offer a promising alternative, addressing some of the challenges posed by animal and adult human cell models in disease modeling and drug discovery.
iPSCs are derived from the patient’s own cells, maintaining the same genetic material, and can be differentiated into various cell types affected by a specific pathology. They are particularly valuable for studying genetic disorders, diseases with limited access to human tissues, and conditions with a significant developmental component.
Research Excellence and Team Expertise
Over the past decade, LF’s research group has made significant contributions to these areas, particularly in tissue modeling, drug screening, and disease modeling, advancing the understanding of age-related diseases and offering new possibilities for therapeutic discovery through the use of iPSCs and other innovative approaches.
The University of Coimbra (UC) team involved in the DREAMS EU project includes Lino Ferreira, Susana Rosa, Carolina Santos, and Joana Cunha.
- Lino Ferreira, who serves as the Investigator Coordinator at the Faculty of Medicine, UC, leads the UC team for the DREAMS project. He has completed postdoctoral research at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering (Porto) and MIT with prominent scientists. Currently, he manages a team of over 35 members and has been honored with several awards, including the Crioestaminal Prize (2008), an ERC grant (2012), and an ERA Chair grant (2016).
- Susana Rosa, a researcher at UC, focuses on iPSC vascular biology. She has directed two major projects related to iPSC tissue engineering and vascular aging. Her role in the DREAMS project will involve iPSC differentiation and omics studies.
- Carolina Santos, a second-year PhD student in Health Sciences, has a BSc in Biochemistry and an MSc in Biomedical Research. She will be involved in iPSC differentiation and gene editing research.
- Joana Cunha, a researcher with expertise in Biochemistry and Biomedical Research, will contribute to iPSC differentiation, disease modeling with iPSC-derived cellular models, and omics analysis.
Contribution to the DREAMS project
UC will play a major role in key work packages within the DREAMS project: Biological Materials in 5 NMDs for Screening, Proteomic Data, and New Biomarkers and Biological Materials for New Diseases and New Biomarkers. Specifically, UC will contribute to generating cellular models, differentiating iPSCs into myotubes, identifying phenotypes in these models, and analyzing gene and protein dysregulation in five diseases. UC’s involvement will be more limited in the remaining work packages of the project.
Since 2011, UC is performing research in rare diseases using iPSC-derived models. In the context of DREAMs project, UC contribution will be important to generate cellular models and to identify phenotypes shared by the different rare diseases. UC integrates cellular biology and omics skills that will be important to address the main objectives of the project.
