Objectives
The Pathology Unit is committed to advancing animal and human tissue research, focusing on tumor studies.
Areas of impact and applications in the field
The field of pathology has evolved from basic Pap staining of tumors followed by H&E-stained tissue diagnosis of disease to the use of immunocytochemistry and complementary ancillary molecular testing to aid in the differentiation of benign and malignant tumors. However, due to the sequencing of the human genome and the subsequent genomic revolution, the field of theranostics has also evolved significantly.
Theranostics, which combines companion diagnostic tools (particularly molecular profiling) with specific therapeutic drugs, allows clinicians to provide patients with personalized therapy based on specific genetic mutations of the tumors. The FDA has dramatically increased the number of cleared/approved in vitro assays for patients with genetic mutations that respond to drugs that prevent the mutations from being expressed, such as tyrosine kinase inhibitors. These alternative forms of therapy have dramatically increased the survival rate in patients with stage four and metastatic cancer.
As a result, pathologists and laboratory experts must determine which companion diagnostic assay should be chosen and recommend the clinically actionable drugs tailored to their genetic mutation to the clinician. This shift in practice presents unprecedented opportunities to diagnose patients and guide the selection of personalized therapies more accurately. As a result, this facility is fundamental for AnkaTheraHub’s development of new anti-tumor drugs.
Areas of impact and applications in the field
Regarding cancer research, synthetic biology seeks to re-design biological systems to perform novel functions in a predictable way. Recent advances in bacterial and mammalian cell engineering include the development of cells that function in biological samples or within the body as minimally invasive diagnostics or theranostics for the real-time regulation of complex pathological conditions. Ex-vivo and in-vivo cell-based biosensors and therapeutics have been developed to target a wide range of diseases including cancer.
A major milestone in the field of theranostic cell engineering was the 2017 FDA approval of tisagenlecleucel, the first gene therapy to be approved in the USA. Considering the above, this facility will work on preclinical applications of mammalian sensing and drug delivery platforms as well as underlying biological designs that could lead to new classes of cell diagnostics and therapeutics.
In the context of infectious diseases, there is a growing need for novel, specific, sensitive, and effective diagnostic and treatment procedures. Synthetic systems and devices are evolving into strong tools for treating human infections. The advancement of synthetic biology provides platforms for detecting and preventing infectious diseases that are efficient, accurate, and cost-effective.
Services
List of Equipments
Staff
