Institute of Cancer Research, Medical University of Vienna, Austria.
PI: Maria Sibilia
Project: EGFR inhibitors have been shown to lead to reversion of the Warburg phenotype in tumor cells. However, we have recently demonstrated in colorectal cancer (CRC) that EGFR inhibition in tumor cells does not lead to tumor regression which is a very surprising and unexpected finding. In contrast, EGFR inhibition in myeloid cells reduced CRC growth indicating that EGFR is tumorigenic when expressed in tumor-associated myeloid cells. It is presently unknown how EGFR expression is upregulated in tumor-associated myeloid cells and whether factors secreted by tumor cells are important in this process.
Objectives: We aim to investigate the metabolic changes induced by EGFR inhibition in tumor cells and whether these changes can modulate myeloid cells in the tumor stroma. We also intend to validate metabolic phenotypes in human cancer material.
Expected Results: We expect to gain information on the metabolic state of EGFR inhibited CRC and how this affects the immune infiltrate in CRC.
As part of our MSCA-ESR training on complementary skills we got to leave the wet lab to explore what happens on the other side of the bench and to learn what it means to be a scientific editor. This is our story.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 766214.
Bellvitge Biomedical
Research Institute (IDIBELL)
Hospital Duran i Reynals, 3a planta
Gran Via de l’Hospitalet, 199
08908 L’Hospitalet del Llobregat
Barcelona, Spain
