Matilde Lleonart Pajarin

I am group leader of "Biomedical Research in Cancer Stem Cells" at VHIR. I arrived at VHIR 21 years ago after having worked in different prestigious international research centers: World Health Organization (WHO) at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) (Lyon, France), the Wolfson Institute for Biomedical Research (WIBR) in London and the Queen´s Mary University of London.

Instituciones de las que forman parte

Jefe de grupo
Cáncer de cabeza y cuello: Investigación biomédica en células madre tumorales

Vall Hebron Institut de Recerca

Matilde Lleonart Pajarin

Instituciones de las que forman parte

Jefe de grupo
Cáncer de cabeza y cuello: Investigación biomédica en células madre tumorales

Vall Hebron Institut de Recerca

My Research Group was recognized as an Emerging Research Group in 2009 by the Generalitat de Catalunya and later in 2014 as a Consolidated Research Group.
Throughout my career I have been involved in cancer research from a more molecular point of view correlating key mutations in oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes with anatomical, pathological and clinical features of patients' tumors and also through cell culture studies to determine important key cell signaling pathways in tumorigenesis.
Currently, the main lines of research of my Research Group focus on the identification and characterization of biological mechanisms in resistant cancer cells, including cancer stem cells, to unravel the pathways responsible for their resistance in breast, lung and head and neck cancer models.
In addition, we are particularly focused on identifying molecular targets in resistant cancer cells and cancer stem cells affecting particularly aggressive tumors. The aim is to attack them pharmacologically in order to propose new cancer therapies: new drugs and/or drug combinations to combat resistant tumors in mouse models.

Líneas de investigación

Detección precoz de cáncer mamario antes de que éste se manifieste

A partir de datos preliminares de arrays, hemos caracterizado algunos microRNAs/mRNAs relevantes en tumores. Actualmente los estamos analizando a nivel de pacientes con cáncer en sangre como posible método predictivo antes de la aparición del tumor.

IP: Matilde Lleonart Pajarin

Proyectos

Nanocápsulas que combinan nuevos fármacos con quimioterapia convencional para curar cánceres resistentes

IP: Matilde Lleonart Pajarin
Colaboradores: Katerin Ingrid Rojas Laimito, Irene Braña Garcia, Yoelsis Garcia Mayea, David Virós Porcuna, Juan Fernando Fuentes Cabrera, Josep Castellví Vives, Marina Bataller Fernández
Entidad financiadora: Instituto de Salud Carlos III
Financiación: 318750
Referencia: AC24/00057
Duración: 01/01/2025 - 31/12/2027

NANORESCAN: Nanocapsules combining novel drugs with conventional chemotherapy to cure resistant cancers

IP: Matilde Lleonart Pajarin
Colaboradores: -
Entidad financiadora: EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Financiación: 0.01
Referencia: EC/NANOTECMEC/2024/LLEONART
Duración: -

New compounds targeting head and neck cancer as Trojan horses against chemoresistant cells

IP: Matilde Lleonart Pajarin
Colaboradores: Yoelsis Garcia Mayea, Marina Bataller Fernández, Gabriela Isabel Fuentes Llopis
Entidad financiadora: Agència Gestió Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca
Financiación: 20000
Referencia: 2023 LLAV 00102
Duración: 01/02/2024 - 31/07/2024

Therapeutical approaches against chemoresistant cancers

IP: Matilde Lleonart Pajarin
Colaboradores: Yoelsis Garcia Mayea, Fco. Xavier De la Cruz Montserrat, Juan Lorente Guerrero, Sergio Benavente Norza, Therapeutical approaches against chemoresistant cancers, Marina Bataller Fernández, Therapeutical approaches against chemoresistant cancers, Therapeutical approaches against chemoresistant cancers
Entidad financiadora: Agència Gestió Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca
Financiación: 0.01
Referencia: 2021 SGR 01205
Duración: 01/01/2022 - 30/06/2025