by Kaykobad Hossain: in this article, researchers applied adhesion measurements of cancer cells to predict metastatic ability in a mouse model.
Journal Club: Adhesion strength of tumor cells predicts metastatic disease in vivo
Research Paper: Efficient cytoplasmic cell quantification using a semi-automated FIJI-based tool
A tour-de-force demonstrating the abilities of Lucas‘s quantitation tool (previously available as a preprint) on pancreatic islet cell quantitation is now published in Scientific Reports! The source code of SAM (semi-automated measurement tool) along with all documentation has been deposited…
Journal Club: Sex-specific differences in glucose metabolism and pancreatic function in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice: The protective role of estrogen
Can Sex Difference shape glucose regulation? by Shayla Sharmine This week’s journal club focuses on a study from Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications (2025) exploring the protective role of estrogen in glucose regulation. To explore the impact of sex difference,…
Journal Club: Early life high fructose impairs microglial phagocytosis and neurodevelopment
High fructose diet in early life is bad by Ulrik Larsen Inspired by a lab member constantly theorizing about HNF1A and the brain, I came across a study on how early-life high fructose exposure affects brain development, focusing on microglia…
Journal Club: CRISPR screening uncovers a central requirement for HHEX in pancreatic lineage commitment and plasticity restriction
by Lucas Unger Yang et al. demonstrate that HHEX is a lineage-restricting transcription factor essential for pancreas specification from foregut progenitors. Through CRISPR-Cas9 loss-of-function screening combined with hiPSC differentiation and single-cell multiomics, the study reveals that deletion of HHEX diverts…
Midway Evaluation: Ulrik
Wishing good luck to Ulrik having his midway evaluation today! Thesis Title: “Mouse-ing around with islet cells: unveiling the tissue repair puzzle” Examining committee Internal examiner 1: Prof. Bjørn Tore Gjertsen Internal examiner 2: Dr. Heidrun Vethe Supervisors Simona Chera,…
Journal Club: The p38 pathway inhibitor, SB202190, activates MEK/MAPK to stimulate the growth of leukemia cells
by Fatemeh Rahmatabadi This study by Hirosawa et al. investigates the effect of the p38 MAPK inhibitor SB202190 on acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells. While p38 signaling is typically associated with stress responses and growth inhibition, treatment of AML cell…
Welcome Camille!
Camille Belliard, currently pursuing an engineering degree in biotechnology at ENSTBB (Bordeaux INP), started a 4-months summer internship in our lab (June-September 2025). Welcome! Camille will work with Lucas and Agnes on reprogramming T1D patient fibroblasts into iPSC and their…
Welcome Georg!
Georg Cato Seeberg will start working on his Master Thesis for one year in our lab (2024-2025) as part of Master in Biomedical Sciences organised by the Department of Biomedicine. Georg will work with Lucas under the supervision of Simona on the…
Welcome Agnes!
Agnes Sandvik will start working on her Master Thesis for one year in our lab (2024-2025) as part of Master’s in biology organised by the Department of Biological Sciences (BIO). Agnes will work with Lucas Unger under the supervision of Luiza…
Journal Club: Could Microplastics Protect Us Against Persistent Organic Pollutants?
by Thomas Aga Legøy In traditional toxicology, the focus has been on evaluating the adverse effects of individual chemicals and establishing safe exposure levels. However, there is a growing recognition that real-world exposures involve complex mixtures of chemicals, which may…
Journal Club: Morphometry and mechanical instability at the onset of epithelial bladder cancer
by Kaykobad Hossain Carcinomas are the most prevalent form of cancer, which is characterized by malignancies of epithelial tissues. Bladder cancer, one of the costliest cancers to treat, is ideal to investigate epithelial morphogenesis at early stages of tumorigenesis due…