The objective of this grant is to support promising initiatives of scientific excellence with potential value and social impact for health. ​
This project aims to open new promising avenues for improved therapies for a range of T cell-related conditions.​
This project has received funding from ”la Caixa” Foundation* under the call Health 2024.​

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is an incurable neuromuscular disease (NMD) that leads to progressive motor neuron degeneration and muscle function loss. This project seeks to address two main challenges of drug development for ALS: (1) unclear ALS pathophysiology and varied phenotypes and (2) lack of human-relevant preclinical models. To achieve this, we will develop and refine two distinct technologies that will provide a set of tools to advance drug development for ALS.  These tools will provide a superior test bed compared to current alternatives (in vitro and animal models) and will be applicable for other NMDs. 
 With this project we expect to perform drug discovery studies and (tentative) discovery of a new treatment with disease modifying properties for specific ALS phenotypes and preclinical testing of promising therapeutic candidates.
This project has received funding from La Caixa Foundation under the call LaCaixa Postdoctoral Junior Leader Fellowship 2024.

>80% of women use at least one medication during pregnancy, predominantly in the first trimester, a crucial period for organogenesis. However, there is a clear lack of human teratogenic safety data leading to numerous instances where the medical needs of expectant mothers are not adequately met, making drug prescription during pregnancy a health care problem.​
This project aims to develop an innovative chip design coupling a human perfused placenta barrier and heart embryonic development model, to establish the first physiologically relevant microfluidic device to be applied for developmental toxicity studies.

More information: Call for Exploratory Projects in All Scientific Domains 2023 - FCT​

A groundbreaking study from our collaborator Marc Veldhoen’s (MV) laboratory has identified a novel protein target critical for T cell proliferation, survival, and calcium mobilization and two potential T cell-specific protein interactors. By using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations we will try to identify druggable regions at these protein's surface, followed by virtual screening campaigns and MM/PBSA calculations to discover small molecules (SMs) capable of disrupting the interactome. Promising inhibitors will be experimentally tested in MV’s lab to assess their potential in modulating inflammatory responses.

Staphylococcus aureus is the leading cause of death from bacterial pathogens worldwide, responsible for over 1 million fatalities annually. This issue is further aggravated by the rise of antimicrobial-resistant strains.
In this context, host-directed therapy (HDT) has emerged as an opportunity to overcome the limitations of classical treatments and develop more effective therapeutic approaches. The main goal of this project is to apply a drug discovery platform that integrates high-throughput screenings with fluorescence microscopy-based assays to test compounds against intracellular S. aureus infection and discover novel host-directed antimicrobial candidates against S. aureus infection.
The project is expected to result in the identification of molecules with novel mechanisms of action, constituting an opportunity for securing intellectual property. At a time when antimicrobial resistance is a major health concern worldwide, the compounds discovered in this study can be further exploited to develop novel antimicrobial therapies.

Current therapies for epilepsy do not prevent comorbidities such as cognitive dysfunction. The controversial role of BDNF in epilepsy is recognized, but it signaling pathways are crucial for cognition. BDNF receptor cleavage occurs in the brain of patients with epilepsy. We intend to investigate whether inhibiting the cleavage of the receptor and/or removing cleavage products has antiepileptic potential with cognitive protection.

Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy (ACM) is a genetic disease with no effective treatment available, predisposing patients to ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death. A major challenge is that most ACM animal models do not naturally develop the cardiac adipose tissue seen in humans and many in vitro heart models lack the epicardium layer in its complexity.
AccelBio brings a unique and complementary humanized heart organoid model (Epi-HO) to the IMPACT EIC Pathfinder consortium, which replicates the epicardium-myocardium structure observed in the adult human heart.
The ACM-Epi-HO will be used to uncover new mechanisms of action, biomarkers and therapeutic targets. New molecular and structural data will be incorporated into previous IMPACT tasks, feeding the AI-assisted comparative analysis of ACM models and contribute to patient stratification. ACM-Epi-HOs will also aid in identifying and validating therapeutic compounds to prevent epicardial abnormalities.
AccelBio’s expertise on translational research and the uniqueness of its Epi-HO model will strongly potentiate IMPACT’s outcomes and accelerate the development of first in class ACM therapies.

BIO-RED aims to strengthen regional innovation ecosystems and build the capacity in less developed regions to develop business cases for interregional innovation investments in the strategic sectors of red biotechnology and pharmaceuticals and contribute to placing the EU at the forefront at international level. BIO-RED leverages from S3 priorities and focus on value chains in two main innovation areas with high potential for growth: i) digital innovation and ii) sustainability and green technologies in biotech and pharma. BIO-RED’s consortium represents the quadruple-helix and includes three partners from less-developed regions in Portugal (CIM-RC, ACCELBIO, BP), Greece (HBIO) and Lithuania (LithuaniaBIO), one partner (HLSC) from a transition region from Bulgaria, and three partners (MEDICEN, STUNS, DLSC) from more advanced regions from France, Sweden and Denmark. Two horizontal partners will support the development of BIO-RED (INOVA+ and InnoStars). Over 24 months, 11 partners from 7 EU countries will cooperate to: ensure coordination and compliance; map regional ecosystems and create a Joint Strategic Interregional Roadmap; facilitate ecosystem building and interregional cooperation through thematic labs, staff exchange, hackathons and policy roundtables; implement a Biotech & Pharma Accelerator to develop and mature business cases for interregional innovations and increase investment readiness; and maximize impact and sustainability. BIO-RED fosters interregional collaboration, builds regional capacity, and prepares for new interregional innovation investments. The project aims to create a lasting, competitive edge for Europe’s less-developed regions, positioning them as leaders in biotech and pharma innovation

The inclusion of Accelbio into the IMPACT EIC Pathfinder Consortium through the Hop On EU funding scheme aims to address the lack of effective treatments for Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy (ACM) by investigating the mechanisms driving fibrofatty tissue accumulation in the epicardium. AccelBio will contribute its unique humanized heart organoid model (Epi-HO) to replicate the epicardium-myocardium structure, enabling the study of ACM mutations and identification of new biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Additionally, AccelBio’s expertise in translational research will enhance IMPACT’s EIC Pathfinder outcomes, accelerate ACM therapy development, and expand its role in transnational biotech collaborations.

Accelbio is a partner in this Strand2b project funded by the European Comission in the context of the Interregional Innovation Investments (I3) Instrument aims to strengthen regional innovation ecosystems and build the capacity in less developed european regions in the strategic sectors of red biotechnology and pharmaceuticals.​
BIO-RED gathers 11 partners from 7 EU contries and focus focus on value chains in two main innovation areas: i) digital innovation and ii) sustainability and green technologies in biotech and pharma. Over 24 months, partners will: i) develop concrete actions to facilitate ecosystem building and interregional cooperation through thematic labs, staff exchange, hackathons and policy roundtables; ii) implement a Biotech & Pharma Accelerator to develop and mature business cases for interregional innovations and increase investment readiness.

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