CBRC LaTrobe Research Collaboration

Three additional outstanding collaborative proposals were selected for support following the 2023 Call for Proposals

Dear friends and colleagues,

It is our pleasure to announce the winners of the second round of the cancer research collaboration program between the Cancer Biology Research Center at Tel Aviv University, the Research Centre for Molecular Cancer Prevention at La Trobe University, and the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute in Melbourne.

This initiative between the institutions originated in 2021 and resulted in three ongoing collaborative grants in cancer research. Three additional outstanding collaborative proposals were selected for support following the 2023 Call for Proposals.

The awarded projects are:

1.	CAR-T cells with IL-2 mutein payload to control regulatory T cells in the TME - submitted by: Anat Globerson Levin, Principal Investigator Laboratory head, Immunology and Advanced CAR-T therapy, Research, Development, and Innovation, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, and Ajithkumar Vasanthakumar, Principal Investigator Laboratory head, Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute.

2.	Using AI to identify mechanisms underlying tumor cell escape from T cells killing - submitted by: Yaara Oren, Assistant Professor, Department of Genetics, Tel Aviv University; Yaron Carmi, Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology, Tel Aviv University; and Wei Xiang, Chair Professor, School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, La Trobe University.

3.	Potentiation of Oncolytic Virotherapy of Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Cells with BH3-mimetics - submitted by: Erinna Lee, Cancer Theme Leader, La Trobe University; Doug Fairlie, Associate Professor, Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute; and Marcelo Ehrlich, Full Professor, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University.

"This is the continuation of an exciting and important collaboration between the institutions, which started in 2021, yielding paramount insights of the understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in cancer progression leading to better diagnosis and treatment of cancer", says Prof. Ronit Satchi-Fainaro, PhD, Director of the Cancer Biology Research Center at Tel Aviv University.

"La Trobe University is excited to keep building on this innovative multidisciplinary collaborative program with Tel Aviv University to achieve better outcomes for cancer patients", says Prof. Patrick Humbert, PhD, Director of the La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science, La Trobe University.