Two cutting-edge research projects at Bar-Ilan University have been awarded Proof of Concept (PoC) Grants from the European Research Council (ERC)—a major achievement that highlights the university’s interdisciplinary leadership in both biomedical science and AI-driven public policy.

MUSC Hollings Cancer Center researchers have discovered a hidden feedback loop that helps leukemia cells survive and have developed a new immunotherapy that can break that loop. The loop is between a protein called IL-33 and its receptor IL1RL1, which together help acute myeloid leukemia cells grow and evade treatment. To disrupt this loop, the researchers created a bispecific antibody that both kills leukemia cells carrying IL1RL1 and activates immune cells that can fight off cancer. In lab and animal models, the therapy significantly slowed disease progression, reduced immune suppression and improved survival without major side effects. The research offers a potential new off-the-shelf treatment for leukemia and other cancers with similar tumor environments. 

In a paper published in Mycology, an international team of scientists mainly reported the isolation and characterization of two new pairs of (±)-penithrones A (1) and B (2), and a chlorinated derivative (±)-penithrone C (3), along with their biogenetic precursors (4–6), from the mangrove-derived fungus Penicillium hispanicum LA032. The study demonstrated significant cytotoxic activity of compounds 1 and 2 against multiple cancer cell lines (IC₅₀ = 5.09–9.47 μmol/L), and identified MAPK10 as a potential molecular target through integrated network pharmacology and molecular docking approaches, providing new insights into fungal-derived anticancer agents.

In biology textbooks and beyond, the human genome and DNA therein typically are taught in only one dimension. While it can be helpful for learners to begin with the linear presentation of how stretches of DNA form genes, this oversimplification undersells the significance of the genome’s 3D structure. Problems with this 3D structure are associated with many diseases including developmental disorders and cancer.