JCET

The latest results of the MINIATURE competition announced by the National Science Center (NCN) in Krakow have brought success to another scientist from the Jagiellonian Centre for Experimental Therapeutics (JCET) . PhD Grzegorz Kwiatkowski will carry out a project: “Non-invasive MRI assessment of microvascular nitric oxide synthase dysfunctionand permeability in the lung endothelium in a mouse model of a chronic heartfailure“.

• Budget: PLN 49,601
• Implementation period: 12 months

Endothelial dysfunction is a key characteristic of several cardiovascular diseases including diabetics, atherosclerosis and hypertension. In particular, global endothelial status holds a prognostic value in the development of heart failure. Several reports shown endothelial dysfunction developed over the course heart failure including impairment ofnitricoxide synthesis. Moreover, at the advanced stage of heart failure, the endothelial impairment was also observed in the lungs. There is, however, very little known on a relationship between lung microvascular endothelial status and heart failure progression. In particular, it is not known whether the lung endothelium exhibits adaptive or maladaptive mechanisms towards heart failure progression. The lung endothelium covers up to 30% of the total endothelial surface and as such is potentially an important treatment target.

Recent developments in the Magnetic Resonance Imaging offer novel, dedicated methods to study microcirculation but have not been yet applied to the lungs. We plan to employed state-of-the-art MRI protocols to characterize changes in the lung endothelium phenotype during the progression of heart failure in a mouse model of this disease.

On October 1, 2020, the 657th academic year was inaugurated at the Jagiellonian University. This year, the ceremony was held in a small group in the auditorium of Collegium Novum.

This event was unique in many respects. During the ceremony, prof. Stefan Chłopicki received the Jagiellonian Laurel Award in the field of medical sciences. The award is granted for outstanding scientific achievements made in the last 5 calendar years preceding the year of its award.

The results of the SONATA 15 competition announced by the National Science Center (NCN) in Krakow are already known. The list of grants that have received funding also includes the project of Dr. Bartłomiej Zapotoczny: “From the structure of fenestrations in live Liver Sinusoidal Endothelial Cells to real-time in vitro pharmacology“. The research will be carried out at the Institute of Nuclear Physics PAN (IFJ PAN) and in the interdisciplinary laboratory of the Jagiellonian Centre for Experimental Therapeutics (JCET).

• Budget: 927 600 PLN
• Project implementation period: 36 months

For nearly 50 years since the discovery of fenestrae, the speed of processes associated with the changes in the number and size of fenestrae remained speculative. With the development of atomic force microscopy (AFM) imaging methodology, new, so far out of reach, methods of investigating the porosity of LSEC cells appeared.

Dr Barbara Kutryb-Zając, assistant professor at the Department of Biochemistry of the Medical University of Gdańsk (MUG), received a grant as part of the “SONATA 15” competition organized by the National Science Center (NCN). Project “Ecto-enzymes in interactions of vascular endothelium with blood circulating cells in physiology, pathology and therapy; could cells exchange their ecto-enzymes?” will beimplemented for the next 3 years at the Department of Biochemistry at MUG in a consortium with the Jagiellonian Centre for Experimental Therapeutics (JCET) of the Jagiellonian University in Krakow and in cooperation with the Department of Biology at the University of Pisa in Italy.

The goal of the awarded project is to demonstrate the role of ecto-enzymes in direct contact between cells. Ecto-enzymes are proteins located on the surface of cells, metabolizing a wide spectrum of substrates, which mediate intercellular communication in physiology and pathology. As part of the project, changes in ecto-enzyme activity induced by the interaction of vascular endothelium with blood cells that can stimulate the formation of an adverse endothelial cell phenotype will be demonstrated. In addition, the role of ecto-enzymes as adhesion molecules and the therapeutic possibilities of compounds modulating their properties in vascular pathologies and cancer will be investigated.

• The grant amount is PLN 1 498 740.