PSCC technology platforms
While there is no longer any debate about the benefits of precision medicine, its impact is still limited by the extraordinary complexity of cancers, a highly heterogeneous family of diseases with tumour cell subtypes carrying different mutations, not only between different patients, but also within the same patient, or within the same tumour.
To overcome this limitation, scientists now have at their disposal revolutionary investigative tools to study contextual gene expression in tissues, as well as more predictive preclinical models integrating tumour complexity and its microenvironment. These new technologies support research into biomarkers and therapeutic, and targets and provide spectacular resolution for understanding resistance and improving treatments.
All these technologies will be available at the heart of the PSCC, on Campus Grand Parc, in Villejuif and at the PSCC's satellite and partner sites.
The first platforms to be selected, accredited and financed by the PSCC are accessible to French and European oncology players with research projects, and in particular to projects supported by the PSCC.
Precision oncology: tumour genetics
Targeted therapies have revolutionized the treatment of certain cancers by specifically targeting the molecular abnormalities that cause disease. To improve treatment development, we need to better understand resistance mechanisms, taking into account the heterogeneous nature of tumours.
Single-cell genomics and spatial biology are the two pillars of a revolutionary technology that has transformed our understanding of cancer, revealing essential cellular interactions, notably between cancer cells and the tumour microenvironment, opening up new prospects for biomedical research and personalized medicine.
The PSCC provides access to the very best in medical genomics, and to very high-resolution tissue and single-cell analysis tools.
David Gentien, Gustave Roussy
Single Cell, Genomics and Spatial Biology Platform (AMMICa)
Operator: Gustave Roussy
Immuno-oncology: cellular biotherapies
By restoring the immune system's ability to fight cancer cells, immunotherapy has changed the prognosis of patients suffering from cancers considered incurable. Today, the aim is to extend the benefits of this approach to more cancers and more patients, and to predict and overcome resistance to these treatments (on average, only 20% of patients respond to available immunotherapies). Cell and gene therapies are promising new forms of immunotherapy that have gained momentum over the last 10 years. While they are already part of the therapeutic arsenal against certain hematological haematological cancers, the international scientific and medical community is in full swing to research and develop optimized, more effective and less complex cell and gene therapy strategies for a growing number of indications, particularly in solid tumours.
The PSCC provides access to the Institut Curie's new CellAction platform. The CellAction platform is a high-performance integrated structure, the first of its kind in France, bringing together highly qualified scientific, clinical and technical expertise, as well as state-of-the-art laboratories for the pre-BPF production of therapeutic products entering Phase I/II clinical trials.
Marion Alcantara, Institut Curie
"CellAction" Cellular and Genetic Therapy Platform
Operator: Institut Curie
Predictive Ex Vivo preclinical models
Preclinical models make a decisive contribution to advances in biomedical research, enabling early testing of drug candidates and derisking clinical development. Given the low success rate of clinical trials in oncology (only 5% of drugs developed are validated at the end of Phase III), the predictivity of standard ex vivo and in vivo preclinical models is insufficient to show that a compound will be effective when administered to humans.
The key to success may lie in the use of several more predictive preclinical models that preserve the tumour architecture, stroma and cell populations of the tumour microenvironment.
Today, together with the AP-HP (Hôpital Paul Brousse) and the AP-HM (Hôpital de la Timone), the PSCC is supporting the development of new strategic ex vivo models to open access to predictive preclinical models that are closer to tumour conditions in vivo (live tissues and organs from patients), and thus considerably improve the predictivity of preclinical studies.
Marc-Antoine Allard, APHP, UPS
Plateforme Ex Vivo de Coupes Organotypiques de Tissus Tumoraux et d’immuno-profilage (MI-PP)
Opérateurs : AP-HM (plateforme d’immuno-profilage de l’hôpital de la Timone, MI-PP)
Plateforme Ex Vivo de foies malades perfusés « InMachina »
AP-HP (centre hépato-biliaire de l’hôpital Paul Brousse)