Jean-Christophe Leroux is a professor of Drug Formulation and Delivery at the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences. His research group is interested in improving the efficacy of drugs and reducing their side effects. One focus is gene therapy that introduces genetic material into cells to compensate for malfunctioning genes or provide new functions. The approach has the potential to treat and even cure a variety of pathologies such as cancer and some rare diseases. However, it is often inefficient, and only a few gene therapy products have been approved so far. This is partly due to different retention mechanisms, which sequester or degrade intruding genetic material inside the cell. In his ERC project, Leroux aims at finding ways to suppress these cellular defence systems. Circumventing this barrier could make modern gene therapy safer and more effective.

Julia Vorholt , Professor of Microbiology, has been awarded a second ERC Advanced Grant. Her new project focuses on ways to impart specific abilities to cells. Vorholt takes her inspiration from a partnership between single-celled organisms that was rare – but extremely successful – in the evolution of life: cells living symbiotically within other cells in a process known as endosymbiosis. Over the course of evolution, this gave rise to organelles – separate compartments with their own metabolic functions inside higher cells. The relics of this coexistence include mitochondria, which act as the powerhouses of cells, and chloroplasts, which conduct photosynthesis. With her research group, Vorholt now wants to develop artificial compartments in order to introduce new metabolic characteristics into cells on a modular basis. Numerous biotechnology applications could benefit from this.