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An oldie, but a goodie! We'll start things off with Cancer, still one of the biggest medical challenges up to date.
This year, we're diving deep into one of the trickiest forms – brain tumors. A cancer diagnosis is always tough, but when it’s in the brain, things get even more complicated. Treatments are harder, risks are higher – and yet, researchers aren’t giving up. Curious how science is fighting back? Want to know what new ideas are brewing in the lab? Then grab a drink, bring your questions, and get ready for an evening of science you can actually understand – no PhD required!
This year, we're diving deep into one of the trickiest forms – brain tumors. A cancer diagnosis is always tough, but when it’s in the brain, things get even more complicated. Treatments are harder, risks are higher – and yet, researchers aren’t giving up. Curious how science is fighting back? Want to know what new ideas are brewing in the lab? Then grab a drink, bring your questions, and get ready for an evening of science you can actually understand – no PhD required!
Make not your thoughts your prisoner - Putting Brain Tumours into Alcatraz
Mike-Andrew Westhoff
(Professor at Universitätsklinikum Ulm)
Evolution is a light which illuminates all facts (Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, 1955)
So, what does evolution tell us about cancer? Can we learn why treatment often fails and find new strategies to win the evolutionary arms race against our old enemy? Our newest findings in brain tumour research suggest the answer might be YES! The Alcatraz Strategy combines old ideas of evolutionary landscapes and selective forces under stress with our newest findings on communication networks within the deadly Glioblastoma brain tumour…
So, what does evolution tell us about cancer? Can we learn why treatment often fails and find new strategies to win the evolutionary arms race against our old enemy? Our newest findings in brain tumour research suggest the answer might be YES! The Alcatraz Strategy combines old ideas of evolutionary landscapes and selective forces under stress with our newest findings on communication networks within the deadly Glioblastoma brain tumour…
T cells breaking bad
Maria Xydia
(Head of Immune Monitoring at Leibniz Institute for Immunotherapy)
Our immune system is armed with Killer T-cells that recognize and destroy tumors, while Suppressor Regulatory T-cells (Treg) calm down the Killers to protect from healthy tissue damage, simultaneously inhibiting tumor eradication. Although Treg numbers increase in cancer patients reducing life expectancy, the mechanisms behind this phenomenon are not yet clear. Using Laser beams we isolated single T-cells from tumors and blood of breast cancer patients and sequenced the genetic material of each cell separately to identify its functional identity in cancer. We discovered that Activated T-cells can develop not only into powerful Killers but also into strong tumor-supporters with 1662 genes possibly involved in this decision. Such factors can be targeted by drugs, antibodies or engineered Killer T-cells as potential targets towards efficient cancer immunotherapy.
The diversity of glioblastoma: What happens in our brain?
Jeanne Benzal-Mazuy
(PHD student at Universitätsklinikum Regensburg)
Glioblastoma is one of the most aggressive brain tumors—and one of the hardest to treat. Why? Because it’s not just one enemy, but many: each part of the tumor can behave and respond differently, like a shape-shifting puzzle. Come and learn about how this hidden complexity challenges scientists and fuels the search for smarter treatments!
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