On December 3rd, the Mac4Me Doctoral Network was successfully represented at the 13th Annual Mercia Stem Cell Alliance Meeting at Keele University by Doctoral Candidates Elena Montero Bragado and Avika Srivastava.
The meeting served as an important platform for fostering collaboration and harnessing expertise in stem cell research across the Midlands and North West UK.
Elena and Avika presented a joint poster titled ‘Characterising and analysing the tumour microenvironment for metastasis therapies,’ which highlighted the overall structure and goals of Mac4Me to this expert audience.
Their presentation detailed two interdisciplinary research projects that exemplify Mac4Me’s approach:
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Engineering the Environment: Elena’s work focuses on developing bespoke hydrogels and advanced modeling techniques for creating realistic in vitro models of challenging cancer sites, specifically liver metastasis.
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Target Identification: Avika’s research involves characterising, investigating, and manipulating glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) in cancer tissues—key components of the tumor microenvironment—to identify new therapeutic targets.
The attendance at this meeting reinforces Mac4Me’s commitment to integrating advanced modeling and materials science into cancer research, promoting the development of future metastasis therapies through cross-regional and cross-disciplinary collaboration.
