Inside the Labcoat
EPISODE 7
Reprogramming Cells to Improve Quality of Life
With Dr Irene de Lázaro
About the Guest
For Dr. Irene de Lázaro, studying Pharmacy at the University of Alcalá was only the beginning of her journey into biomedical engineering. Interested in the mechanisms behind effectively delivering novel drugs to patients, she completed her postgraduate studies at UCL, earning an MSc in Drug Delivery and a PhD in Regenerative Medicine. She then completed postdoctoral training at the University of Manchester in Regenerative Therapeutics before “crossing the pond” to continue her postdoctoral studies at Harvard University and the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering. Finally, after years of research, she established her own laboratory as an Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering at NYU Tandon School of Engineering and Medicine at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, where she is also part of the Cardiovascular Research Center.
Research Areas:
Cell Reprogramming – Regeneration – Rejuvenation – Nanomedicine
Key Takeaways:
In Dr. de Lázaro's lab, cellular reprogramming mostly involves helping cells regain lost regenerative capacities or return to their “correct” biological age, particularly following traumatic events such as heart attacks.
Cellular reprogramming involves the induced overexpression of particular transcription factors. By introducing nucleic acids (e.g., RNA) or proteins, these factors can enable cells to return to an undifferentiated state, allowing them to grow and divide again in vivo.
Among the many challenges involved, delivering nucleic acids or proteins to their specific target is one of the most important. Nanoparticles, such as lipid nanoparticles, can help address this by protecting their cargo from degradation and enabling targeted delivery to specific cells.
Main Topics Covered: Cell Reprogramming – Cellular Differentiation – Biological Age – Nanoparticles – Targeted Drug Delivery