Origami is the art of folding paper to obtain forms of extraordinary beauty and complexity. Some origami are so small that we cannot see them with the naked eye: of course, they are not made of paper. In the molecular world, DNA origami are complex nano-structures composed of DNA molecules. Researchers from Karolinska Institute in Sweden combined these miracles of nanotechnology with immunotherapy in order to define the best design for particles-based vaccines.

Racoons rarely get cancer. Can you imagine the surprise of scientists when, during March 2010-May 2012, 10 racoons in California and Oregon suddenly developed brain tumors? Everything suggested that the unexpected “epidemics” had an infectious origin. In fact, racoon polyomavirus was found in the tumor tissue of all affected animals, but not in 20 unaffected animals. This is not only about racoons: viruses can be the etiologic agents of many human cancers as well. The case of racoons has probably something to teach us.

If you want to find new ways of fighting cancer, giant animals may give you some clues. Capybaras are the world’s largest living rodent, sixty times heavier than their closest modern relative. Relax, you probably will not bump into one of them, unless you live in South America. And even if you did, don’t worry as capybaras are the friendliest animals, at the point that it is not rare to see other creatures hanging with (or on) them. Not only are they cute, but also scientifically relevant, as they have evolved a unique strategy to escape cancer…and the immune system may be involved.

Stem cells represent a hope for the cure of many diseases, as they can proliferate almost indefinitely and differentiate into many other cell types. Replacement of defective cells and repair of damaged organs or tissues may be closer than ever. However, there are also some stem cells to be afraid of. Cancer stem cells are the “fuel” of cancer: they are responsible for its progression, regeneration and resistance to therapies.

Since 1987, the fight against rabies has been carried out by distributing more than 250 million baits containing oral vaccines to risk regions: there has been a 75% decrease of the disease in wild animal populations, without any reported side effect. In 2017, researchers from the University of Cambridge took inspiration to realize a similar oral vaccine to combat ebola in wild apes: still under experimentation, it has produced good results so far. Other groups are exploring the use of edible vaccines for livestock and even for humans, especially those living in the poorest regions, where the administration and storage of an oral vaccine would be easier than classical injections.

Cancer still scares us. There is no universal cure and it will probably never exist. Yet, to be fair, our therapies have much improved. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy are the first that come to mind, but many others are catching on. Our approach to cancer has been changing: information that we have ignored until recently have now become crucial for the generation of new therapies. And we understood something: multiple therapies in combination are better than one.

Biology is complex. We need models to make it simpler. We can test anti-cancer drugs on tumor cell cultures, but they are anything like a “real” tumor: that resembles an “ecosystem”, where multiple cell populations coexist and interact with each other.  In a paper published on Cell, scientists managed to bring that complexity…on a chip! Not only they reproduced the 3D micro-architecture of the tumor microenvironment, but they also characterize the response to an immunomodulatory drug.

Why do we support translational medicine? Because we care about patients and bringing new therapies from bench to bedside is our way of improving their quality of life. Since the discovery of a new molecule or signalling pathway, many years may pass before patients can actually benefit from it. Our aim is to speed up that process, always having people safety as our priority. Which tools are employed in modern research to make that leap from laboratory to clinic?