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CNIO staff at the entrance to the centre. / Laura M. Lombardía. CNIO
The National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO) will create a new artificial IA unit. A total of 14 new specialists will join the centre
The funding is provided by NextGenerationEU European funds for the promotion of digital talent, managed by Red.es, part of the Spanish Department for Digital Transformation and Public Service.
CNIO is already using artificial intelligence in areas such as genomic and big data analysis; imaging analysis; prediction of protein structures; and discovery of anti-tumour drugs
“AI is essential to be able to diagnose and treat cancer more efficiently,” says Maria A. Blasco, director of CNIO
Artificial intelligence (AI) is already having a profound impact on oncology. Its use helps to improve tools for the detection and diagnosis of tumours, and also to develop more effective treatments with fewer side effects. But harnessing the full potential of this new technology means bringing on board and also training more research staff specialising in AI.
This will be the destination of the 4.6 million euros granted to the National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO) by the Spanish Department for Digital Transformation and Public Function, through Red.es, as part of the programme to attract and retain talent within the framework of the National Plan of Digital Competences.
The programme is funded by NextGeneration EU, funds made available by the European Union, within the framework of the EU’s programmes to attract and retain talent, within Spain’s Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR).
New AI unit and young specialists
In recent years, CNIO has strengthened its capabilities in computational biology and is already implementing IA-based approaches not only in genomic and big data analysis, but also in image analysis; prediction of protein structures; and the discovery of anti-tumour drugs.
The new funding will allow for the creation of 14 new posts for research staff. These additions will reinforce the AI strategies of several CNIO groups and will facilitate the creation of a new unit specialising in this technology.
Two young researchers will also be joining CNIO to set up their own groups. These new specialists will act as catalysts for the training of more researchers in AI, ultimately transforming the way research is done at CNIO.
Proteins designed with AI to develop new therapies
For Maria Blasco, Scientific Director of CNIO, “AI is essential to diagnose and treat cancer more efficiently. CNIO’s scientific priorities have always evolved in parallel with changes in scientific paradigms and new technologies. Artificial intelligence is one of these new paradigms.”
Óscar Llorca, director of the structural biology programme at CNIO, points out that “artificial intelligence is generating a real revolution in oncology, redefining current paradigms in detection and diagnosis, and radically transforming research into the mechanisms that cause cancer and resistance to treatments.”
AI is allowing researchers, for example, “to design artificial proteins, which have not existed before in nature, and which we can use in the development of new therapies, to interfere with specific cell machinery,” adds Llorca.