Confocal Microscopy Core Unit

Diego Megías Head of Unit
T +34 917328000 (Ext 3160)
dmegias@cnio.es

Technicians

Jesús Gómez
Gadea Mata
Manuel Pérez

Optical microscopy has traditionally been an indispensable tool in cell biology studies. In fact, one of the main challenges in oncology research is the study of specific markers, expression patterns or individual cells in the tumour environment.

The Confocal Microscopy Unit provides the CNIO Research Groups with all the standard methodologies as well as the latest advances in microscopy, offering access to state-of- the-art equipment and software packages related to confocal microscopy, including technical and scientific advice and support to the CNIO scientists. The Unit is also actively involved in developing, testing and implementing new microscopy technologies, tools and imaging applications that could be of interest to the Research Groups at the CNIO. Training activities are also an essential component of our mission.

Publications

Klett J, Gómez-Casero E, Méndez-Pertuz M, Urbano-Cuadrado M, Megias D, Blasco MA, Martínez S, Pastor J, Blanco-Aparicio C (2019). Screening protocol for the identification of modulators by immunofluorescent cell-based assay. Chem Biol Drug Des (in press). CNIO Publication.
Santos CP, Lapi E, Martínez de Villarreal J, Álvaro-Espinosa L, Fernández-Barral A, Barbáchano A, Domínguez O, Laughney AM, Megías D, Muñoz A, Real FX (2019). Urothelial organoids originating from Cd49fhigh mouse stem cells display Notch-dependent differentiation capacity. Nat Commun 10, 4407. CNIO Publication.
Ucero AC, Bakiri L, Roediger B, Suzuki M, Jimenez M, Mandal P, Braghetta P, Bonaldo P, Paz-Ares L, Fustero-Torre C, Ximenez-Embun P, Hernandez AI, Megias D, Wagner EF (2019). Fra-2-expressing macrophages promote lung fibrosis in mice. J Clin Invest 129, 3293-3309. CNIO Publication.
Peña-Jimenez D, Fontenete S, Megias D, Fustero-Torre C, Graña-Castro O, Castellana D, Loewe R, Perez-Moreno M (2019). Lymphatic vessels interact dynamically with the hair follicle stem cell niche during skin regeneration in vivo. EMBO J 38, e101688. CNIO Publication.
Gago-Lopez N, Mellor LF, Megías D, Martín-Serrano G, Izeta A, Jimenez F, Wagner EF (2019). Role of bulge epidermal stem cells and TSLP signaling in psoriasis. EMBO Mol Med (in press). CNIO Publication.
Karras P, Riveiro-Falkenbach E, Cañón E, Tejedo C, Calvo TG, Martínez-Herranz R, Alonso-Curbelo D, Cifdaloz M, Perez-Guijarro E, Gómez-López G, Ximenez-Embun P, Muñoz J, Megias D, Olmeda D, Moscat J, Ortiz-Romero PL, Rodríguez-Peralto JL, Soengas MS. (2019). p62/SQSTM1 Fuels Melanoma Progression by Opposing mRNA Decay of a Selective Set of Pro-metastatic Factors.. Cancer Cell 35, 46-63. CNIO Publication.
Llanos S, Megias D, Blanco-Aparicio C, Hernández-Encinas E, Rovira M, Pietrocola F, Serrano M (2019). Lysosomal trapping of palbociclib and its functional implications. Oncogene (in press). CNIO Publication.
Barradas M, Link W, Megias D, Fernandez-Marcos PJ (2019). High-Throughput Image-Based Screening to Identify Chemical Compounds Capable of Activating FOXO. Methods Mol Biol 1890, 151-161. CNIO Publication.
Bejarano L, Louzame J, Montero JJ, Megías D, Flores JM, Blasco MA (2019). Safety of Whole-Body Abrogation of the TRF1 Shelterin Protein in Wild-Type and Cancer-Prone Mouse Models.. iScience 19, 572-585. CNIO Publication. Open Access
Soriano J, Mata G, Megias D (2019). HCS Methodology for Helping in Lab Scale Image-Based Assays.. Methods Mol Biol 2040, 331-356. CNIO Publication.
Cobo I, Martinelli P, Flández M, Bakiri L, Zhang M, Carrillo-de-Santa-Pau E, Jia J, Sánchez-Arévalo Lobo VJ, Megías D, Felipe I, Del Pozo N, Millán I, Thommesen L, Bruland T, Olson SH, Smith J, Schoonjans K, Bamlet WR, Petersen GM, Malats N, Amundadottir LT, Wagner EF, Real FX (2018). Transcriptional regulation by NR5A2 links differentiation and inflammation in the pancreas. Nature 554, 533-537. CNIO Publication.
Montero JJ, López-Silanes I, Megías D, F Fraga M, Castells-García Á, Blasco MA (2018). TERRA recruitment of polycomb to telomeres is essential for histone trymethylation marks at telomeric heterochromatin. Nat Commun 9, 1548. CNIO Publication. Open Access
Priego N, Zhu L, Monteiro C, Mulders M, Wasilewski D, Bindeman W, Doglio L, Martínez L, Martínez-Saez E, Cajal SRY, Megías D, Hernández-Encinas E, Blanco-Aparicio C, Martínez L, Zarzuela E, Muñoz J, Fustero-Torres C, Pineiro E, Hernández-Laín A, Bertero L, Poli V, Sánchez-Martínez M, Menendez JA, Soffietti R, Bosch-Barrera J, Valiente M (2018). STAT3 labels a subpopulation of reactive astrocytes required for brain metastasis. Nat Med 24, 1024-1035. CNIO Publication.
Sánchez-Arévalo Lobo VJ, Fernández LC, Carrillo-de-Santa-Pau E, Richart L, Cobo I, Cendrowski J, Moreno U, Del Pozo N, Megías D, Bréant B, Wright CV, Magnuson M, Real FX (2018). c-Myc downregulation is required for preacinar to acinar maturation and pancreatic homeostasis. Gut 67, 707-718. CNIO Publication.
Cifdaloz M, Osterloh L, Graña O, Riveiro-Falkenbach E, Ximénez-Embún P, Muñoz J, Tejedo C, Calvo TG, Karras P, Olmeda D, Miñana B, Gómez-López G, Cañon E, Eyras E, Guo H, Kappes F, Ortiz-Romero PL, Rodríguez-Peralto JL, Megías D, Valcárcel J, Soengas MS (2017). Systems analysis identifies melanoma-enriched pro-oncogenic networks controlled by the RNA binding protein CELF1. Nat Commun 8, 2249. CNIO Publication. Open Access
Muñoz S, Búa S, Rodríguez-Acebes S, Megías D, Ortega S, de Martino A, Méndez J (2017). In Vivo DNA Re-replication Elicits Lethal Tissue Dysplasias. Cell Reports 19, 928-938. CNIO Publication.
Martín-Sánchez E, Mendaza S, Ulazia-Garmendia A, Monreal-Santesteban I, Blanco-Luquin I, Córdoba A, Vicente-García F, Pérez-Janices N, Escors D, Megías D, López-Serra P, Esteller M, Illarramendi JJ, Guerrero-Setas D (2017). CHL1 hypermethylation as a potential biomarker of poor prognosis in breast cancer. Oncotarget 8, 861-870. CNIO Publication.
Amelian A, Wasilewska K, Megias D, Winnicka K (2017). Application of standard cell cultures and 3D in vitro tissue models as an effective tool in drug design and development.. Pharmacol Rep 69, 861-870. CNIO Publication.
Olmeda D, Cerezo-Wallis D, Riveiro-Falkenbach E, Pennacchi PC, Contreras-Alcalde M, Ibarz N, Cifdaloz M, Catena X, Calvo TG, Cañón E, Alonso-Curbelo D, Suarez J, Osterloh L, Graña O, Mulero F, Megías D, Cañamero M, Martínez-Torrecuadrada JL, Mondal C, Di Martino J, Lora D, Martinez-Corral I, Bravo-Cordero JJ, Muñoz J, Puig S, Ortiz-Romero P, Rodriguez-Peralto JL, Ortega S, Soengas MS (2017). Whole-body imaging of lymphovascular niches identifies pre-metastatic roles of midkine.. Nature 546, 676-680. CNIO Publication.
Bejarano L, Schuhmacher AJ, Méndez-Pertuz M, Megías M, Blanco-Aparicio C, Martínez S, Pastor J, Squatrito M, Blasco MA (2017). Inhibition of Trf1 telomere protein impairs tumor initiation and progression in glioblastoma multiform mouse models and patient-derived xenografts.. Cancer Cell 32, 590-607. CNIO Publication.
Marión RM, López de Silanes I, Mosteiro L, Gamache B, Abad M, Guerra C, Megías D, Serrano M, Blasco MA (2017). Common Telomere Changes during In Vivo Reprogramming and Early Stages of Tumorigenesis. Stem Cell Reports 8, 460-475. CNIO Publication.
Burén S, Gomes AL, Teijeiro A, Fawal MA, Yilmaz M, Tummala KS, Perez M, Rodriguez-Justo M, Campos-Olivas R, Megías D, Djouder N (2016). Regulation of OGT by URI in Response to Glucose Confers c-MYC-Dependent Survival Mechanisms.. Cancer Cell 30, 290-307. CNIO Publication.
Pérez-Guijarro E, Karras P, Cifdaloz M, Martínez-Herranz R, Cañón E, Graña O, Horcajada-Reales C, Alonso-Curbelo D, Calvo TG, Gómez-López G, Bellora N, Riveiro-Falkenbach E, Ortiz-Romero PL, Rodríguez-Peralto JL, Maestre L, Roncador G, de Agustín Asensio JC, Goding CR, Eyras E, Megías D, Méndez R, Soengas MS (2016). Lineage-specific roles of the cytoplasmic polyadenylation factor CPEB4 in the regulation of melanoma drivers. Nat Commun 7, 13418. CNIO Publication. Open Access
Andradas C, Blasco-Benito S, Castillo-Lluva S, Dillenburg-Pilla P, Diez-Alarcia R, Juanes-García A, García-Taboada E, Hernando-Llorente R, Soriano J, Hamann S, Wenners A, Alkatout I, Klapper W, Rocken C, Bauer M, Arnold N, Quintanilla M, Megías D, Vicente-Manzanares M, Urigüen L, Gutkind JS, Guzmán M, Pérez-Gómez E, Sánchez C. (2016). Activation of the orphan receptor GPR55 by lysophosphatidylinositol promotes metastasis in triple-negative breast cancer.. Oncotarget 7, 47565-47575. CNIO Publication.
Ramírez-Santiago G, Robles-Valero J, Morlino G, Cruz-Adalia A, Pérez-Martínez M, Zaldivar A, Torres-Torresano M, Chichón FJ, Sorrentino A, Pereiro E, Carrascosa JL, Megías D, Sorzano CO, Sánchez-Madrid F, Veiga E8 (2016). Clathrin regulates lymphocyte migration by driving actin accumulation at the cellular leading edge.. Eur J Immunol 46, 2376-2387. CNIO Publication.
Hernández-Agudo E, Mondejar T, Soto-Montenegro ML, Megías D, Mouron S, Sanchez J, Hidalgo M, Lopez-Casas PP, Mulero F, Desco M, Quintela-Fandino M (2016). Monitoring vascular normalization induced by antiangiogenic treatment with (18)F-fluoromisonidazole-PET. Mol Oncol 10, 1704-1718. CNIO Publication. Open Access
Vaclová T, Woods NT, Megías D, Gomez-Lopez S, Setién F, García Bueno JM, Macías JA, Barroso A, Urioste M, Esteller M, Monteiro AN, Benítez J, Osorio A (2016). Germline missense pathogenic variants in the BRCA1 BRCT domain, p.Gly1706Glu and p.Ala1708Glu, increase cellular sensitivity to PARP inhibitor Olaparib by a dominant negative effect.. Hum Mol Genet 25, 5287-5299. CNIO Publication.
Pérez-Gómez E, Andradas C, Blasco-Benito S, Caffarel MM, García-Taboada E, Villa-Morales M, Moreno E, Hamann S, Martín-Villar E, Flores JM, Wenners A, Alkatout I, Klapper W, Röcken C, Bronsert P, Stickeler E, Staebler A, Bauer M, Arnold N, Soriano J, Pérez-Martínez M, Megías D, Moreno-Bueno G, Ortega-Gutiérrez S, Artola M, Vázquez-Villa H, Quintanilla M, Fernández-Piqueras J, Canela EI, McCormick PJ, Guzmán M, Sánchez C. (2015). Role of cannabinoid receptor CB2 in HER2 pro-oncogenic signaling in breast cancer.. J Natl Cancer I 107, djv077. CNIO Publication.
Cioffi M, Vallespinos-Serrano M, Trabulo SM, Fernandez-Marcos PJ, Firment AN, Vazquez BN, Vieira CR, Mulero F, Camara JA, Cronin UP, Perez M, Soriano J, G Galvez B, Castells-Garcia A, Haage V, Raj D, Megias D, Hahn S, Serrano L, Moon A, Aicher A, Heeschen C (2015). MiR-93 Controls Adiposity via Inhibition of Sirt7 and Tbx3.. Cell Reports 12, 1594-1605. CNIO Publication.
Gago-Fuentes R, Fernandez-Puente P, Megias D, Carpintero-Fernandez P, Mateos J, Acea B, Fonseca E, Blanco FJ, Mayan MD (2015). Proteomic analysis of connexin 43 reveals novel interactors related to osteoarthritis.. Mol Cell Proteomics 14, 1831-1845. CNIO Publication.
Perez-Janices N, Blanco-Luquin I, Tuñón MT, Barba-Ramos E, Ibáñez B, Zazpe-Cenoz I, Martinez-Aguillo M, Hernandez B, Martínez-Lopez E, Fernández AF, Mercado MR, Cabada T, Escors D, Megias D, Guerrero-Setas D. (2015). EPB41L3, TSP-1 and RASSF2 as new clinically relevant prognostic biomarkers in diffuse gliomas.. Oncotarget 6, 368-380. CNIO Publication.
Carro A, Perez-Martinez M, Soriano J, Pisano DG, Megias D (2015). iMSRC: converting a standard automated microscope into an intelligent screening platform.. Sci Rep 5, 10502. CNIO Publication.
Doménech E, Maestre C, Esteban-Martínez L, Partida D, Pascual R, Fernández-Miranda G, Seco E, Campos-Olivas R, Pérez M, Megias D, Allen K, López M, Saha AK, Velasco G, Rial E, Méndez R, Boya P, Salazar-Roa M, Malumbres M (2015). AMPK and PFKFB3 mediate glycolysis and survival in response to mitophagy during mitotic arrest.. Nat Cell Biol 17, 1304-1316. CNIO Publication.
García-Beccaria M, Martínez P, Méndez-Pertuz M, Martínez S, Blanco-Aparicio C, Cañamero M, Mulero F, Ambrogio C, Flores JM, Megias D, Barbacid M, Pastor J, Blasco MA (2015). Therapeutic inhibition of TRF1 impairs the growth of p53-deficient K-RasG12V-induced lung cancer by induction of telomeric DNA damage.. EMBO Mol Med 7, 930-949. CNIO Publication.
Piazzolla D, Palla AR, Pantoja C, Cañamero M, de Castro IP, Ortega S, Gómez-López G, Dominguez O, Megías D, Roncador G, Luque-Garcia JL, Fernandez-Tresguerres B, Fernandez AF, Fraga MF, Rodriguez-Justo M, Manzanares M, Sánchez-Carbayo M, García-Pedrero JM, Rodrigo JP, Malumbres M, Serrano M (2014). Lineage-restricted function of the pluripotency factor NANOG in stratified epithelia.. Nat Communications 5, 4226. CNIO Publication.
Miranda-Lorenzo I, Dorado J, Lonardo E, Alcala S, Serrano AG, Clausell-Tormos J, Cioffi M, Megias D, Zagorac S, Balic A, Hidalgo M, Erkan M, Kleeff J, Scarpa A, Sainz B Jr, Heeschen C (2014). Intracellular autofluorescence: a biomarker for epithelial cancer stem cells.. Nat Methods 11, 1161-1169. CNIO Publication.
Alonso-Curbelo D, Riveiro-Falkenbach E, Perez-Guijarro E, Cifdaloz M, karras P, Osterloh L, Megías D, Cañón E, Calvo TG, Olmeda D, Gómez-Lopez G, Graña O, Sánchez-Arévalo VJ, Pisano DG, Wang H-W, Ortiz-Romero P, Tormo D, Hoeck K, Rodríguez-Peralto JL, Joyce JA, Soengas MS (2014). RAB7 controls melanoma progression by exploiting a lineage-specific wiring of the endolysosomal pathway.. Cancer Cell 26, 61-76. CNIO Publication.
Epifano C, Megias D, Perez-Moreno M (2014). p120-catenin differentially regulates cell migration by Rho-dependent intracellular and secreted signals.. EMBO Rep 15, 592-600. CNIO Publication.
Hergueta-Redondo M, Sarrió D, Molina-Crespo Á, Megias D, Mota A, Rojo-Sebastian A, García-Sanz P, Morales S, Abril S, Cano A, Peinado H, Moreno-Bueno G (2014). Gasdermin-B promotes invasion and metastasis in breast cancer cells.. PLoS ONE 9, e90099. CNIO Publication.
Morgado-Palacin L, Llanos S, Urbano M, Blanco-Aparicio C, Megias D, Pastor J, Serrano M (2014). Non-genotoxic activation of p53 through the RPL11-dependent ribosomal stress pathway.. Carcinogenesis 35, 2822-2830. CNIO Publication.
Alvarez R, Musteanu M, Garcia-Garcia E, Lopez-Casas PP, Megias D, Guerra C, Muñoz M, Quijano Y, Cubillo A, Rodriguez-Pascual J, Plaza C, de Vicente E, Prados S, Tabernero S, Barbacid M, Lopez-Rios F, Hidalgo M (2014). Reply: ‘Comments on Stromal disrupting effects of nab-paclitaxel in pancreatic cancer’. Br J Cancer 111, 1677-1678. CNIO Publication.