Sección de Biología

Carmen Blanco Jefe de Sección
T +34 917328000 (Ext 3780)
cblanco@cnio.es

Investigadores Científicos

Pablo Aparicio
Marta San Martín

Técnicos de Laboratorio

Antonio Cebriá
Elena Gómez-Casero

At the CNIO Experimental Therapeutics Programme (ETP), the Biology Section conducts comprehensive characterisation of small molecules across all stages of the early drug discovery process aimed at developing novel therapies against oncogenic targets. We act as a translational link between basic cancer research and the pharmaceutical industry by assessing target druggability through screening campaigns that identify modulators of potential oncogenic targets. In advanced projects, we support pharmacological validation by elucidating mechanisms of action using diverse in vitro assays and in vivo proof-of-concept models. Additionally, we contribute to the identification of alternative targets, pathways, and therapeutic opportunities by performing phenotypic screening of a 1.5K targeted, informed library. This workflow enables the robust assessment of candidate molecules, supports data-driven decision-making, and accelerates the advancement of therapeutics towards clinical development.

Publicaciones recientes

Ballesteros-González I, Hernández-Navas I, Brehey O, Lechuga CG, Salmón M, Scotece M, Velasco-Vicente R, Flores-Gómez AA, Cebriá A, Simón-Carrasco L, Jiménez G, Musteanu M, Guerra C, Domínguez O, Caleiras E, Blanco-Aparicio C, Pons T, Ferrer I, Paz-Ares L, Torres-Ruiz R, Rodríguez-Perales S, Barbacid M, Drosten M. (2025). The repressor Capicua is a barrier to lung tumor development driven by Kras/Trp53 mutations. EMBO Mol Med 17, 3377-3406. Publicación CNIO.
Lohrberg M, Heber M, Ries L, Markus K, Ksionsko N, Schmidt N, Nothnick G, Thielking L, O'Neill M, Martínéz-González S, Blanco-Aparicio C, Pastor J, Cunningham D, Koch R (2025). Dual targeting of Pim and PI3 kinases in mature T-cell lymphoma.. Eur J Haematol 115, 82-95. Publicación CNIO.
González-Muñoz T, Di Giannatale A, García-Silva S, Santos V, Sánchez-Redondo S, Savini C, Graña-Castro O, Blanco-Aparicio C, Fischer S, De Wever O, Creus-Bachiller E, Ortega-Bertran S, Pisapia DJ, Rodríguez-Peralto JL, Fernández-Rodríguez J, Pérez-Portabella CR, Alaggio R, Benassi MS, Pazzaglia L, Scotlandi K, Ratner N, Yohay K, Theuer CP, Peinado H. (2023). Endoglin, a Novel Biomarker and Therapeutical Target to Prevent Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor Growth and Metastasis. Clin Cancer Res 29, 3744-3758. Publicación CNIO.
Jimenez L, Amenabar C, Mayoral-Varo V, Mackenzie TA, Ramos MC, Silva A, Calissi G, Grenho I, Blanco-Aparicio C, Pastor J, Megías D, Ferreira BI, Link W (2022). mTORC2 Is the Major Second Layer Kinase Negatively Regulating FOXO3 Activity. Molecules 27, 5414. Publicación CNIO. Open Access
Álvarez RM, García AB, Riesco-Fagundo C, Martín JI, Varela C, Rodríguez Hergueta A, González Cantalapiedra E, Oyarzabal J, Di Geronimo B, Lorenzo M, Albarrán MI, Cebriá A, Cebrián D, Martínez-González S, Blanco-Aparicio C, Pastor J (2021). Omipalisib inspired macrocycles as dual PI3K/mTOR inhibitors.. Eur J Med Chem 211, 113109. Publicación CNIO.
Jimenez L, Silva A, Calissi G, Grenho I, Monteiro R, Mayoral-Varo V, Blanco-Aparicio C, Pastor J, Bustos V, Bracher F, Megías D, Ferreira BI, Link W (2021). Screening health-promoting compounds for their capacity to induce the activity of FOXO3. J Gerontol A-Biol (in press). Publicación CNIO.
Moore G, Lightner C, Elbai S, Brady L, Nicholson S, Ryan R, O'Sullivan KE, O'Byrne KJ, Blanco-Aparicio C, Cuffe S, O'Neill M, Heavey S, Finn SP, Gately K (2021). Co-Targeting PIM Kinase and PI3K/mTOR in NSCLC.. Cancers 13, 2139. Publicación CNIO.
Martínez-González S, Alvarez RM, Martín JI, García AB, Riesco-Fagundo C, Varela C, Rodríguez Hergueta A, González Cantalapiedra E, Albarrán MI, Gómez-Casero E, Cebriá A, Aguirre A, Ajenjo N, Cebrián D, Geronimo B, Cunningham D, O'Neill M, Dave HPG, Blanco-Aparicio C, Pastor J (2021). Macrocyclization as a source of desired polypharmacology. Discovery of triple PI3K/mTOR/PIM inhibitors.. ACS Med Chem Lett 12, 1794-1801. Publicación CNIO.