Xenopat is a spin-off company of the Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO), the Institute of Biomedical Research of Bellvitge (IDIBELL) and the University Hospital of Bellvitge (HUB). Created in September 2014, it provides customized mouse models for cancer treatment. Now it has launched its website:
Orthotopic models and personalized medicine
XenOPAT services are based on the use of orthotopic models (orthoxenograft®) mouse by implanting small pieces of human tumors in the mouse body concerned. Thus, for example, a human ovarian tumor in the mouse ovary implanted. In this way, the animal model reproduces histological, genetic and epigenetic characteristics of human tumors, as well as patterns of tumor spread, which is not achieved with other methods of implementation.
As the development of new drugs, XenOPAT available to researchers, but especially of companies that are developing new drugs, a bank of tens of orthotopic mouse models that reproduce different types of tumors characterized genetic level and with different sensitivities various chemotherapies. This bank, called OrthoXenoBank®, including colon, lung, ovarian, endometrial, breast, pancreas, germ cell tumors, head and neck, etc. So XenOPAT offers a wide range of possibilities to test new drugs in advanced models, allowing to make the best, essential for the complicated process preclinical drug development.
In the area of personalized medicine, XenOPAT offers the possibility of generating a orthoxenograft® tumor from a patient so that we can identify the treatment that affords maximum guarantees for the individual patient response.
The partners
XenOPAT is the work done over many years by two partners that has now decided to take their research to the business world: the researcher Alberto Villanueva and pathologist August Vidal. The third partner, Ana Portela, is responsible for the management of the company.
Alberto Villanueva Garatachea Phd., Responsible of the Drug Resistance and Xenografts research group at ICO-IDIBELL. He is internationally recognized for his work in generating tumor models (Personal Derived Xenofraft (PDX) and orthotopic orthoxenografts® used both for the study of the mechanisms of acquiring resistance to important chemotherapeutic treatment (cisplatin and 5-fluroracil oxaliplatin) as development of new drugs and treatments. Some of the models generated by Dr. Villanueva are unique in the world. He is the author of numerous scientific publications.
August Vidal Bel, MD. Pathologist at the University Hospital of Bellvitge (HUB). Director of Pathologic anatomy program. Responsible of the areas of gynecological pathology and dental pathology and collaborator of the areas of urological pathology and pathology of head and neck. Vidal has extensive experience in the histopathological and genetic characterization of orthoxenografts®.
Ana Portela Mestres, PhD, MBA. Degree in Biology (2001) and PhD in Genetics (2007) at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. During his PhD he made several stays at centers of international prestige: Universität Hohenheim and Johns Hopkins University. He completed his postdoctoral stay (2007-2014) at the Cancer Epigenetics Group at the CNIO and later ell Cancer Epigenetics Group IDIBELL, led by Dr. Manel Esteller. During this time he worked to understand the molecular basis of cancer and to define biomarkers of prognosis in several types of tumors. Parallel holds a Master in Business Administration (MBA) at ESADE (2013).