This project will investigate a particular intracellular structure that is found in immune cells, osteoclasts and cancer cells. It consists of many different proteins that together build up a so-called invadopodium. This is a sort of molecular tiny foot or 'drill' that makes holes in the underlying basement membrane. This allows immune cells to engage pathogens that are hidden somewhere in tissues, but also allows cancer cells to escape from the primary tumor and cause lethal metastases. The invadopodium is very small but can be visualized with powerful microscopes. In this project, two research teams in Belgium and Germany will combine their unique expertise to image these structures and understand how they are built up, at the highest resolution, giving the most detailed images. The Gettemans lab in Belgium will use nanobodies, tiny fragments of antibodies and turn them into fluorescent molecules. Using a novel method called photoporation, these nanobodies will be delivered into cells. The Linder lab in Germany is equipped with super resolution microscopes.
Together, these teams will obtain the most detailed information of an invadopodium that are currently attainable with state of the art
technologies. The information obtained will be crucial to understand how these structures are built up and will lead to potential
applications in the future and identification of new drug targets