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MIT Advocacy in Action at the AACR’s 2025 Hill Day

Koch Institute

May 29, 2025

MIT Koch Institute postdoc Meaghan McGeary traveled to Washington, DC to advocate for increased federal funding for cancer research as part of the annual American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Hill Day. Joining other early-career scientists in a mission to make more than 50 congressional visits in a single day, she shared her experiences with policymakers, emphasizing the importance of stable research funding.  

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Daniel Anderson Wins 2023 Exner Medal

Wilhelm Exner Medal Foundations

April 17, 2023

Cheers to Daniel Anderson, 2023 Exner Medal laureate! The award is in recognition of his outstanding achievements in the field of nanotherapeutics and biomaterials and his pioneering work in the development of smart materials for medical devices. These advances have led to a range of products in clinical development, in particular in the field of RNA therapeutics.

A Boost for RNA Vaccines and Therapies

MIT News

April 11, 2023

Sanofi will provide $25 million in support of the Anderson Lab’s efforts to develop new delivery technology for mRNA, as well as RNA-based methods for CRISPR genome editing. Anderson Lab research has already resulted in several RNA vaccine applications currently in clinical trials at Sanofi, with new work including plans for new delivery platforms and improvements to vaccine uptake and effectiveness.

Bridging Gaps in Health Care

MIT News

April 6, 2023

With a major in bioengineering and a minor in Spanish, MIT senior Victor Damptey hopes to use his twin skill sets to address disparities in health care. Currently working in the Hammond Lab on new treatments for osteoarthritis, he plans to become a physician-scientist and use his Spanish fluency in overcoming patient care challenges often posed by language barriers.

Hydrogels for Biologics

MIT News

March 31, 2023

The Doyle and Hammond Labs created hydrogel particles for biologics. In a study appearing in Advanced Healthcare Materials, researchers delivered the cancer immunotherapy pembrolizumab (Keytruda) via single injection. Normally, the drug must be administered in dilute solution over several hours, in a hospital or clinic.

Eyeing FDA approval in the next few years, the team notes their platform could also resuscitate drugs for which adequately concentrated formulations have remained elusive. This innovative approach can improve the patient experience, decrease the healthcare costs, and improve access to healthcare while bringing value to the industry.

Targets Acquired

MIT News

March 30, 2023

The Anderson Lab’s new inhalable lipid nanoparticles deliver mRNA to the lung and show greater efficiency, better targeting of cell populations, and lower risk of immune response over other formulations. Described in Nature Biotechnology, the nanoparticle’s key design features include a positively charged headgroup to engage the negatively charged RNA, a long lipid tail to help particles cross the cell membrane, and a structure that breaks down and is quickly cleared from the lung reducing risk of inflammation. Unlike virus-based RNA delivery methods, which induce an immune response upon repeat dosing, the nanoparticles can be delivered multiple times if needed.

Cancer Drug Pairing Overcomes Antibiotic Resistance

MIT News

March 24, 2023

With international collaborators, the Chen Lab has helped identify a new therapy for vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecalis (VRE). VRE can cause a number of serious infections, including urinary tract, bloodstream, and wound infections associated with catheters or surgical procedures. In a study appearing in Science Advances, the team identified a synergistic relationship between the antibiotic vanomycin and mitoxantrone, a cancer drug used for leukemia and prostate cancer.

Given in combination, the drugs increased sensitivity of the bacterium to the antibiotics, and improved wound healing. As bacterial resistance to vancomycin is widespread, the discovery could be a general approach for treating vancomycin-resistant bacterial infections.   

Illuminating a Path to Approval

Lumicell

March 21, 2023

Lumicell’s single-cell imaging technology for eliminating residual cancer cells during tumor resection is one step closer to the clinic. Following fast track designations for the imaging agent/device pair and the recent conclusion of a pivotal trial in breast cancer patients, the company has filed a New Drug Application on its signature platform.

The technology’s early development was supported by the Koch Institute Frontier Research Program via the Curt and Kathy Marble Cancer Research Fund.

Image Awards Unveiled

MIT Koch Institute

March 17, 2023

Spring is in the air and the KI Public Galleries are aglow with new images. Showcasing a range of biological investigations and technological innovations, the 2023 Image Awards exhibition opened on March 16 with lightning talks and a People’s Choice Award sponsored by Fujifilm. The prizes were given to the Jacks and Hwang Labs’ “That Takes Nerve” and the Boehm Lab’s “Just Grow With It,” but all ten winning images were presented with insight and humor. See this year’s images in the spotlight in Popular Science, Nature, and on Matter of Fact with Soledad O’Brien (beginning at 18:40).

Consequential Changes

Nature Portfolio

March 13, 2023

In Nature Portfolio, Francisco Sánchez-Rivera discusses his collaboration with Agilent Technologies to develop a tool reliable enough to support his work in precision genome editing. Sánchez-Rivera studies the impact of individual sequence mutations on cancer development, with an eye toward understanding how these mutations alter tumor response to therapy.
 

Pi-Time for a 24-Hour Challenge

MIT 24-Hour Challenge

March 2, 2023

MIT’s 24-Hour Challenge triumphantly returns to Pi Day! This year’s KI microchallenge benefits the Koch Institute Director’s Endowed Fund. This endowed unrestricted support provides the stability and flexibility crucial to our ability to plan thoughtfully, and commit to new research and programs that support our trainees and faculty members. We hope you’ll consider joining us on Tuesday, 3.14, when we’ll be looking for contributions from 100 donors to help us secure a $5,000 gift from an anonymous alumni couple. Gifts from another 25 donors will unlock an additional $5,000 gift from Lindsay Androski ’98. In addition to our MIT 24-Hour Challenge donors, we also recognize Haejin Baek ’86 for her contribution in establishing the Koch Institute Director’s Endowed Fund.