Houston researcher secures $1.7M to develop drug for aggressive form of breast cancer

cancer research

Wei Wang, a UH College of Pharmacy research associate professor, is helping to develop a new targeted drug to treat triple-negative breast cancer. Photo courtesy UH.

A University of Houston researcher has joined a $3.2 million effort to develop a new drug designed to attack a cancer-driving protein commonly found in triple-negative breast cancer.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is one of the most difficult-to-treat forms of cancer and accounts for 10 percent to 15 percent of all breast cancer cases. The disease gets its name because tumors associated with it test negative for estrogen receptors, progesterone receptors and excess HER2 protein, making it difficult to target. Due to this, TNBC is often treated with general chemotherapy, which can come with negative side effects and drug resistance, according to UH.

UH College of Pharmacy research associate professor Wei Wang is developing a drug that can target the disease more specifically. The drug will target MDM2, a protein often overproduced in TNBC that also contributes to faster tumor growth.

Wang is working on a team led by Wei Li, director of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Pharmacy’s Drug Discovery Center. She has received $1.7 million to support the research.

Wang and UH professor of pharmacology and toxicology Ruiwen Zhang have discovered a compound that can break down MDM2. In early laboratory models, the compound has shown the ability to shrink tumors.

Wang and Zhang will focus on understanding how the treatment works and monitoring its effectiveness in models that closely mirror human disease.

“We will study how the drug targets MDM2 and evaluate the most promising drug candidates to determine effective dosing, understand how the drug behaves in the body, compare it with existing treatments and assess early safety,” Wang said in a news release.

Li’s team at the University of Tennessee will be working on the chemistry and drug design end of the project.

“This work could lead to an entirely new class of therapies for triple-negative breast cancer,” Li added in the release. “We’re hopeful that by directly removing the MDM2 protein from cancer cells, we can help more patients respond to treatment regardless of their tumor type.”

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MD Anderson is teaming up with TOPPAN Holdings on cutting-edge organoid tech to help match cancer patients with the most effective treatments. Photo via Getty Images.

MD Anderson launches $10M collaboration to advance personalized cancer treatment tech

fighting cancer

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Japan’s TOPPAN Holdings Inc. have announced a strategic collaboration to co-develop TOPPAN Holdings’ 3D cell culture, or organoid, technology known as invivoid.

The technology will be used as a tool for personalized cancer treatments and drug screening efforts, according to a release from MD Anderson. TOPPAN has committed $10 million over five years to advance the joint research activities.

“The strategic alliance with MD Anderson paves a promising path toward personalized cancer medicine," Hiroshi Asada, head of the Business Innovation Center at TOPPAN Holdings, said in a news release.

Invivoid is capable of establishing organoid models directly from patient biopsies or other tissues in a way that is faster and more efficient. Researchers may be able to test a variety of potential treatments in the laboratory to understand which approach may work best for the patient, if validated clinically.

“Organoids allow us to model the three-dimensional complexity of human cancers in the lab, thus allowing us to engineer a powerful translational engine—one that could not only predict how patients will respond to therapy before treatment begins but also could help to reimagine how we discover and validate next-generation therapies," Dr. Donna Hansel, division head of pathology and laboratory medicine at MD Anderson, added in the news release. “Through this collaboration, we hope to make meaningful progress in modeling cancer biology for therapeutic innovation.”

The collaboration will build upon preclinical research previously conducted by MD Anderson and TOPPAN. The organizations will work collaboratively to obtain College of American Pathologists (CAP) and Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) certifications for the technology, which demonstrate a commitment to high-quality patient care. Once the certifications are obtained, they plan to conduct observational clinical studies and then prospective clinical studies.

“We believe our proprietary invivoid 3D cell culture technology, by enabling the rapid establishment of organoid models directly from patient biopsies, has strong potential to help identify more effective treatment options and reduce the likelihood of unnecessary therapies,” Asada added in the release. “Through collaboration on CAP/CLIA certification and clinical validation, we aim to bring this innovation closer to real-world patient care and contribute meaningfully to the advancement of cancer medicine."

Rice University's Lei Li has been awarded a $550,000 NSF CAREER Award to develop wearable, hospital-grade medical imaging technology. Photo by Jeff Fitlow/ Courtesy Rice University

Rice University professor earns $550k NSF award for wearable imaging tech​

science supported

Another Houston scientist has won one of the highly competitive National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Awards.

Lei Li, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at Rice University, has received a $550,000, five-year grant to develop wearable, hospital-grade medical imaging technology capable of visualizing deep tissue function in real-time, according to the NSF. The CAREER grants are given to "early career faculty members who demonstrate the potential to serve as academic models and leaders in research and education."

“This is about giving people access to powerful diagnostic tools that were once confined to hospitals,” Li said in a news release from Rice. “If we can make imaging affordable, wearable and continuous, we can catch disease earlier and treat it more effectively.”

Li’s research focuses on photoacoustic imaging, which merges light and sound to produce high-resolution images of structures deep inside the body. It relies on pulses of laser light that are absorbed by tissue, leading to a rapid temperature rise. During this process, the heat causes the tissue to expand by a fraction, generating ultrasound waves that travel back to the surface and are detected and converted into an image. The process is known to yield more detailed images without dyes or contrast agents used in some traditional ultrasounds.

However, current photoacoustic systems tend to use a variety of sensors, making them bulky, expensive and impractical. Li and his team are taking a different approach.

Instead of using hundreds of separate sensors, Li and his researchers are developing a method that allows a single sensor to capture the same information via a specially designed encoder. The encoder assigns a unique spatiotemporal signature to each incoming sound wave. A reconstruction algorithm then interprets and decodes the signals.

These advances have the potential to lower the size, cost and power consumption of imaging systems. The researchers believe the device could be used in telemedicine, remote diagnostics and real-time disease monitoring. Li’s lab will also collaborate with clinicians to explore how the miniaturized technology could help monitor cancer treatment and other conditions.

“Reducing the number of detection channels from hundreds to one could shrink these devices from bench-top systems into compact, energy-efficient wearables,” Li said in the release. “That opens the door to continuous health monitoring in daily life—not just in hospitals.”

Amanda Marciel, the William Marsh Rice Trustee Chair of chemical and biomolecular engineering and an assistant professor at Rice, received an NSF CAREER Award last year. Read more here.

The Rice Biotech Launch Pad has named two bioengineering professors to its leadership team. Photo courtesy Rice University.

Rice biotech accelerator appoints 2 leading researchers to team

Launch Pad

The Rice Biotech Launch Pad, which is focused on expediting the translation of Rice University’s health and medical technology discoveries into cures, has named Amanda Nash and Kelsey L. Swingle to its leadership team.

Both are assistant professors in Rice’s Department of Bioengineering and will bring “valuable perspective” to the Houston-based accelerator, according to Rice.

“Their deep understanding of both the scientific rigor required for successful innovation and the commercial strategies necessary to bring these technologies to market will be invaluable as we continue to build our portfolio of lifesaving medical technologies,” Omid Veiseh, faculty director of the Launch Pad, said in a news release.

Amanda Nash

Nash leads a research program focused on developing cell communication technologies to treat cancer, autoimmune diseases and aging. She previously trained as a management consultant at McKinsey & Co., where she specialized in business development, portfolio strategy and operational excellence for pharmaceutical and medtech companies. She earned her doctorate in bioengineering from Rice and helped develop implantable cytokine factories for the treatment of ovarian cancer. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from the University of Houston.

“Returning to Rice represents a full-circle moment in my career, from conducting my doctoral research here to gaining strategic insights at McKinsey and now bringing that combined perspective back to advance Houston’s biotech ecosystem,” Nash said in the release. “The Launch Pad represents exactly the kind of translational bridge our industry needs. I look forward to helping researchers navigate the complex path from discovery to commercialization.”

Kelsey L. Swingle

Swingle’s research focuses on engineering lipid-based nanoparticle technologies for drug delivery to reproductive tissues, which includes the placenta. She completed her doctorate in bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania, where she developed novel mRNA lipid nanoparticles for the treatment of preeclampsia. She received her bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from Case Western Reserve University and is a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow.

“What draws me to the Rice Biotech Launch Pad is its commitment to addressing the most pressing unmet medical needs,” Swingle added in the release. “My research in women’s health has shown me how innovation at the intersection of biomaterials and medicine can tackle challenges that have been overlooked for far too long. I am thrilled to join a team that shares this vision of designing cutting-edge technologies to create meaningful impact for underserved patient populations.”

The Rice Biotech Launch Pad opened in 2023. It held the official launch and lab opening of RBL LLC, a biotech venture creation studio in May. Read more here.

Sentinel BioTherapeutics is developing cytokine interleukin-2 (IL-2) capsules to fight many solid tumors. Photo via Getty Images.

New Houston biotech co. developing capsules for hard-to-treat tumors

biotech breakthroughs

Houston company Sentinel BioTherapeutics has made promising headway in cancer immunotherapy for patients who don’t respond positively to more traditional treatments. New biotech venture creation studio RBL LLC (pronounced “rebel”) recently debuted the company at the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago.

Rima Chakrabarti is a neurologist by training. Though she says she’s “passionate about treating the brain,” her greatest fervor currently lies in leading Sentinel as its CEO. Sentinel is RBL’s first clinical venture, and Chakrabarti also serves as cofounder and managing partner of the venture studio.

The team sees an opportunity to use cytokine interleukin-2 (IL-2) capsules to fight many solid tumors for which immunotherapy hasn't been effective in the past. “We plan to develop a pipeline of drugs that way,” Chakrabarti says.

This may all sound brand-new, but Sentinel’s research goes back years to the work of Omid Veiseh, director of the Rice Biotechnology Launch Pad (RBLP). Through another, now-defunct company called Avenge Bio, Veiseh and Paul Wotton — also with RBLP and now RBL’s CEO and chairman of Sentinel — invested close to $45 million in capital toward their promising discovery.

From preclinical data on studies in mice, Avenge was able to manufacture its platform focused on ovarian cancer treatments and test it on 14 human patients. “That's essentially opened the door to understanding the clinical efficacy of this drug as well as it's brought this to the attention of the FDA, such that now we're able to continue that conversation,” says Chakrabarti. She emphasizes the point that Avenge’s demise was not due to the science, but to the company's unsuccessful outsourcing to a Massachusetts management team.

“They hadn't analyzed a lot of the data that we got access to upon the acquisition,” explains Chakrabarti. “When we analyzed the data, we saw this dose-dependent immune activation, very specific upregulation of checkpoints on T cells. We came to understand how effective this agent could be as an immune priming agent in a way that Avenge Bio hadn't been developing this drug.”

Chakrabarti says that Sentinel’s phase II trials are coming soon. They’ll continue their previous work with ovarian cancer, but Chakrabarti says that she also believes that the IL-2 capsules will be effective in the treatment of endometrial cancer. There’s also potential for people with other cancers located in the peritoneal cavity, such as colorectal cancer, gastrointestinal cancer and even primary peritoneal carcinomatosis.

“We're delivering these capsules into the peritoneal cavity and seeing both the safety as well as the immune activation,” Chakrabarti says. “We're seeing that up-regulation of the checkpoint that I mentioned. We're seeing a strong safety signal. This drug was very well-tolerated by patients where IL-2 has always had a challenge in being a well-tolerated drug.”

When phase II will take place is up to the success of Sentinel’s fundraising push. What we do know is that it will be led by Amir Jazaeri at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Part of the goal this summer is also to create an automated cell manufacturing process and prove that Sentinel can store its product long-term.

“This isn’t just another cell therapy,” Chakrabarti says.

"Sentinel's cytokine factory platform is the breakthrough technology that we believe has the potential to define the next era of cancer treatment," adds Wotton.

A team of researchers at the University of Houston is working to develop a new treatment for Rhabdomyosarcoma, an aggressive cancer with a higher incidence in young children. Photo via Getty Images.

UH research team receives grant to fight aggressive pediatric cancer

cancer research

Researchers at the University of Houston have received a $3.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to help find innovative ways to treat Rhabdomyosarcoma, or RMS.

According to a statement from the university, RMS is a malignant soft tissue sarcoma that has a higher incidence in young children and is responsible for 8 percent of pediatric cancer cases with a relatively low survival rate.

One way UH is working on the issue is by studying how and why RMS cells, which are found most often in muscle tissue, divide uncontrollably without ever maturing into normal muscle cells. The researchers aim to tackle a target inside RMS cells known as TAK1, which plays a key role in regulating cell growth.

“By targeting TAK1, we aim to stop the cancer at its source and help the cells develop normally,” Ashok Kumar, the Else and Philip Hargrove Endowed Professor of Drug Discovery at the UH College of Pharmacy and director of the Institute of Muscle Biology and Cachexia, said in a news release. “This approach could lead to new and better treatments for RMS.”

According to UH, preliminary results demonstrated that TAK1 is highly activated in embryonal RMS cells, which are found in younger children; alveolar RMS cells, which are found in older children and teens; and human RMS samples. This suggests that the protein plays a major role in the development of this form of cancer.

The team still aims to uncover how the protein helps RMS cancer grow and plans to evaluate how blocking TAK1 can be used as a therapeutic.

“Blocking TAK1, either by changing the genes (genetic approaches) or using drugs (pharmacological approaches), can stop certain harmful behaviors in cancer cells,” Kumar added. “This was tested both in lab-grown cells and in living models, showing that TAK1 is a key target to control RMS cancer’s spread and aggressiveness, and inhibits tumor formation.”

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Houston researchers develop dissolvable implant for targeted cancer drug delivery

cancer research

Researchers at Houston Methodist have developed a biodegradable implant that can be used to safely and consistently deliver drug treatments to tumors and then dissolve without the need for further surgery.

The implant is only the size of a grain of rice, but its potential is staggering. The biodegradable nanofibrous drug-eluting seed (b-NDES) works as a reservoir parked inside a soft tumor, where it can slowly release immune-stimulating drugs over time. This overcomes a consistent problem with drugs such as immune checkpoint inhibitors. Normal systemic administration sees comparatively little of the drug making its way to the tumor, with most of it circulating throughout the body. The b-NDES is like deploying a small guerrilla fighting force embedded in enemy territory, doing maximum damage to the entrenched tumor.

"To improve cancer treatment, we're trying to start a fire inside the tumor itself," Corrine Chua, associate professor in the Center for BioNanoengineering at Houston Methodist Research Institute, said in a news release. "By activating immune cells directly within the tumor microenvironment, those cells can then travel throughout the body and seek out cancer wherever it exists. The b-NDES platform was developed to help keep therapeutic drugs concentrated inside tumors while minimizing exposure to healthy tissues.”

Chua co-led the study with Alessandro Grattoni, chair and director of the Center for BioNanoengineering at Houston Methodist Research Institute.

The study included support from the Nancy Owens Breast Cancer Foundation and the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute.

Chau and Grattoni used preclinical models of triple-negative breast cancer, an aggressive form of cancer that is estrogen receptor-negative, progesterone receptor-negative and HER2-negative. Because of the receptor negativity, some popular treatments like tamoxifen and trastuzumab are ineffective. Chemotherapy has been shown to be the best course of action.

The b-NDES implant is deployed alongside radiation drugs. It keeps the drugs focused on the tumor, reducing the amount of harmful side effects typically seen when drugs are circulated more widely in the body. In 60 percent of the models, tumors were eliminated and did not cause side effects beyond the tumor site. Once the drugs have been deployed, the implant breaks down naturally.

While promising, more research will have to be done to expand use to other tumor types.

"Although the study focused on triple-negative breast cancer models, the approach could have broader applications for solid tumors," Grattoni added in the release. "It could potentially be used in cancers where there is a tumor lesion accessible for placement, including pancreatic or lung cancers."

New Houston platform Same Day Reels launches for on-demand content creation

In The Moment

If an event doesn't happen on Instagram, did it even really happen? In today's social media-driven age of branding and audience engagement, the answer increasingly is no.

Houston entrepreneur Karen De Amat is looking to fill the online content creation needs of companies with her new venture, Same Day Reels, which launched in early August. It will serve as a platform to connect companies and brands with talent that can help turn an event into a viral moment as it is happening.

"Events move quickly, and social media moves even faster,” said De Amat. “Same Day Reels was built to help brands capture the moment while it still matters. We are creating a more efficient way for businesses and creators to work together. Brands need content faster, and creators need more opportunities to turn their talent into real work. Same Day Reels brings those needs together.”

The company is focused on adding livestreams and concurrent short video content to "activations, launches, fundraisers, grand openings, conferences, hospitality experiences, and private celebrations." Such content can significantly increase the visibility of a product or brand according to digital marketing brands like Wyzowl, whose data found 63 percent of people in 2026 prefer to learn about new products via short video.

Packages offered by Same Day Reels will include filming, editing, and publishing content within hours of the targeted event.

De Amat says that her content creation platform will be a way to preserve the excitement of events and launches by enshrining them with immediate social media-driven memories.

“Event content is no longer just something you post after the fact,” De Amat said. “It is part of how people experience, remember and share the moment.”

Previously, De Amat is also the founder and CEO of Social Behavior, an influencer marketing company she launched from her home in 2014. It quickly garnered an array of clients and thrust De Amat into the spotlight, including numerous appearances on Fox 26's The Isiah Factor. Influencer Marketing Hub named her one of the top CEOs of influencer marketing companies in Houston in 2025.

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This article originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

Bristol Myers Squibb to build $2.3B Houston pharma manufacturing campus

coming soon

New Jersey-based pharmaceutical giant Bristol Myers Squibb Co. has officially named Houston as the home of its new state-of-the-art manufacturing site.

The 60,000-square-foot facility represents a $2.3 billion investment, according to a news release. It is expected to create 500 skilled jobs and will be located in Houston's Generation Park.

BMS first announced that it was considering Houston among 16 other cities for the facility in May. The new hub will manufacture small molecule, biologic and antibody-drug conjugates and is part of a $40 billion commitment to invest in the United States over five years. Construction is slated to begin next year, with the facility coming online in 2030.

"We're building the domestic manufacturing capabilities needed to deliver the next generation of medicines and support future scientific breakthroughs. Houston and the state of Texas offer the talent, infrastructure, and partnership needed to help bring that vision to life," Christopher Boerner, CEO and board chair of BMS, said in the release.

The new facility will feature a modular, multi-modal design, which will allow the company to reconfigure and add to its manufacturing capabilities over time. BMS says it expects the facility to "(grow) in scale and capability well beyond its opening configuration."

"Our decision to build this state-of-the-art manufacturing campus in Houston, Texas, reflects our confidence in the region’s ability to support a world-class, digitally advanced supply operation,” Karin Shanahan, EVP and chief supply chain and operations officer of BMS, added in the release. “This facility is designed to deliver the speed, quality, and reliability that patients depend on, combining flexible, modular manufacturing with advanced digital capabilities to ensure consistent supply across multiple modalities. It strengthens our ability to operate with resilience and positions us to reliably deliver medicines to patients today while adapting future demands.”

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott shared that the state has granted BMS a $4.89 million Texas Enterprise Fund (TEF) grant for the project. TEF grants, administered by the Texas Economic Development & Tourism Office, support business relocation or expansion projects that create "new, good-paying jobs in the community and attract significant new capital investment to the state." The development is also a qualified project under the Texas Jobs, Energy, Technology, and Innovation (JETI) program.

“Texas is a global hub for life sciences, where today’s innovations shape the future of healthcare,” Abbott said in a news release. “This $2.3 billion investment by Bristol Myers Squibb in the dynamic biotech ecosystem in Houston is a testament to the depth of our skilled workforce and the pipeline of talent coming through our nation-leading technical colleges and research universities. With lower operating costs and easy access to markets across the U.S. and the world, Texas drives affordability for consumers.”

"Bristol Myers Squibb’s announcement is a tremendous win for Texas and the Houston region, further reinforcing our position as a premier destination for life sciences and advanced manufacturing,” added Greater Houston Partnership President and CEO Steve Kean.

Last fall, Eli Lilly and Co. selected Generation Park, a 4,300-acre, master-planned commercial district near Lake Houston, for its $6.5 billion manufacturing plant. More than 300 locations in the U.S. competed for the factory. Read more here.

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