VAGABOND's integrated Work Packages to achieve our goal

Lead Beneficiary PMC

WP1 deals with the management, governance, recruitment and mobility of the program. The Project Coordinator will be responsible for the overall management of the network, including research and training activities, with support from the steering committee, supervisory and advisory board. Day- to-day management of the Network and internal communications will be conducted by the Coordinator in conjunction with the Project-, Training- and Financial Manager in concordance with the coordinator.

Lead Beneficiary PMC and ITCC
WP2 underpins all activities to ensure high quality doctoral training and career development. The ESRs will receive local and network-wide training, with a detailed description given at section ‘Education’ on this website.

Lead Beneficiary Ugent and ITCC
WP3 involves all activities related to exploitation and dissemination of VAGABONDs research outcomes and engagement with the general public, school children, students, clinicians, researchers and industry. These activities will be coordinated by the WP3-leads and the project manager. All ESRs will be involved in WP3 and will be trained in communication and outreach activities during the training modules transferable skill training. Each ESR will work on blogs/vlogs/podcasts/video-interviews (depending on their interest and talents they can choose a format) that will be published on VAGABOND’s website and social media accounts. In addition, each ESR will interact at least once with a patient organization and will engage at least once with the general public during “Science Weeks/Nights/Days”

Lead Beneficiary DKFZ
In WP4 we will study genetic aberrations in paediatric cancer and aim at translation to clinical applicable interventions. This WP will be led by Dr. Marcel Kool from the DKFZ who is one of the world leading experts in translational research in brain tumours. For ESR 2,6,7,9 and 14 this is the main work package in which the actual research is performed. The individual tasks are the individual research projects:

• Synergy between precision medicines and conventional chemotherapy to outsmart precursor B-cell leukaemia and lymphoma (ESR2)
• R-loops in paediatric brain tumours (ESR6)
• Targeting the extracellular matrix (ECM) in therapy resistant paediatric tumours (ESR7)
• Targeting ATRX-deficient hepatoblastoma (ESR9)
• Preclinical validation of DNA copy number driven non-mutated dependency genes RRM2 and BRIP1 as novel drug targets in neuroblastoma (ESR14)

Lead Beneficiary Institut Curie
In WP5 the focus is on studying epigenetic targets in 5 different tumour types and to identify therapeutic interventions in these entities. This WP will be led by Dr.Gudrun Schleiermacher from the Institute Curie who is a leading expert in translational research on epigenetic targets in paediatric cancer. ESR 3,4,8,10 and 13 will participate in this work package in which the actual research is performed. The individual tasks are the individual research projects:

• Epigenetic processes underlying paediatric renal and rhabdoid tumorigenesis (ESR3)
• The role of the SWI/SNF complex in paediatric cancers: Impact of mutations in chromatin remodelling genes in rhabdoid tumour and neuroblastoma (ESR4)
• Druggable pathways in EMT-like transition of Ewing sarcoma (ESR8)
• Targeting transcriptional core regulatory circuit by epigenetic dependencies (ESR10)
• Exome-associated miRNAs as circulating biomarkers of chemotherapy resistance in bone tumours (Ewing Sarcoma and Osteosarcoma): Liquid Biopsy and in vitro studies (ESR13)

Lead Beneficiary Charité
In WP6 we will study immunological targets and pathways in minimal 3 paediatric cancer types. This WP will be led by Dr. Annette Künkele from Charité who is an expert in cellular immune therapy for paediatric solid tumours. ESR 1,5,11,12 an 14 will participate in this work package where the actual research is performed. The individual tasks are the individual research projects:

• Immune interventions form scRNAseq analysis form debulked neuroblastoma tumours (ESR1)
• Targeting the surface-ome landscape of paediatric brain tumours (ESR5)
• Development of therapies targeting the oncogenic and immunologic activity of MYCN in neuroblastoma (ESR11)
• CAR and TCR T cell therapy – competitors bundle forces. A combinational approach to prevent tumour escape by antigen loss (ESR12)
• In depth anti-tumour reactivity against haematological and solid tumour cells of different ab-T-cells engineered to express gd-TCR (TEGs) (ESR15)

Lead Beneficiary PMC