Daniel Munoz-Espin

Daniel Muñoz-Espin is group leader in the Early Cancer Institute (Department of Oncology, University of Cambridge) and Co-director of the CRUK Cambridge Centre Thoracic Cancer Programme. His laboratory works in the fundamental processes and mechanisms triggering aging and aging-related diseases, including cancer. Also, Daniel´s group uses this knowledge to design, develop and validate novel pharmacologically active drugs to promote rejuvenation, extend lifespan, and convert incurable diseases like some aggressive cancer types into chronic but non-lethal diseases. 

 

Daniel did his PhD (2002-2006) in the laboratory of Prof Margarita Salas (Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain) and in the group of Prof Jeff Errington (University of Oxford, UK). After a first postdoctoral stage at Centre of Molecular Biology Severo Ochoa in Madrid (2007-2010) he moved to the group of Prof Manuel Serrano at Spanish National Cancer Research Centre – CNIO, where he was trained in cellular senescence and mouse models of cancer and ageing (2011-2015). His main work, published in Cell and Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology, culminated with two awarded grants: a “Ramon y Cajal Programme Senior Grant” and a “National Programme Grant for Researched Aimed at the H2020 Societal Changes”.

 

In 2016, Dr Muñoz-Espin joined the University of Cambridge as a principal investigator to establish his own group. Among other sources of funding, Daniel was awarded with an MRC New Investigator Research Grant (2017-2021) and a CRUK Early Detection Project (2018-2021) and is funded by a CRUK Programme Foundations Award (2020-2026). He has made recent scientific contributions as principal investigator corresponding author in peer-reviewed journals in the fields of cancer and ageing, including but not restricted to EMBO Molecular Medicine (2018), Aging Cell (2020), European Respiratory Journal (2022), Cancer Cell (2023), Angew Chem (2024), Cell Death & Disease (2024) and a bioRxiv preprint (Under revision in Nature Aging). Muñoz-Espin’s laboratory has developed a number of tools to target senescence involving detection and therapeutic applications and resulting in several filed patents.

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Selected publications

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Failed reprogramming of transformed cells to induction of apoptosis and senescence impairs tumour progression in lung cancer. 

Pedrosa P, Zhang Z, Macias D, Ge J, Denholm M, Dyas A, Nunez-Quintela V, Estevez-Souto V, Lado-Fernandez P, Gonzalez P,  Martin JE, Da Silva-Alvarez S, Collado M*, Muñoz-Espín D*. 

Cell Death Dis. 2024; 15(857)

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In vivo monitoring of cellular senescence by photoacustic and fluorescence imaging utilizing a nanostructured organic probe.

Baker AG, Ou H-L, Hartono M, Bistrovic AP, Brown E, Joseph J, Golinska M, Sanghera C, Gonzalez-Gualda E, Macias D, Else T, Greer H, Vernet A, Bohndiek S, Fruk L*, Muñoz-Espín D*. 

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2024; 63(25):E202404885.

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Clearance of senescent macrophages ameliorates tumorigenesis in KRAS-driven lung cancer. 

Haston S, Gonzalez-Gualda E, Morsli, S, Ge J, …, Gil J, Muñoz-Espín D*, Martinez-Barbera JP*.

Cancer Cell. 2023; 41:1242-1260. 

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• Galacto-conjugation of Navitoclax as an efficient strategy to increase senolytic specificity and reduce platelet toxicity.
  E. González-Gualda†, M. Pàez-Ribes,†, B. Lozano-Torres,†, D. Macias, J. R Wilson III, C. González-López, H-L. Ou, S. Mirón-Barroso, Z. Zhang, A. Lérida-Viso, J. F Blandez, A. Bernardos, F. Sancenón, M. Rovira, L. Fruk, M. Serrano, G. J Doherty, R. Martínez-Máñez*, D. Muñoz-Espín*. 
  Aging Cell. 00:e13142, 2020.
   

• Targeting senescent cells in translational medicine.
  M. Paez-Ribes†, E. Gonzalez-Gualda†, G.J. Doherty, D. Muñoz-Espin. 
   EMBO Mol Med. 11:e10234, 2019.
   

• A versatile therapeutic strategy for drug delivery into senescent cells. 
  Muñoz-Espín D, Rovira M, Galiana I, Giménez C, Lozano-Torres, Paez-Ribes M, Llanos S, Chaib S, Muñoz M, Ucero AC, Garaulet G, Mulero F, Dann S, VanArsdale T, Shields DJ, Bernardos A, Murguía JR, Martínez-Máñez R, Serrano M. 
  EMBO Molecular Medicine. 2018 Jul;10(7)
   

• Robust, universal biomarker assay to detect senescent cells in biological specimens. 
  Evangelou K, Lougiakis N, Rizou SV, Kotsinas A, Kletsas D, Muñoz-Espín D, Kastrinakis NG, Pouli N, Marakos P, Townsend P, Serrano M, Bartek J, Gorgoulis VG. 
  Aging Cell. 2017 Feb;16(1):192-197.

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• An OFF-ON Two-Photon Fluorescent Probe for Tracking Cell Senescence in Vivo. 
  Lozano-Torres B, Galiana I, Rovira M, Garrido E, Chaib S, Bernardos A, Muñoz-Espín D, Serrano M, Martínez-Máñez R, Sancenón F. 
  J Am Chem Soc. 2017 Jul 5;139(26):8808-8811.
   

• Cellular senescence: from physiology to pathology. 
  Muñoz-Espín D, Serrano M.
  Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2014 Jul;15(7):482-96. 
   

• Programmed cell senescence during mammalian embryonic development. 
  Muñoz-Espín D, Cañamero M, Maraver A, Gómez-López G, Contreras J, Murillo-Cuesta S, Rodríguez-Baeza A, Varela-Nieto I, Ruberte J, Collado M, Serrano M. 
  Cell. 2013 Nov 21;155(5):1104-18.
  
   

Commentaries on his Cell paper

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• Cell biology: the beginning of the end. Campisi J. Nature. 2014;505:35-36. 

• A new development in senescence. Banito A, Lowe SW. Cell. 2013;155:977-978.

• Developmentally programmed senescence. Baumann K. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2013;15:4.

• The benefits of aging: cellular senescence in normal development. Pérez-Garijo A, Steller H. EMBO J. 2014;33:99-100.

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