Júlia German Cortés - Secondment from VHIR to UNG

During her secondment at Univerza v Novi Gorici (UNG) from June 10th to August 10th, 2025, Júlia German Cortés focused on applying phage display technology for the discovery of nanobodies (Nbs) with potential applications in extracellular vesicle (EV) research. She worked with both whole-cell and soluble protein targets, performing biopanning, clone amplification, and downstream screening by flow cytometry (FACS) and phage ELISA.

Júlia's work led to the identification of three nanobody clones with selective binding to a blood–brain barrier (BBB) model and five strong VEGFR2-binding candidates, providing promising tools for future functionalization studies. In addition, the stay allowed close collaboration with Dr. Ario de Marco’s group, strengthening scientific exchange within the EXPAND-EV consortium.