Milena Čavić - Secondment from IORS to GEN

In July-August 2025, Dr Milena Čavić, PI from the Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia, visited GENOS in Zagreb, Croatia. Dr Cavic was acquainted with UHPLC-based, CGE-based and MS-based glycoprofiling methods for the analysis of Released N-glycans, site-specific glycosylation and glycosylation site occupancy, from     complex biological samples as human serum/plasma, cell lysates, tissues, purified glycoproteins as human IgG, IgA, AGP, C3, transferrin, HDL, LDL, rodent IgG and biopharmaceuticals as mAb. High-throughput approaches from sample preparation to end analysis optimised for a specific sample were reviewed in detail. 

Strategic meetings were held with hosts Dr Andjelo Beletic, Oncology Head at GENOS, Prof. Gordan Lauc, GENOS CEO and other GENOS personnel concerning the specific methodology which will be used to determine the EV glycome profile from liquid biopsy samples of patients with lung cancer. Glycoprofiling will be performed during 2025 and 2026 on patient samples provided by IORS in search of prognostic and predictive biomarkers, enabling a future integration of data with other omics results. A detailed plan of sample types, methodology to be used and data analysis approaches for future IORS personnel secondments at GENOS was prepared. Comparison of data from different liquid biopsy sample types would be preferred, as well as an effort to analyse corresponding tumor tissues (FFPE).

During the secondment, a review project publication "Molecular aspects of protein glycosylation and diagnostic potential in oncology" was also jointly written by GENOS and IORS personnel for the Oncology Insights, official Journal of the Serbian Association for Cancer Research (ISSN 3009-3848, https://english.sdir.ac.rs/oncology-insights/), in an effort to widen the reach of this research field in Serbia. 

It was also agreed that IORS and GENOS will include a presentation of the project and the plans for glycoprofiling alongside the coordinator UBFC, at the Projects Hub section of the 1st Regional Congress of EACR-affiliated Serbian, Croatian and Turkish societies SDIR, HDIR and MOKAD, which will take place in Belgrade, Serbia, from October 8 to 10, 2025 (https://english.sdir.ac.rs/about-sdir-7/).