BrainMap

Mr. Irinel Popescu

Profesor UTM , membru corespondent

Corresponding member - ACADEMIA ROMANA

Teaching staff

Web of Science ResearcherID: not public

Curriculum Vitae (29/04/2020)

Expertise & keywords

VIrtual Palpation SYSTEM for advanced training, medical diagnostic and treatment Call name: Joint Applied Research Projects - PCCA-2011 call, Type 2
PN-II-PT-PCCA-2011-3.2-0503 2012 - 2016

Role in this project:

Coordinating institution: UNIVERSITATEA DE MEDICINA SI FARMACIE CRAIOVA

Project partners: UNIVERSITATEA DE MEDICINA SI FARMACIE CRAIOVA (RO); INSTITUTUL CLINIC FUNDENI (RO); UNIVERSITATEA DIN CRAIOVA (RO); AVITECH CO. SRL (RO)

Affiliation: INSTITUTUL CLINIC FUNDENI (RO)

Project website: http://www.umfcv.ro/vipsystem

Abstract:

There are inherent problems in providing training to novices in any safety critical task. In particular, teaching medical clinicians to perform procedures poses challenges and possible risk to patients.

This project proposal relies on the development and evaluation of a haptic medical simulator (haptic hand-driven device) designed to recreate specific medical procedures due to pitfalls of classical medical training and diagnosing of pancreatic and liver tumors. Recreation of a three-dimensional model of a tumor (using multi-slice computed tomography, reconstruction software and electromagnetic tracking systems) is improved in our project proposal with the addition of real-time elastographic data regarding the stiffness of all tumor surfaces. The end model will thus be extremely accurate and can be integrated in the virtual reality haptic device. Our physical haptic interaction device represents a novelty on a national and international level, providing a new level of immersion during training.

This system also represents an innovation through its level of modularity. On one hand, it will be implemented for medical training applications in the training curricula of medical students. A second direction will be evaluating its usefulness for the trained gastroenterologist or surgeons in diagnosing difficult cases with liver or pancreatic masses, otherwise unreachable to hand palpation. Thirdly, the system can be used for simulating intraoperatory palpation, a maneuver often performed by surgeons during pancreatic surgery to assess tumor resecability and localization.

This research project has a strong interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary character, bringing together medical doctors, programmers and engineers (due to partnership between a medical university, a state-of-the-art hospital, a technical university and a private software company).

Role of S100A4 and MAP4K4 in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma progression Call name: Joint Applied Research Projects - PCCA-2011 call, Type 2
PN-II-PT-PCCA-2011-3.2-1490 2012 - 2016

Role in this project:

Coordinating institution: INSTITUTUL CLINIC FUNDENI

Project partners: INSTITUTUL CLINIC FUNDENI (RO); RNTECH S.R.L. (RO); INSTITUTUL DE BIOLOGIE SI PATOLOGIE CELULARA ,,NICOLAE SIMIONESCU'' (RO); INSTITUTUL DE VIRUSOLOGIE "STEFAN S.NICOLAU" (RO); INSTITUTUL ONCOLOGIC PROF.DR.ALEXANDRU TRESTIOREANU BUCURESTI (RO)

Affiliation: INSTITUTUL CLINIC FUNDENI (RO)

Project website: http://www.icfundeni.ro/S100MAP/

Abstract:

Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death both in man and women. Annually, its incidence closely matches its mortality, highlighting the limited efficacy of existing treatment options. Most pancreatic cancers are pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas and the 5-year survival rate for patients with localized disease after surgical resection is 20% and for those with metastatic disease, the survival rate is a dismal 2%. In the last years, investigators of the pathogenesis of this disease have turned their attention to the tumor microenvironment as a critical determinant of pancreatic tumor progression and clinical outcome. To address the question of the involvement of stromal cells in the pancreatic cancer progression, this project will have a specific interest on the interplay between stellate and pancreatic cancer cells analyzing the putative tumor markers in both cellular components.

Given the expertise of the consortium and the resources of the coordinating institute – consisting of a rich tumor biobank, an established Center for Cellular Therapies and a genomic platform – the present project will pursue two of the signaling pathways of the pancreatic cancer with the long-term goal to develop new remedies for this highly lethal disease. We will examine the role of the S100 calcium binding protein A4 (S1004) and the mitogen-activated protein 4 kinase 4 (MAP4K4) in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma progression. In doing so, we will consolidate the expertise and maintain the critical mass of scientists in areas of excellence and recruit strong external collaborators with significant expertise in these pathways and translational cancer research. Thus, the project is to set up a partnership in a priority research field – cancer genomics – to identify new molecular mechanisms involved in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma progression, which may result in rapid design and implementation of new therapeutic approaches targeting these pathways.

MOLECULAR PREDICTORS OF PROGNOSIS FOLLOWING CURATIVE TREATMENT OF HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA – THE SIGNIFFICANCE OF LIVER STEM/PROGENITOR CELLS GENES Call name: Exploratory Research Projects - PCE-2011 call
PN-II-ID-PCE-2011-3-0605 2011 - 2016

Role in this project:

Coordinating institution: Institutul Clinic Fundeni

Project partners: Institutul Clinic Fundeni (RO)

Affiliation: Institutul Clinic Fundeni (RO)

Project website: http://www.pce1252011.eu

Abstract:

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common and hard-to-treat cancers worldwide. Surgical tumor resection and liver transplantation, remains the only curative modality for HCC, but recurrence rate is still high. In light of the dismal clinical outcome of this neoplasm, the development of effective systems that can predict the likelihood of recurrence is much needed. Classically, two general models of carcinogenesis have been debated: the stochastic model and the hierarchical model. The hierarchical model or cancer stem cell (CSC) model, postulates that a single CSC gives rise to a hierarchic organization containing varied downstream descendants, proliferates extensively, and initiates tumors at high frequency. The role of liver stem cells in HCC carcinogenesis has been illustrated experimentally. To date, it has been shown that CSCs in HCC can be identified by several cell surface antigens CD133, CD90, CD44, OV6 and the epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM), or by selecting for the side population cells in Hoechst dye-staining. The main objective of the proposed project is represented by the evaluation of liver stem/progenitor cells specific genes expression profile in HCC nodules as prognostic factors (overall and recurrence free survival) after curative surgical therapy. Our project will provide new concepts for development of new drugs and will allow identification of new diagnosis and prognosis markers, adding new markers to the molecular classification.

A NOVEL APPROACH TO REDUCE OXIDATIVE STRESS AT MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR LEVEL WITH APPLICATIONS IN REGENERATIVE MEDICINE Call name: Exploratory Research Projects - PCE-2011 call
PN-II-ID-PCE-2011-3-0769 2011 - 2016

Role in this project: Project coordinator

Coordinating institution: INSTITUTUTL CLINIC FUNDENI

Project partners: INSTITUTUTL CLINIC FUNDENI (RO)

Affiliation: INSTITUTUTL CLINIC FUNDENI (RO)

Project website: http://icfundeni.ro/a-novel-approach-to-reduce-oxidative-stress-at-molecular-and-cellular-level-with-applications-in-regenerative-medicine/

Abstract:

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) can react with many cellular biomolecules including proteins, lipid, and DNA to produce a variety of oxidative lesions. ROS can be produced by exposure of cells to exogenous environmental agents - ionizing radiation, light, chemicals, and metals but they are also produced by cellular metabolism. Many studies were focused on counteracting the effects of ROS at cellular level and thereafter in developing methods and equipments that impede its hazardous consequences and stimulate the antioxidant mechanisms of the cells. All the known antioxidant effects were obtained, until now, mainly through chemical agents. The main objective of the proposed project is to investigate the possibility to develop new in vitro cell culture models, in which antioxidant effects are induced at molecular and cellular level by externally applied electromagnetic fields in the frequency range of visible light (high density green photons – HDGP). Direct applications for increasing viability, functionality and expansion capabilities of stem cells and to minimize pancreatic islets cell damage caused by oxidative stress during isolation and purification steps will be investigated, by a large panel of validated molecular biology techniques. Within this proposal we also aim to translate the basic knowledge obtained from fundamental multi-disciplinary studies into clinical practice, by developing new techniques and tools for clinical applications.

QUANTITATIVE EXPRESSION OF LIVER ENRICHED TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS IN HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA, NEW MARKERS FOR RECURRENCE FOLLOWING CURATIVE TREATMENT Call name: Postdoctoral Research Projects - PD-2011 call
PN-II-RU-PD-2011-3-0137 2011 - 2013

Role in this project:

Coordinating institution: Institutul Clinic Fundeni

Project partners: Institutul Clinic Fundeni (RO)

Affiliation: Institutul Clinic Fundeni (RO)

Project website: http://www.pd232011.eu

Abstract:

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the fifth most common cancer worldwide, with a median survival of 6–16 months, being one of the most difficult to treat cancers. Due to the evolution of this neoplasm, the development of effective new systems that can predict the likelihood of recurrence after curative treatment, including molecular prognostic factors, is much needed. This will help in deciding therapeutic strategies for patients with HCC according to the predicted low or high risk of recurrence. New molecular insights of liver organogenesis have highlighted the paramount importance of the liver enriched transcription factors in generating and maintaining the differentiated liver specific phenotype: hepatic nuclear factor 1(HNF-1), HNF-3, HNF-4, HNF-6, CCAAT/enhancer binding protein (C/EBP), and D binding protein (DBP). The main objective of the proposed project is to investigate the expression level of liver enriched transcription factors in curatively treated hepatocellular carcinoma and the relationship with the differentiation degree of the tumor and the histopathological appearance. The results could lead to a new molecular classification of hepatocellular carcinoma with potential prognostic significance. The project will have a high clinical impact as prediction of early recurrence would lead to more aggressive follow-up after surgical therapy and a better selection of patients for liver transplantation, especially inside Milan criteria.

FILE DESCRIPTION	DOCUMENT
List of research grants as project coordinator
List of research grants as partner team leader
List of research grants as project coordinator or partner team leader
Significant R&D projects for enterprises, as project manager
R&D activities in enterprises
Peer-review activity for international programs/projects