Posts by El Bachir MOURABIT

Florence, Italy — March 30, 2025 – The 51st Annual Meeting of the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT) commenced in Florence with a compelling and multifaceted opening ceremony that captured the essence of what the EBMT represents. Far beyond a traditional welcome, the evening unfolded as a rich tapestry of scientific achievement, heartfelt remembrance, and forward-looking vision.

Live biotherapeutic products are rapidly changing the landscape of infection prevention, particularly in immunocompromised patients. Among these, SER-155, a multi-strain oral therapy, has demonstrated compelling clinical results. In a recent trial, the incidence of bloodstream infections (BSIs) dropped sharply in the SER-155 group compared to placebo (10% vs. 42.9%). This finding signals a potential breakthrough in both infection control and microbiome modulation. In this interview, Dr. Doris Ponce discusses the mechanisms behind SER-155, its implications for antimicrobial resistance, and its future applications beyond transplant medicine. Her responses provide an in-depth look at how microbiome science is poised to transform not only prevention but also personalized therapeutic strategies in clinical care.

The 30th Congress of the European Hematology Association (EHA 2025) was held from June 12 to 15 in Milan, Italy. As one of the world’s leading hematology meetings, this year’s event spotlighted the latest advances across hematologic subspecialties, featuring cutting-edge approaches in diagnosis and treatment, along with new findings in both clinical and translational research. Among the studies presented, a research project led by Professor Jian Hou from Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, was selected for an oral presentation (Abstract S188). This study sheds light on the critical role of non-coding enhancer-type extrachromosomal circular DNA (eccDNA), specifically eccANKRD28, in the development of drug resistance in multiple myeloma (MM). Oncology Frontier – Hematology Frontier spoke with Prof. Hou onsite for an in-depth discussion of this work.