Christina Sunil (DC3)

New Approach Methodologies" (NAMs) for modelling tumour-immune interactions

About

Current in vitro disease models often fail to capture the complexity of native tissues, while animal models fail to accurately predict treatment response in humans. This creates a strong need for tissue-relevant human models that can replicate the in vivo microenvironment to support clinical translation. This project focuses on developing an extracellular matrix-based 3D bioprinted in vitro cancer model to study tumour-immune cell interactions, which can potentially lead to a standardized, scalable NAM platform for drug testing and translational use.

Background

My passion for translational research was ignited during my undergraduate research fellowships, where I worked on 3D bioprinting of lung tissue models for preclinical vaccine testing in Canada, and on high-throughput drug screening using cancer genomics in Singapore. For my master’s thesis, I studied how mechanical cues within the tumor microenvironment shape cancer progression. I gained exposure to how scientific discoveries translate into clinical outcomes during my internship at GlaxoSmithKline. I also have experience working with RNA therapeutics and lab automation.