Lab Life

A laboratory preclinical model of the most common special histological subtype of breast cancer. Courtesy of George Sflomos (EPFL)

A promising new drug for an invasive type of breast cancer

— EPFL researchers have developed preclinical models for invasive lobular carcinoma and trialed a new drug. It slows tumor growth effectively by targeting specific features of the disease and opening the door to future clinical trials.

Animated Z-stack showing a volume of a differentiated mini-bladder stained with phalloidin (orange) and DAPI (cyan). Credit: Paduthol et al 2026.

A human mini-bladder shows the culprit of recurrent infections

— Researchers at EPFL, Heidelberg University and Roche have built a human mini-bladder to show how urine composition weakens bladder tissue, helping infections recur even after antibiotics.

© EPFL 2026/Thomä Lab

Pioneer factors steer chromatin remodeling for gene accessibility

— Researchers at EPFL uncover how the pioneer factors OCT4-SOX2 and the BAF remodeling complex coordinate their actions on nucleosomes to regulate DNA accessibility.