Jordi Gonzalez Molina

Assistant Professor
Visiting address: BioMedicum A4, Solnavägen 9, 17165 Solna
Postal address: K6 Kvinnors och barns hälsa, K6 NOGRH Gemzell Danielsson Alkasalias, 171 77 Stockholm
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About me

  • I am a research specialist at Kaisa Lehti's group (MTC). My main research
    interest is understanding the interplay between biophysical and biochemical
    cues of the tumour microenvironment (TME) in the regulation of tumour
    development, progression, and therapy response. To this end, we are
    developing novel 3D cell culture methods that allow the precise control of
    multiple biochemical and biophysical features, presenting relatively high
    complexity.
    2015 – 2018, *MPhil/PhD *in Cancer mechanobiology, Institute for Liver and
    Digestive Health, University College London, London, UK.
    2013 – 2014, *MSc *in Biomedical Research, Faculty of Health and Life
    Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.
    2006 – 2011, *BSc *in Human Biology, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences,
    Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.

Research

  • *The Extracellular matrix and mechanobiology*
    The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a network of macromolecules providing with
    physical support and biochemical signals to surrounding cells. The ECM in
    tumours is usually altered by cancer and stromal cells to provide a
    favourable microenvironment for cancer cells to proliferate, migrate, and
    survive external stresses. Typical alterations of the ECM in tumours include
    changes in the composition and physical characteristics such as its topology,
    stiffness, and viscoelasticity.
    I am investigating how the biochemical and biophysical properties of the ECM
    impact tumour progression, aggressiveness, and therapy response with the
    ultimate goal of improving patient treatment, specifically in ovarian cancer
    and in sarcomas.
    Relevant Publications:
    Closset L., Gultekin O., Salehi S., Sarhan D., Lehti K., *Gonzalez-Molina J*.
    The extracellular matrix–immune microenvironment crosstalk in cancer
    therapy: challenges and opportunities. Matrix Biol. 2023 Jul
    29;S0945-053X(23)00081-1. [1]
    *Gonzalez-Molina J*., Hahn P., Falcão R.M., Gultekin O., Kokaraki G.,
    Zanfagnin V., Braz Petta T., Lehti K., Carlson J.W. MMP14 expression and
    collagen remodelling support uterine leiomyosarcoma aggressiveness. Mol
    Oncol. 2023 Apr 20. [2]
    *Gonzalez-Molina J*.*, Moyano-Galceran L.*, Single A.*, Gultekin O., Alsalhi
    S., Lehti K. Chemotherapy as a regulator of extracellular matrix-cell
    communication: implications in therapy resistance. Seminars in Cancer
    Biology. 2022 Mar 21;S1044-579X(22)00068-2. [3]
    *Gonzalez-Molina J*., Kirchhof K.M. , Rathod B., Moyano-Galceran L.,
    Calvo-Noriega M., Kokaraki G., Bjørkøy A., Ehnman M., Carlson J.W., Lehti
    K. Mechanical Confinement and DDR1 Signaling Synergize to Regulate
    Collagen-Induced Apoptosis in Rhabdomyosarcoma Cells. Adv Sci. 2022 Aug
    11;e2202552. [4]
    Pietilä E.A., *Gonzalez-Molina J*., Moyano-Galceran L., Jamalzadeh S., Zhang
    K., Lehtinen L., Turunen S.P., Martins T.A., Gultekin O., Lamminen T.,
    Kaipio K., Joneborg U., Hynninen J., Hietanen S., Grénman S., Lehtonen R.,
    Hautaniemi S., Carpén O., Carlson J.W., Lehti K. Co-evolution of matrisome
    and adaptive adhesion dynamics drives ovarian cancer chemoresistance. Nature
    Communications. 2021 Jun 23;12(1):3904. [5]
    Gultekin O.*, *Gonzalez-Molina J*.*, Hardell E., Moyano-Galceran L., Mitsios
    N., Mulder J., Kokaraki G., Isaksson A., Sarhan D., Lehti K., Carlson J.W.
    FOXP3+ T cells in uterine sarcomas are associated with favorable prognosis,
    low extracellular matrix expression and reduced YAP activation. Npj
    Precision Oncology. 2021 Nov 19;5(1):97. [6]
    *Gonzalez-Molina J*., Gramolelli S., Liao Z., Carlson J.W., Ojala P.M., Lehti
    K. MMP14 in Sarcoma: A Regulator of Tumor Microenvironment Communication in
    Connective Tissues. Cells. 2019 Aug 28;8(9). [7]
    *Gonzalez-Molina J*., Zhang X., Borghesan M., Mendonça da Silva J., Awan M.,
    Fuller B., Gavara N., Selden C. Extracellular fluid viscosity enhances liver
    cancer cell mechanosensing and migration. Biomaterials. 2018 Sep;177:113-124.
    [8]
    *Prototissues to investigate the tumour microenvironment*
    In recent years, biomaterials have proven to be excellent tools to study the
    impact of the biophysical and biochemical characteristics of the ECM on cell
    behaviour. However, these models lack the cellular components of the
    microenvironment. I am developing novel biomaterials that include synthetic
    ECM and cells (protocells) forming Prototissues (Figure 1) to investigate how
    cancer and cancer-associated cells integrate complex signals and how they
    regulate fundamental processes in cancer including cancer cell growth and
    invasion.
    Relevant Publications
    Peng L., Matellan C., Bosch-Fortea M., *Gonzalez-Molina J*., Frigerio M.,
    Salentinig S., Del Rio Hernandez A., Gautrot J.E. Mesenchymal Stem Cells
    Sense the Toughness of Nanomaterials and Interfaces. Adv Healthc Mater. 2023
    May;12(13):e2203297. [9]
    [1] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0945053X23000811
    [2] https://febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/1878-0261.13440
    [3] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1044579X22000682?via%3Dihub
    [4] https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/advs.202202552
    [5] https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-24009-8
    [6] https://www.nature.com/articles/s41698-021-00236-6
    [7] https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/8/9/991
    [8] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0142961218304150
    [9] https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adhm.202203297

Teaching

  • PhD student course, Tumor microenvironment, Dept. of Oncology-Pathology, KI
    (2019, 2020, 2021), course co-organizer

Articles

All other publications

Employments

  • Assistant Professor, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, 2026-2032
  • Research Specialist, Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology, Karolinska Institutet, 2023-2023

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