"We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop."

I am a translational scientist working at the interface of immunology, biologics discovery, and cell & gene therapy for oncology and autoimmune diseases. My work spans the journey from early binder and construct design through in-depth preclinical evaluation and manufacturing readiness, with particular expertise in CAR T-cell programmes.

I design and implement experimental strategies to generate, refine, and prioritise therapeutic candidates, combining computational insight with high-content laboratory validation. I am particularly interested in integrating AI/ML-driven design into my research to inform construct architecture, improve candidate selection, and make each experimental cycle more purposeful. Over the past eight years, I have progressed programmes from initial concept to stages aligned with clinical translation, collaborating closely with multidisciplinary teams and external partners to turn complex data into clear development decisions.

I am motivated by environments where scientific depth, innovation, and real-world impact intersect, and I bring a pragmatic, delivery-focused mindset to advancing next-generation immunotherapies.

If you're interested in my work or would like to connect, feel free to get in touch!

Eva Bugallo Blanco

evabugallo@gmail.com
CAR-T GMP Manufacturing Team
UCL Royal Free Hospital
Rowland Hill Street
London NW3 2PF
United Kingdom

Publications

Peer-reviewed articles

GLUT5 armouring enhances adoptive T cell therapy anti-tumour activity under glucose-limiting conditions
R Page, O Martinez, D Larcombe-Young, E Bugallo-Blanco, S Papa, E Perucha

Immunotherapy advances, 2025

Immunotherapy using IgE or CAR T cells for cancers expressing the tumor antigen SLC3A2
GPellizzari,O Martinez,S Crescioli,R Page [...],E Bugallo-Blanco, [...] SN Karagiannis

Journal for immunotherapy of cancer, 2021

Acute immune signatures and their legacies in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 infected cancer patients
S Abdul-Jawad, L Baù, T Alaguthurai, IDM Del Barrio, [...],E Bugallo-Blanco, [...] S Irshad

Cancer Cell,2021

Tumor to normal single-cell mRNA comparisons reveal a pan-neuroblastoma cancer cell
G Kildisiute, WM Kholosy, MD Young, K Roberts, [...],E Bugallo-Blanco, [...] K Straathof, S Behjati

Science Advances, 2021

Single cell derived mRNA signals across human kidney tumors .
Young D. M, Mitchell J T, Custers MC.A, Khanbirova E, Olver RW.T, Comitani F, Piapi A, Bugallo-Blanco E, Thevanesan C, Straahof K, Behjati S, et al.

Nature Communications, 2021

A dynamic COVID-19 immune signature includes associations with poor prognosis
AG Laing, A Lorenc, IDM Del Barrio, A Das, M Fish, [...],E Bugallo-Blanco, [...] AC Hayday

Nature medicine, 2020

A consensus Covid-19 immune signature combines immuno-protection with discrete sepsis-like traits associated with poor prognosis
AG Laing, A Lorenc, IDM Del Barrio, A Das, M Fish, [...],E Bugallo-Blanco, [...] AC Hayday

Medrxiv, 2020



Posters

Inducible GFP reporter permits visualisation of the activation status of tumour infiltrating CAR T cells using cryo-fluorescence tomography
European Molecular Imaging Meeting, Porto, 2024.
SEEING IS BELIEVING:Non-invasive imaging to quantify CAR T cell kinetics
European Molecular Imaging Meeting, Porto, 2024.
Development of an absolute quantitation method for genetically modified cell therapy
European Association for Cancer Research meeting, Torino, 2023.
No more shots in the dark: development of an absolute quantitation method for genetically modified cell therapy
The 17th European Molecular Imaging Meeting, Thessaloniki, 2022.
No more shots in the dark: Imaging and quantifying CAR T-cells [PDF]
Poster Prize, 2021 CRUK City of London Center Symposium, London, March 2021.
Next generation T-cell immunotherpay in neuroblastoma
UCL Institute of Child Health, London, December 2018.

Talks

"Development of an in vivo quantitation method for CAR T cell immunotherapy”, MiLabs breakfast session, European Molecular Imaging Meeting, Porto, 2024. "No more shots in the dark: modeling CAR T cell traficking”, Annual meeting from the International Society for Cell and Gene Therapy, Paris, May 2023 "No more shots in the dark: trackig and imaging CAR T-cells”, Annual CRUK City of London Center Symposium, Francis Crick Institute, London, February 2020 "Next generation GD2-targeted immunotherapeutics”, Bi-Annual Symposium Cancer, UCL Institute of Child Health, London, June 2018 "GMOs, superheroes or supervillains?”, FEBIotec, III Biotechnology Week, Salamanca, 2015. "Genes and inherited diseases”, FEBiotec, II Biotechnology Week, Salamanca, Spain, 2013

Theses

Development of an absolute quantitation method for genetically modified cell therapy, King's College London,UK, 2024. Analysis of the hetero-hexamer HrpRS that regulates the Secretion System in Pseudomonas syringae pv. Tomato DC3000, Imperial College London,UK, September 2017. Role of GABAergic neurons in thermoregulation and sleep, Imperial College London, UK, June 2017. Characterization of recombinant proteins in mammalian cells, Imperial College London, UK, January 2017. Oligonucleotide RNA Targeting: A Novel Therapy for Treating Friedreich’s Ataxia, University of Melbourne, Australia, June 2016.