Marta M. Alonso and Iker Ausejo-Mauleón

POPCORN Therapeutics

POPCORN Therapeutics is advancing next-generation oncolytic virus therapies for the treatment of otherwise incurable pediatric brain tumors, with a particular focus on diffuse midline gliomas (DMG). Its lead candidate, POP-02, is designed to selectively destroy tumor cells while activating a potent local anti-tumor immune response within the tumor microenvironment. With support from this grant, the team will complete advanced preclinical validation of POP-02 in relevant DMG models and define a regulatory roadmap toward first-in-human studies in Europe and the United States. In parallel, POP-02 will be evaluated in other high-risk pediatric and adult solid tumors to assess its potential as a scalable platform therapy.