Embryotools successfully concludes the first trials on an innovative assisted reproduction technique Blog Post

Embryotools —headquartered at Barcelona Science Park (PCB)— has successfully concluded tests on animal models to validate an innovative assisted reproduction technique known as Maternal Spindle Transfer (MST).  This new technique is a mitochondrial replacement therapy which groups of leading scientists from around the world are studying for the prevention of mitochondrial diseases, which are transmitted maternally and currently have no treatment. Embryotools has been working on this project for over three years in partnership with the PCB-PRBB Animal Facility Alliance and the company Reprogenetics UK, located at Oxford University.

 

An increase in low density lipoproteins would favour insulin resistance Blog Post

A study led by the University of Barcelona proved that low-density proteins (VLDL) can worsen insulin resistance, a disease that favours the development of type 2 diabetes. The study, published in the scientific journal Diabetologia , has been carried out by the research group led by Manuel Vázquez Carrera, researcher from the Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutic Chemistry and the Institute of Biomedicine of the UB (IBUB), located at the Barcelona Science Park.

 

The Drosophila fly brings to light the role of morphogens in limb growth Blog Post

Researchers working in the Development and Growth Control Lab at IRB Barcelona located at the Barcelona Science Park reveal that the Dpp gene (BMP in humans) plays a double role in the structural organisation and growth of the wings of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. Published in the journal eLife, this study paves the way to studying vertebrate development and congenital defects in humans.

 

Boosting natural detoxification pathways in the body to reduce cellular oxidative stress Blog Post

Promoting innate detoxification mechanisms in the body and discovering which supplements increase the efficacy of those biochemical pathways could be an efficient strategy to reduce the cellular oxidative stress and protect our health, according to an article published in the journal Food Chemistry, by the researchers Rafael Franco, from the Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona at the Barcelona Science Park and Eva Martínez Pinilla, from the Institute of Neurosciences of Asturias (INEUROPA) and the University of Oviedo.

 

Esteve co-leads international consortium for the development of more efficacious therapies for neuropathic pain Blog Post

Esteve at the Barcelona Science Park co-leads the NGN-PET consortium, that unites the expertise and knowledge of industry partners from the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA), small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and academia for the development of novel, more efficacious treatments for chronic pain of neuropathic origin. NGN-PET is a project launched in the framework of the Innovative Medicine Initiative (IMI), the largest public-private partnership (PPP) for health research worldwide co-funded by the EU and the European pharmaceutical industry.

 

Researchers from IBUB create a new technique to measure brown adipose tissue activity Blog Post

Experts from the Institute of Biomedicine of Barcelona (IBUB), located at the Barcelona Science Park (PCB) have created a new technique to measure the energy production and use in brown adipose tissue, a key organ in obesity due its capacity to oxidize fat and dissipate energy as heat. This method, published in the scientific journal Advanced Science, improved the precision of previous techniques to fight obesity. 

 

IBEC celebrates 10 years of excellent interdisciplinary research Blog Post

2017 sees the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) celebrate its first ten years of research activity. lt’s been a hair-raisingly fast climb up to the near top of the tree of centres in the Catalan research arena, with IBEC already holding its own alongside bigger and more established organizations for scientific output, number of ERC grants, patents, spin-offs, training programmes, national or EU-level stamps and endorsements, and other important indicators. Yesterday, the 10th Anniversary Commemorative Ceremony and this week’s Symposium on Bioengineering for Future Medicine at the AXA Auditorium kicked off the celebrations.

 

A cellular model to study the relation between neurodegenerative diseases is designed Blog Post

Thanks to the cells of a patient with a rare neurodegenerative disease -the Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker syndrome (GSS)- researchers from the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC), at the Barcelona Science Park, and the Institute of Neurosciences of the UB have created neurons showing other neurodegenerative processes which so far had not been related to this minority disease. This scientific finding could open new doors to the study of neurodegenerative pathologies with diagnoses similar to Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s according to the study published in the journal Molecular Neurobiology.