Minoryx Therapeutics – a drug development company specialized in the discovery and development of new drugs for orphan diseases, which has R& D laboratories at the Barcelona Science Park– announces that it has successfully completed its phase 1 trial with its lead compound MIN-102 targeting X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD), a life threatening orphan CNS disease with high unmet medical need.
A team led by researchers of the Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB) –at the Barcelona Science Park– and the Research Institute of the Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau (IIB-Sant Pau) shows for the first time, the three-dimensional structure of the homodimeric androgen receptor ligand-binding domain, a structure that eluded researchers for years. This new structure of the nuclear receptor allows explaining more than forty mutations related to prostate cancer, one of the most common worldwide and especially in Catalonia, as well as known developing disorders.
Sequentia Biotech, based at the Barcelona Science Park, has launched a cloud computing platform called A.I.R. (Artificial Intelligence RNAseq), the first predictive bioinformatics tool that automatically analyzes mass transcriptomic data (ie data linked to the RNA) from the genome of any species, generated by the Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) technologies, providing a complete report in less than 24 hours.
A study headed by Salvador Aznar Benitah, ICREA researcher at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) in the Barcelona Science Park, and published today in Nature, identifies metastasis-initiating cells through a specific marker, namely the protein CD36. Their results show that the protein CD36, which absorbs fat from the cell membrane, is an essential factor that determines whether tumour cells become metastatic. IRB Barcelona will co-develop antibodies against CD36 with the potential to treat patients.
To celebrate its 10th anniversary, Biocat is holding a new edition of the Forum of the BioRegion of Catalonia on 25 November at the Palau de Congressos de Catalunya in order to bring together the stakeholders in the Catalan healthcare and life sciences ecosystem and reflect on the challenges and opportunities available in this current environment of change and sectorial transformation. The latest session brought together more than 450 representatives from Catalan organizations and this year Biocat –with headquarters at the Barcelona Scientific Park – is opening the event up to international clusters.
Omega-3 fatty acids are able to stimulate the activation of brown and beige adipose tissues, a discovery that would promote the development of new therapies for obesity and other metabolism diseases, according to a research study published in the journal Nature Communications under the supervision of Professor Francesc Villarroya, from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biomedicine and member of the Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB) –located at PCB– and the Biomedical Research Center Red-Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición (CIBEROBN) of the Institute of Health Carlos III.
Researchers at the Centro Nacional de Análisis Genómico (CNAG-CRG), based at the Barcelona Science Park (PCB), participate in a series of articles simultaneously published by scientists from across the International Human Epigenome Consortium (IHEC) in prestigious scientific journals. The collection of publications showcases the achievements and scientific progress made by IHEC in core areas of current epigenetic investigations.
Under the theme Drug repurposing for rare diseases. The cure of the 21st century, B·Debate – an initiative by Biocat and “la Caixa” Foundation– will be holding, in association with the Barcelona Science Park (PCB) and Hospital Sant Joan de Déu (HSJD), an international expert gathering at CosmoCaixa on 17 and 18 November to help identify new therapeutic strategies for rare diseases, with a special emphasis on drug repurposing already approved for other diseases.
Sequentia Biotech based at the Barcelona Science Park (PCB) recently developed Gaia, an online bioinformatics tool able to manage and analyze metagenomic data from any microbial community (bacteria, viruses and eukaryotes) generated by new sequencing technologies (Next Generation Sequencing, NGS) applied to human, animal and plant genetics and automatically integrates all levels of taxonomic classification with functional classification (from the kingdom to the subspecies) in just 12 hours. It is also the first bioinformatics tool that compares samples in real time. This SAAS-based software is available in the cloud and does not require specialized training; making it possible for any researcher who is not versed in bioinformatics to use it.
The Bilbao Exhibition Center (BEC) in Barakaldo (Bizkaia) will host BioSpain 2016, the 8th edition of the eighth edition of this biennial event of biotechnology, the largest in Europe with permanent headquarters in one country and the fifth in the world ranking by number of partnering meetings. The event, to be held from 28 to 30 September, will bring together more than 2,000 attendees, 855 companies and nearly 50 investors- and will feature the participation of the Barcelona Science Park (PCB) and a large number of companies and entities of the PCB Community.
