Nanovectors could improve the combined administration of antimalarial drugs Blog Post

Encapsulating two drugs with different properties into nanovesicles surrounded by antibodies can greatly improve their delivery and efficacy, according to a study led by Xavier Fernández Busquets, director of the joint Nanomalaria unit at the Institute for Bionengineering of Catalonia (IBEC), in the Barcelona Science Park, and the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), supported by ”la Caixa”.

 

Researchers decipher the structure and mechanism of action of a key complex involved in bacteriophage T7 infection Blog Post

Scientists from the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona), at the Barcelona Science Park, and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) have combined cryomicroscopy and crystallography techniques to study the bacteriophage T7. The study, published in Nature Communications, reveals the opening and closing mechanism of the portal protein during the maturation of the viral capsid, the structure that carries the genetic material of the virus. Deciphering how work the Bacteriophages –viruses that infect bacteria– helps us to understand how others pathogenic affect us and, at the same time, they are a new focus of attention for researchers given their potential as an alternative to antibiotics.

 

 

The UdG proves the effect of an Esteve drug that prevents spinal cord injury pain Blog Post

A team of scientists from the University of Girona (UdG) has shown the effect of an Esteve drug to prevent the development of the pathological pain resulting from a spinal cord injury. The study is of great importance because there are currently no medicines that are really effective against this pathological pain caused by spinal cord injury. With this research, the pharmaceutical group, which has its Drug Discovery and Preclinical Development Units at the Barcelona Science Park, is again committed to collaborative innovation to provide solutions to medical needs not covered in diseases of high social impact.

 

A nanodrone able to detect toxic gases in emergencies Blog Post

Detecting dangerous gases in collapsed buildings due earthquakes or explosions and identifying the presence of victims in places which are hard to access are some action scenarios of SNAV (Smelling Nano Aerial Vehicle), a nanodrone designed and created by the researchers Santiago Marco and Javier Burgués, from the Faculty of Physics of the University of Barcelona and the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC), based in the Barcelona Science Park.

 

p38 protein regulates the formation of new blood vessels in tumours Blog Post

Researchers from the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) at the Barcelona Science Park publish a study in the journal Nature Communications addressing the role of the p38 protein in angiogenesis—the formation of new blood vessels—a critical process that fuels tumour cells and allows them to grow and eventually develop metastases.

 

EIT Health Spain awards Headstart Programme support to Senolytic Therapeutics and Moirai Biodesign Blog Post

EIT Health Spain has announced today the 15 Spanish start-ups selected for 2019 Headstart Programe, which includes funding, mentoring and networking opportunities. Among those selected are Senolytic Therapeutics and Moirai Biodesign based in the Barcelona Science Park. Since 2016 the Spanish node of EIT Health, located in the Park, has supported more than 100 Spanish start-ups through a variety of acceleration programmes designed to support healthcare entrepreneurs at every stage of their business journey.