Catalan biomedical companies attracted €153.1 million in investment in 2016 Blog Post

Catalan biomedical companies were able to attract €153.1 million in investment in 2016, a record figure for the sector. This is the main takeaway from the first Study on investment in the Biomedical industry in Catalonia 2017: Achievements and future challenges presented by CataloniaBio, based at the Barcelona Science Park, and EY at the Cercle d’Economia before some seventy members of the association, entrepreneurs, investors and other professionals. 

 

A pioneer project to promote organ donation in the European Union and neighbouring countries Blog Post

Raising awareness among society and promoting the training around highly specialized experts in the 28 member countries of the European Union and its neighbouring countries in the community area, aiming to improve the rate of organ donations are the main reference points for EUDONORGAN. This European project is led by the University of Barcelona (UB), together with Bosch i Gimpera Foundation (FBG) and the DTI Donation & Transplantation Institute, located at the Barcelona Science Park.

 

ERC Starting Grant for IBEC researcher Lorenzo Albertazzi and IRB scientist Fran Supek Blog Post

The European Research Council (ERC) will award its ERC Starting Grants, worth a total of €605 million, to 406 early-career researchers throughout Europe. IBEC researcher Lorenzo Albertazzi and IRB Barcelona researcher Fran Supek at the Barcelona Science Park (PCB) are among this year’s awardees by these grants, which reward researchers with 2-7 seven years of experience since completion of the PhD (or equivalent degree), a scientific track record showing great promise and an excellent research proposal.

 

Two studies reject the scientific dogma associating ageing with the loss of stem cell circadian rhythm Blog Post

Two studies published in Cell by scientists from the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) at the Barcelona Science Park, the Pompeu Fabra University (UPF) and the University of California, Irvine (UCI) reject the scientific dogma associating ageing with the loss of stem cell circadian rhythm. Their results reveal that stem cell functions continue to be governed by day and night cycles (circadian rhythms) during ageing, but their rhythms become devoted to tissue repair and not to the maintenance of tissue tone.

 

Researchers describe a new brain signalling pathway that regulates body weight Blog Post

An article published in the journal Cell Metabolism –which counts with the participation of the researchers Francesc Villarroya and Joan Villarroya, from the Faculty of Biology and the Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB) at PCB– describes for the first timethe molecular mechanism that regulates the lipid metabolism in the liver through a hypothalamus-coordinated pathway in the brain. Study results open new horizons to the therapy design to treat obesity and other metabolic diseases.

 

SOM Biotech opens a €10 million Series A funding round Blog Post

The biopharmaceutical company SOM Biotech –and specialised in repositioning drugs to treat rare nervous system diseases– has just opened a Series A round with the goal of raising €10 million, targeted to top US and European biotech venture capital. Since it was founded at the Barcelona Science Park in 2009, SOM Biotech has raised more than €5.3 million from public and private capital, and has placed 8 patents for new medical indications and formulations.

 

AVX pharma announces initiation of a Phase 2 Clinical Trial of AVX-012 Ophthalmic Solution in Dry Eye Syndrome Blog Post

Avizorex Pharma (AVX Pharma), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company with offices at Barcelona Science Park and focused on the development of novel therapies for Dry Eye Syndrome, today announced the initiation of a Phase 2 clinical trial, evaluating the safety and efficacy of AVX-012 Ophthalmic Solution in patients with mild-to-moderate Dry Eye Syndrome, based on the concept of modulating corneal nerve activity to stimulate basal lacrimation.

 

Research in Society 2017-2018 programme kicks off Blog Post

Today, Monday 10 July, the Barcelona Science Park (Parc Científic de Barcelona, PCB) has kicked off its 17th Research in Society programme with the opening of the pre-registration period for the experimental workshops “Discover research!” and “Do research!”. This year, for the first time, places will be allocated to applicant schools in a draw using the list of reservation numbers.