04/05/2020 - Press release
A team of researchers led by Dr. Victoria Puig from the Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), which also involved the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), has studied the neural basis of intellectual disability in mice with Down syndrome and has discovered that the neural networks of brain circuits relevant to memory and learning are over-activated and that the connectivity of these circuits is poor. The researchers have also observed that neural activity during sleep is abnormal and probably interferes with memory consolidation. The study has even identified biomarkers in brain rhythms that can predict memory deficits in the mice which are corrected by chronic treatment with a natural component of green tea, epigallocatechin gallate, which other studies have already shown to improve executive function in adults with Down syndrome.
Més informació "New therapeutic targets for treating memory impairment in Down syndrome"
04/05/2020 - Covid-19
Today, the Barcelona-born singer Macaco is presenting his new song, Sanadoras Voluntades, a tribute to the work being done by health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The song and its video clip are the result of the combined efforts of the singer, the producers Nebraska and Playtime Movies, Hospital del Mar, the Friends of Hospital del Mar Foundation and the illustrator Lola Vendetta. The project was created to thank healers. "Our applause is not enough for this group of people who reject the label of heroes and simply demand protection and safety to be able to carry out their work", explains Dani Macaco, who performed and composed the song, along with Thomas Tirtha Rundquist, as well as directing the video, together with Bernat Saumell. This humanitarian initiative was supported by Hospital del Mar, one of the Catalan centres involved in treating COVID-19 patients, and by the Friends of Hospital del Mar Foundation. All the proceeds from playing the song and video clip on digital platforms, as well as the copyright, will be given to a research project at the Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM) in the field of COVID-19 research and treatment.
Més informació "Hospital del Mar and Macaco join forces to promote research into COVID-19"
23/04/2020 - Institutional news
The Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) is made up of a group of prestigious international scientists, experts in the different areas corresponding to the IMIM research programs. Until very recently the president of the SAB was Dr. Joaquin Arribas, but with his incorporation as director of the IMIM and scientific director of the PSMAR, will take his place Dr. Xosé R. Bustelo, Deputy Director of the Cancer Research Center (CIC), University of Salamanca-CSIC, Director of the Genomics and Proteomics Unit and coordinator of the Tumor Progression Mechanisms Program at the same center. He is also a member of the CIBERONC Steering Committee. Dr. Bustelo holds a PhD in Biology from the University of Santiago de Compostela, his scientific training includes several stays at international research centers such as the Bristol Myers Squibb Pharmaceutical Research Institute (Princeton, New Jersey, USA), as a postdoctoral fellow and later as Research Scientist and in the Department of Pathology at State University of New York (Stony Brook, New York, USA, as an Assistant Professor.
Més informació "New chairman of the IMIM External Scientific Advisory Board"
24/04/2020 - Press release
Up to now, it was not known what happened in the human body after maslinic acid and oleanolic acid were consumed in diet-compatible quantities, in other words, what happened from the moment they were ingested until their total elimination from the body, what is referred to as pharmacokinetics. Furthermore, information on the biological activity of these biomolecules in the human body is very scarce in the scientific literature. Using a method for determining oleanolic and maslinic acids in plasma developed by the Integrated Pharmacology and Systems Neuroscience Research Group at the Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), and the Barcelona Mar Health Park Consortium node of the Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition (CIBERobn) network, as part of the NUTRAOLEUM research project, a clinical trial on humans has evaluated the pharmacokinetics of these two triterpenic acids from the olive tree after the ingestion of olive oils enriched in these biomolecules at two different concentrations. In addition, the effect of these triterpenic acids on endothelial function has also been studied, revealing that they contribute to preserving blood vessel health and preventing arteriosclerosis.
Més informació "Biomolecules from olive oil may have beneficial effects on blood vessel health"
17/04/2020 - Press release
Chemotargets, a global leader in predictive analytics solutions for the pharma and biotech sector, begins a phase of transformation to become a biotechnology company that will develop new medicines in multiple therapeutic areas, with an initial focus on oncology. Founded in 2006 as a spin-off from Dr. Jordi Mestres' Systems Pharmacology lab under the auspices of the IMIM Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute, a leading academic centre of excellence based in Barcelona, Chemotargets is opening an investment round to undertake the transformation of its business model. Genesis Biomed, a well-established consultancy firm in the health and biotech sectors, and CREA Inversión, an M&A boutique advisory firm specialised in corporate transactions and financing, will advise Chemotargets in this transformation.
Més informació "Chemotargets opens an investment round to enter a new phase of growth"
The IMIM Clinical Metabolomics Platform led by Dr. Oscar J. Pozo, from the IMIM Integrated Pharmacology and Systems Neuroscience Research Group, has become part of the EATRIS consortium, the European infrastructure for translational medicine, as part of the biomarker platform. This means that the IMIM is now part of a consortium comprising more than 80 prestigious European institutes that is aiming to establish synergies between healthcare researchers by providing them with the most advanced technologies and the experience needed to make headway in translational medicine. EATRIS is a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) whose main objective is to advance translational medicine. Translational research is a highly multidisciplinary and complex undertaking. One of the greatest challenges in innovation is to understand which steps are necessary and the most appropriate technology and knowledge for taking these steps.
Anna Bigas, CIBER Cancer (CIBERONC) researcher at the Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), was appointed the new Scientific Director of CIBERONC at the CIBER Standing Committee meeting held on March 26th. Anna Bigas takes over from Joaquín Arribas, who has held this position since CIBERONC was set up in 2016. The new Scientific Director, who has already been involved in coordinating two CIBERONC programmes, Mechanisms of Tumour Progression and Training and Mobility, is the second woman to head up one of CIBER's thematic scientific areas, after the appointment of Marina Pollán as director of CIBER Epidemiology and Public Health. Dr. Bigas highlighted "the enormous scientific potential of the groups comprising CIBERONC to collaboratively address major challenges in oncology, as has already been demonstrated on several occasions. At such a critical time as the present, we need to make even more effort to unite all possible human and economic efforts to progress in the fight against cancer. In this sense, CIBERONC is able to provide unique and valuable support, making this advance a reality".
Més informació "Anna Bigas, new scientific director of CIBER Cancer"
19/03/2020 - Institutional news
The IMIM Foundation announces one position for a Recognised Researcher (R4) with the objective of incorporating into the Institute a researcher of excellence, a leader of research in his/her field, and of international prestige in the field of Biomedicine. The incorporation of the candidate should add significant value to the Institute and make a notable contribution towards achieving the Institute's strategic objectives. Researchers from competitive programmes, such as the Ramón y Cajal and similar programmes, who have made exceptional contributions, will be considered. The candidate must have a PhD in the field of Biomedicine and an exceptional research career, with an excellent leadership capacity and proven international experience in one of the IMIM Foundation's research programmes: Cancer, Epidemiology and Public Health, Inflammatory and Cardiovascular Disorders, Biomedical Informatics, or Neurosciences.
Més informació "Call for one position for Recognised Researcher (R4)"
17/03/2020 - Institutional news
Following the state of alarm declared throughout Spain due to COVID-19 and the recommendations of the Catalan authorities to collaborate in preventing the spread of COVID-19, from Monday March 16th onwards, the IMIM staff will be teleworking and will be able to assist you via email and/or telephone. If you have any doubts or questions, you can contact us through the general form on the website: https://www.imim.es/en_contacte.html or by writing to the email addresses of the research areas and groups that are listed on that website.
12/03/2020 - Press release
Researchers from the Stem Cell and Cancer Group at the Hospital del Mar Institute for Medical Research (IMIM) have led a study in which they have been able to determine the role of two molecules, Dll4 and Notch, and the importance of their relationship in the generation of blood stem cells. This is a very important step in the search to find a viable method for generating this type of cell in the laboratory. The study, which included researchers from the universities of Tel Aviv, Edinburgh, the Sorbonne in Paris, and Cambridge, has been published in The EMBO Journal. The group that led the study is one of the few Spanish teams working in this field, and for years they have been making breakthroughs in their research into blood stem cells and generating these in the laboratory, in the field of regenerative medicine. Right now, "We can make erythrocytes, platelets, a lot of blood products in the lab, but we have never been able to make a cell that has the characteristics of blood stem cells", explains Dr. Anna Bigas, coordinator of the group and first author of the study. Being able to find a method for generating this type of cell in the laboratory would allow patients with diseases like leukaemia, or certain genetic pathologies that affect the blood, and who do not have a compatible donor, to receive a haematopoietic stem cell transplant. In many cases this is the only treatment possible.
Més informació "Key piece in generating blood stem cells in the laboratory discovered"
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