Institutional news Archives - Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia

November 28, 2025

The IBEC and West China Hospital hold their third joint conference on precision medicine in Barcelona

Barcelona hosted the third IBEC-WCH Precision Medicine Conference this week, an event that further strengthened the strategic alliance between the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) and the West China Hospital of Sichuan University (WCHSU). The Chinese delegation visited Spain from 26 to 29 November, taking part in a busy schedule of scientific and institutional activities and exchanges between the two centres.

November 21, 2025

IBEC receives funding from the ‘la Caixa’ Foundation’s Health Research 2025 Call to study new treatments for spinal cord injuries

Zaida Álvarez Pinto, a Principal Investigator at IBEC, will lead a biomedical research project that was selected in the 2025 edition of the ‘la Caixa’ Foundation’s Health Research Call for Proposals. The project, which will be carried out in consortium with IDIBELL, the University of Barcelona, the National Spinal Cord Injury Hospital Foundation and the Spinal Cord Injury Foundation, will focus on the development of a new platform for testing treatments for spinal cord injuries.

November 20, 2025

IBEC joins the STEAM Alliance to promote female talent in science and technology

By joining this initiative, the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) is strengthening its commitment to gender equality and to encouraging girls and young women to pursue STEAM careers, thereby helping to eliminate stereotypes and reduce the gender gap in science and technology.

November 20, 2025

IBEC successfully holds Hackathon for its new co-creation programme, ‘Open Dialogues’

Yesterday, the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) brought together around twenty artists and scientists for a co-creation hackathon as part of its new ‘Open Dialogues’ initiative. Following the event, two pairs of artists and scientists were selected to collaborate on developing two projects based on IBEC research over the next five months.

November 19, 2025

The closing ceremony of the Complementary Plan for Biotechnology Applied to Health celebrates more than three years of cooperation

On 17 November, the closing ceremony of the Complementary Plan for Biotechnology Applied to Health was held. This plan was coordinated by the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC). The event brought together institutional representatives, researchers, and key figures from the Spanish biomedical community to celebrate over three years of collaborative efforts to promote personalised and precision medicine in Spain.

November 24, 2025November 18, 2025

IBEC welcomes two new research groups

The Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) has welcomed two new research groups this year, led by ICREA Research Professor Javier G. Fernández and Dr Nicolò Accanto respectively. Dr Fernández’s Biointegrated Materials and Engineering group aims to integrate biological principles and living components into engineering systems, marking the beginning of the “Era of Biomaterials”. Meanwhile, Accanto’s Nonlinear photonics for neuroscience group is developing advanced optical technologies to help us understand the mechanisms that govern neuronal activity.

November 14, 2025

IBEC research takes third place in the 2025 Vanguardia de la Ciencia Awards

A study led by IBEC has won the 3rd Vanguardia de la Ciencia 2025 Prize. The research, led by Samuel Sánchez Ordoñez and with Meritxell Serra-Casablanca as lead author, proposes an innovative bladder cancer therapy based on nanorobots loaded with radiopharmaceuticals. These nanorobots are capable of moving around the bladder using urine as a source of energy.

November 12, 2025

IBEC secures funding for three research projects from La Marató de 3Cat

Two research groups from the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) have been selected to participate in three projects under La Marató de 3Cat’s 2024 call for proposals, which focuses on respiratory diseases. This funding will support research into diagnosis and clinical prediction, with the aim of improving respiratory health.

November 10, 2025

L’Espluga de Francolí hosts ‘Science in the Territory’, a conference aimed at promoting science in rural schools

The ‘Science in the Territory: Voices and Experiences in Rural Schools’ conference, held at the Terra Museum in L’Espluga de Francolí, brought science to rural areas. The event provided a platform for sharing inspiring experiences and scientific projects developed in rural schools and communities in Catalonia and other regions of Spain. The aim was to promote interconnection and foster new collaborations between individuals and organisations in the scientific, educational, and social spheres.

October 17, 2025

Bioengineering for precision medicine at the 18th IBEC Symposium

The 18th annual IBEC Symposium focused on ‘Bioengineering for Precision Medicine’, which is one of IBEC’s key areas of application. The event was attended by nearly 300 people, including local and international researchers. The multidisciplinary environment provided experts from other centres and the IBEC community with the opportunity to present their projects and exchange knowledge.