Research news Archives - Page 22 of 33 - Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia

May 15, 2017May 5, 2017

A cellular model to help study the relationship between neurodegenerative diseases

From the cells of a patient with a rare neurodegenerative disease, Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker syndrome (GSS), researchers at IBEC have managed to generate neurons that also present parallel neurodegenerative processes unrelated to the syndrome.

The striking image on the left shows a mass of neurons derived from GSS-affected pluripotent stem cells (iPS), developed in José Antonio Del Río’s lab.

April 24, 2017

The most efficient single-molecule diode ever made

Researchers have created the most efficient single-molecule diode ever.

Diodes are common in everyday electronic devices, in which they control the current by allowing it to flow in one direction while blocking it in the opposite direction. The researchers, working at the University of Barcelona (UB) and IBEC, have created one of just 1 nanometer in size with a rectification ratio – the ratio of the current that flows in one direction compared to the other – several orders of magnitude higher than previously.

June 17, 2020March 13, 2017

Screening improvements for asthma and obstructive pulmonary disease patients

Some IBEC research published in PlosOne offers a step towards better screening of patients with asthma and other sufferers of obstructive pulmonary diseases.

The new integrated approach to continuous adventitious respiratory sound (CAS) analysis, developed by Raimon Jané’s Biomedical Signal Processing and Interpretation group within the framework of IBEC’s Joint Research Unit with the Institut d’Investigació Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol (IGTP), improves assessment in the clinic.

March 8, 2017

3D printing biocompatible hydrogels

IBEC researchers have laid the groundwork for faster advances in 3D bioprinting for regenerative medicine by creating a system of ink and matrices that offers a solid basis for tissue regeneration.

Due to their high water content, hydrogels are highly attractive biomaterials for 3D printing as efficient ‘surrogates’ for the extracellular matrix, onto which cells can be cultured. However, while they are relatively easy to produce using a method called extrusion printing, their stability and structural integrity can weaken when they’re in contact with biological fluids or extracellular matrices.

March 2, 2017February 28, 2017

A new therapeutic target that could slow the progression of Parkinson’s disease

Researchers at IBEC have identified a potential way to slow down the neurodegenerative progression of Parkinson’s disease.

They focused their work on the cellular prion protein (PrP^c), a specialized molecule located in the membranes of neurons that’s involved in a number of functions such as cell cycle control and neurotransmission.

February 20, 2017

How tumor cells hijack healthy cells to promote metastasis

In a study published today in Nature Cell Biology and supported by Obra Social “la Caixa”, researchers at IBEC have identified an interaction between two proteins that enables cancerous cells to use the physical forces of healthy cells to start tumor metastasis.

Metastasis, responsible for the majority of deaths in patients with cancer, is the process by which cancer cells separate from the original tumor to form new tumors in other organs or tissues of the body.

February 13, 2017February 10, 2017

An optogenetic tool that directs cellular contractility using light

Researchers at IBEC have controlled the contractility of a group of epithelial cells using an optogenetic switch activated by light.

The study, published in Nature Communications, explains how this novel technique allows for rapid, local and reversible changes in the forces exerted by cells, as well as tissue contraction.

January 31, 2017

Light-regulated drugs as analgesics

A new study involving scientists from IBEC, IQAC/CSIC and CNRS in France uses light-regulated drugs to alleviate the negative emotions associated with chronic pain.

Chronic pain is pain that lasts more than six months. Its origin can be both physiological and emotional, and it is accompanied by symptoms such as hypersensitivity, anxiety and depressive behavior. It has no cure, treatment is difficult, and current drugs don’t alleviate the symptoms.

January 30, 2017January 20, 2017

New DNA-based technique for depositing materials with a resolution of less than 10 nanometers

A study led by CSIC and involving IBEC researchers proposes a new technique using molecules ‘a la carte’ to obtain nanoscale surfaces that will have many useful applications in microelectronics and biomedicine. The work has been published in the journal Advanced Materials.

The new method means that researchers can obtain nanoscale surfaces with many molecules arranged in an ordered way.

June 17, 2020December 1, 2016

Using EFM to probe the secrets of bacterial endospore survival strategies

An IBEC group has demonstrated, for the first time, that the hydration properties of a single bacterial endospore in varying environmental relative humidity can be determined with high accuracy and reproducibility, and in a non-destructive way, shedding new light on endospore survival strategies.

Endospores are recognized as the hardiest form of life on Earth, and are produced by certain bacterial cells in response to a lack of nutrients.