Last Friday, the conference took place in Barcelona, bringing together over 100 attendees from the biomedical research field in Spain. Representatives from the Department of Health and Research and Universities of the Catalan Government were also present.
The event occurred on November 17 at the Barcelona Science Park, as part of the Complementary Plan for Biotechnology applied to Health in Catalonia, which is under the coordination of IBEC. The conference served as a meeting and networking platform, fostering collaborations within the translational health research ecosystem in Catalonia and among other autonomous communities participating in the Plan.
Xavier Massó, Deputy Director General of Research of the Government of Catalonia, and Gemma Valeta Juan, Manager of Personalized and Precision Medicine of the Healthcare Area of the Catalan Health Service, were among the notable attendees. Representatives from participating Autonomous Communities, including Galicia, Extremadura, the Basque Country, and Aragon, were also present, along with researchers involved in the 16 Collaborative projects and the Data-CAT dynamizing action, coordinated from Catalonia.
Researchers presented scientific advances in Personalized and Precision Medicine, spanning from integrated artificial intelligence models predicting disease risk to new methods for drug screening, accelerating the discovery of therapeutic targets. Advanced techniques for improving surgical processes and virtual and augmented reality techniques were also discussed.
A session was dedicated to the technological platforms supporting R&D, financed by the Complementary Plan in Catalonia, open to the entire Spanish R&D community. Attendees had the opportunity to visit two platforms: the In vivo Experimentation Platform for Biomodels and Animal Models: Preclinical 3T Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Scanner (MRI) at IBEC, and the Drug Screening Platform at IRB Barcelona.
The conference addressed strategic and future issues related to the potential continuity of the Complementary Plan, emphasizing its impact on biomedical research, particularly in the field of personalized and precision medicine. Participants noted that the Plan facilitated new collaborations with research groups and hospitals within and outside their Autonomous Communities, achieving the primary objective of stimulating collaboration within the biomedical fabric in Spain.
In closing, Josep Samitier Martí, director of IBEC and state coordinator of the Plan, expressed gratitude, stating, “The Complementary Plan for Biotechnology Applied to Health is a collaboration for everyone. Thank you so much for making it possible.”
