Nanomedicine seeks solutions against rare diseases
Eduard Torrents
Group leader
BiofilmChip protagonist in the media
Researchers from the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC), led by Eduard Torrents, leader of the group “bacterial infections and antimicrobial therapies” and professor at the University of Barcelona (UB), in collaboration with Josep Samitier, principal investigator of the group “Nanobioingineering” of IBEC, and Maite Martin, of the Vall d’Hebron Barcelona Hospital appear in the media for the new device, called BiofilmChip, which allows a custom and precise diagnosis of chronic infections.
A chip against chronic bacterial infections
IBEC researchers develop a device that allows to grow biofilms and analyze their susceptibility to different antibiotics in a simple way and using patient samples. BiofilmChip, a low-cost, easy-to-use diagnostic device, opens the way to finding effective and custom treatments against chronic infections produced by biofilms.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms and their partners in crime
A comprehensive review led by IBEC researchers from the “Bacterial infections: antimicrobial therapies” group highlights the clinical relevance of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa and its presence in bacterial biofilms.
An alternative to mice for toxicity testing
Eduard Torrents and his team present an alternative to experimentation with mice. The research proposes the use of waxworms to evaluate the toxicity of nanoparticles, which is also cheaper and more ethical. These insects allow us to model their possible nanotoxicity in a living organism.
IBEC researchers propose a cheaper and more ethical model for toxicological studies
A new study by IBEC’s Bacterial Infections: Antimicrobial Therapies and Molecular and cellular neurobiotechnology groups shows that Galleria mellonella larvae can be effective to test the toxicity of nanoparticles. This work thus paves the way toward a new animal model for toxicity studies that represent an inexpensive and more ethical alternative to rodent testing.
Eduard Torrents talks about antibiotic resistance on the radio
Eduard Torrents, group leader at IBEC is interviewed in the radio program “Després del Col·lapse” of RTVE talking about his research on new therapies for infectious diseases in the face of antibiotic resistance.
Nanoparticles against “maxibacteria”
Eduard Torrents, leader of the group “Bacterial infections: antimicrobial therapies” at IBEC, is interviewed in the ALMA magazine to explain how his group is fighting against the bacteria that causes cystic fibrosis.
Researchers identify a mechanism that explains the recurrence of many lung infections
A team of researchers from the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) has discovered that strains of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from patients are more persistent than laboratory strains and propose a molecular mechanism to explain intracellular survival.
The study, published in the journal Virulence, finds that the class II ribonucleotide reductase enzyme (RNR) plays a key role in frequent lung infections, for example, those that occur in patients with cystic fibrosis.
Researchers at IBEC provide new insights on how to treat chronic infections
Researchers at Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) have managed to recreate the coculture conditions and environmental requisites that would allow the simultaneous and stable growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus, two major pathogens commonly found growing together in intricate biofilms in disease-affected lungs or wounds.
Most chronic infections occur due to the inherent capacity of some bacterial pathogens to grow in biofilms. Biofilm-associated infections, which have become a critical worldwide threat, have historically been treated as single-species events.