IBEC Archives - Page 11 of 13 - Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia

June 17, 2019June 14, 2019

José Antonio del Río presents the results about his research at the 20th Symposium of “La Marató de TV3”

José Antonio del Río, group leader of the Molecular and cellular neurobiotechnology group at IBEC, presented at the 20th Symposium of “La Marató de TV3”, the results of his research on neurodegenerative diseases boosted by the funds of “La Marató” in 2013.

During the event, which took place this weed at the “Institut d’Estudis Catalans”, it has been made public the results of the 79 research teams that have carried out the 44 financed projects by the 2013 edition of this program. A set of achievements targeted to design new tools of prevention and diagnostic, as well as new therapeutic approaches to improve the quality and life expectancy of the patients that suffer a neurodegenerative disease. .

May 28, 2020May 22, 2019

The hippocampus orchestrates the cerebral process that allows us to recall memories

For the first time in humans, researchers from IBEC have simultaneously recorded the brain activity of the two key areas linked to memory: the hippocampus and the neocortex.

This study was made possible thanks to the voluntary participation of epilepsy patients who, due to their disease, have intracranial electrode implants. Making use of virtual reality, the participants performed spatial memory tasks.
The taste of your favourite snack after school, your first kiss, that time you partied until dawn… Memories are a way of travelling into the past. Despite how easy it can be to remember a situation, the cerebral process taking place is complex and continues to be, for the most part, a mystery.

April 30, 2019

Researchers from the IBEC develop a Virtual Reality system to treat speech disorders

Researchers from the IBEC have developed a virtual reality-based system for rehabilitating patients with Broca’s aphasia. RGSa has been proven to improve communicative frequency and effectiveness in daily life, as well as sustaining improvements in testing after an 8-week period.

Rehabilitation to recover speech after brain damage is efficient, provided that it is carried out intensively, and can be included in relevant behavioural tasks. However, limited resources in healthcare systems cannot always provide said treatment in sufficient doses. Achieving a cost-effective, evidence-based rehabilitation method is one of the objectives targeted by the SPECS research group.

April 2, 2019April 2, 2019

The second edition of IBEC’s Faster Future programme will be dedicated to the fight against Parkinson

The programme IBEC Faster Future, an initiative that aims to help accelerate research projects that are close to tackling major challenges in health, will enable the development of a new antibody that will be the base of a therapeutic product for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease.

The Faster Future program campaign “Let’s tackle Parkinson”, which is launched today and will remain open to donations until the 30th of April, has the aim to raise 50,000 € needed to accelerate this research, seeking to obtain favourable results within a year and a half.

March 1, 2019March 1, 2019

A new technique allows researchers to focus the action of drugs via infrared light

A scientific team led by IBEC and UAB manages to efficiently activate molecules located inside cell tissues using two-photon excitation of with infrared light lasers. The results of the study has been published in Nature Communications.

Having absolute control of the activity of a molecule in an organism. Deciding when, where and how a drug is activated. These are some of the goals expected to be reached with the so-called photoswitchable molecules, compounds that, in the presence of certain light waves, change their properties. Today, thanks to the results of a study led by the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) together with the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), the scientific community is one step closer to achieving this objective.

May 29, 2020January 15, 2019

IBEC participates in the First Biennial Ciutat-Ciència 2019

IBEC is a driving force behind a major science festival that will be taking place across the city this year. The event was presented yesterday at a press conference held at the Amfiteatre Anatòmic de la Reial Acadèmia de Medicina and it is organized by the Ajuntament de Barcelona along with other top research centers.

An initiative promoted by the Institut de Cultura de Barcelona (ICUB), Ciutat-Ciència is being planned by a committee of seven reseachers, including IBEC’s group leader Nuria Monstserrat.

With a week of concentrated activity from 7th-11th February, Ciutat-Ciència will present today’s rapidly accelerating scientific advances to citizens and encourage debate and opinion.

February 2, 2018February 2, 2018

Pere Roca-Cusachs wins City of Barcelona award

Pere Roca-Cusachs, group leader at IBEC and assistant professor at the University of Barcelona, has won the 2017 City of Barcelona Award for the life sciences.

The prize comes after the publication of his study in Cell last year, where he identified a mechanism by which tissue rigidity regulates cell survival and proliferation, as well as its implications in diseases such as cancer and liver and lung fibrosis.

The City of Barcelona Awards are granted by Barcelona City Council, and the jury – Patrick Aloy, Juan Valcárcel, Cristina Subidas, Elena Casacuberta, and Neus Agell – were unanimous in their choice of Pere for the prize.

May 10, 2018February 2, 2018

Joining forces with FEDER to collaborate on solutions for rare diseases

IBEC has signed a collaboration agreement with the Federación Española de Enfermedades Raras (FEDER), a non-profit organization that represents the three million people suffering from rare diseases throughout the country.

Rare diseases are those that affect fewer than 5 out of every 10,000 inhabitants. According to the WHO, there are about 7,000 such diseases affecting 7% of the world’s population, so altogether they affect a huge number of people – and they can appear at any stage of life. The agreement with IBEC will connect the institute with patients’ associations to develop projects together that have a direct application according to the needs of sufferers.

January 29, 2018

Education award for IBEC’s outreach activities

IBEC has been awarded the “Segell de Qualitat Educativa” (seal of educative quality) by the Consell De Coordinació Pedagògica of Barcelona City Council’s Institute of Education, an educational network that includes 155 institutions and organizations that offer educational activities.

This recognition is of the quality of IBEC’s outreach activities that the institute carries out for school pupils, teachers, the general public, and many other audiences.

October 10, 2016October 7, 2016

IBEC Seminar: Scaling up in Systems Biology: from a minimal cell to microbiomes

Scaling up in Systems Biology: from a minimal cell to microbiomes