The Fundació La Marató de 3Cat has selected two projects coordinated by IBEC researchers Xavier Rovira and Xavier Trepat in its 2025 call for cancer research grants. Each project will receive €300,000. Over three years, both will study why immune cells struggle to penetrate solid tumours, one of the main obstacles facing immunotherapy in cancers such as breast and colorectal cancer.
Manuel Salmeron, director and ICREA Research Professor at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC), received the George Winter Award 2026 in recognition of his outstanding contribution to biomaterials research. The European Society for Biomaterials’ (ESB) most prestigious individual honour was officially presented to Salmeron, he stated on Tuesday, 8 September 2026, during the ESB 2026 conference held in Antwerp, Belgium.
On 18 June, the results were announced for the 36 research projects funded by La Marató de 3Cat through its 2020 special call for proposals dedicated to tackling the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). The Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) participated in three of these projects, which aimed to deepen our understanding of the disease and improve its diagnosis and clinical monitoring.
The prize recognises the research work of Sánchez, ICREA Research Professor at IBEC. These awards, presented by the Valencian Foundation Rei Jaume I Awards, aim to bring science and business closer together in order to promote research, scientific development and entrepreneurship in Spain.
IBEC researcher Amayra Hernández-Vega has been awarded a grant from the Pasqual Maragall Researchers Programme to lead a project focused on studying the earliest stages of Alzheimer’s disease. The study will combine in vitro and human models of familial Alzheimer’s disease to identify age-related factors and potential inhibitors that could slow the early progression of the disease. The project was presented at an informative session on sleep and brain health, which was attended by around 500 people.
The Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) has received funding through the Spanish State Research Agency’s 2025 call for proposals for the preparation and management of European projects and attraction of international talent. This funding will allow IBEC to launch the HE-mPOwer project, a strategic initiative designed to strengthen the institute’s internationalisation and increase its competitiveness within the Horizon Europe programme.
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.
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.
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.
The 7th edition of the Premis Emprenedors Digitals (Digital Entrepreneur Awards), organised by the Catalunya Ràdio programme, took place on Wednesday 18 June at the Antigua Fábrica Damm in Barcelona. The award recognises companies that have demonstrated exceptional growth and innovation in their field.