Research impulse into hepatoblastoma, the main childhood liver cancer

A collaborative CIBER project will boost hepatoblastoma (HB) research to identify new therapeutic targets that will allow strategies to be developed to improve the prognosis of those children who currently do not survive the disease. The project coordinated by Carolina Armengol, principal CIBEREHD researcher at the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP) is a collaboration between 5 CIBER groups belonging to the Hepatic and Digestive Diseases area (CIBEREHD) and the Cancer area (CIBERONC).

The “Escoles Sentinella” network proves the safety of schools concerning COVID-19 and presents the results of the second year of the project at the project congress

- "Escoles Sentinella" has identified areas and methodologies for improvement that can be incorporated into policies to prevent infections with SARS-CoV-2 and other pathogens in the coming years.

- The "Escoles Sentinella" network monitors SARS-CoV-2 infection and its determinants in the school environment, including CO₂ levels in classrooms, through a participatory research approach by the educational community and incorporating participants' recommendations. 

An ISGlobal Project on Malaria Vivax at the IGTP will Receive Funding from the CaixaResearch Programme

The project, led by Hernando A del Portillo, is one of the 30 projects selected from over 600 proposals presented in the 2021 call. The "CaixaResearch" programme on Health Research has selected 30 new cutting-edge biomedical research projects in Spain and Portugal, including the one led by Hernando A del Portillo, ICREA researcher at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) and co-affiliated with the Germans Trias i Pujol Institute (IGTP).

First event for European Performing Science Night completed

A total of 23 researchers have taken part in the first event of the European project European Performing Science Night (EPSN) part of European Researcher's Night a European public event that brings scientists and society together. All three research groups on the camps taking part in the project participated in the workshop.

The IGTP participates in a pioneer EU project to investigate micro and nanoplastics impact and consequences on human health

PLASTICHEAL project will develop new methodologies and will provide reliable scientific evidence for regulators to set the knowledge basis for adequate risk assessment. The results will draw a variety of experimental human models and measuring potential health effects under short and long-term conditions. The researchers at the IGTP will focus on the study of the affect of plastics to the immune response to different microorganisms.

The start of a new international clinical trial to improve treatment for tuberculosis with anti-inflammatory agents

The Experimental Tuberculosis Group at the IGTP has set up this trial, coordinated from Can Ruti, within the European project H2020 ‘SMA-TB’. The study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of adding acetylsalicylic acid or ibuprofen to the antibiotic treatments applied for tuberculosis. It is a phase II trial which will be carried out in South Africa and Georgia, two of the countries the WHO has in its sights to control this infectious disease. The trial has been prepared in the midst of the pandemic, with the added challenge of coordinating it with the restrictions and different stages of the epidemic in each of the countries involved.

8 health professionals from Germans Trias awarded Talents grants

The Talents Programme supports research projects in the health sector and despite the pandemic research into other diseases continues. 14 health professionals in all, and 8 of them from Germans Trias i Pujol, have been awarded grants to carry out research projects in the 2020 edition of the programme. The awards represent recognition for young health professionals who are carrying out research activities.

Germans Trias joins the International study on using the BCG vaccine against COVID-19 in healthcare workers

The Can Ruti Campus joins an ambitious international study to test the possible protective effects of the anti-tuberculosis (BCG) vaccine against COVID-19. In Spain the provision is for 1,000 healthcare workers to take part. The Germans Trias i Pujol Hospital and Research Institute is taking part with Dr Antoni Rosell, Clinical Director of the Thorax Department at the hospital leading the project and the participation of the Pulmonology, Preventive Medicine and Pharmacy together with two research groups working on tuberculosis at the IGTP led by Dr Pere-Joan Cardona and Dr José Domínguez.

Full marks for the mid-term meeting of the European Project INNOVA4TB coordinated from the IGTP

At the start of Julio the mid-tem meeting of the European project "Innovation in Tuberculosis-INNOVA4TB", designed and coordinated by the Innovation in Respiratory Infections and Tuberculosis Diagnosis research group led by Dr José Dominguez and Cristina Prat took place. INNOVA4TB is a European Project focused on the diagnosis and clinical handling of tuberculosis financed by a Marie Skłodowska Curie award.

A world consortium to study the genetic factors associated with COVID-19

COVID-19 has caused a global pandemic and this in turn has accelerated the formation of international collaborations more than ever, although they are already common in biomedical research. The COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative was formed to share knowledge and data to study the role of genetic factors in susceptibility to infection by SARS-CoV-2 and severity of the disease. The GCAT-Genomes for Life Project at the IGTP is taking part. The methodology has been described in a paper in the European Journal of Human Genetics.