About
This is a multidisciplinary group led from the clinical side by Dr Rosa Mª Morillas, head of the Hepatology Unit at Germans Trias i Pujol University Hospital and by Dr Ramon Bartolí, principal investigator for basic and translational research and CIBER researcher.
The group focuses on clinical and translational research on chronic hepatitis, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, cirrhosis and complications of portal hypertension (ascites, hemorrhage due to portal hypertension, hepatic encephalopathy, spontaneous bacterial peritonitis, infections) and hepatocellular carcinoma. They also have experience in the development of different experimental models of liver disease (cirrhotic rat model with ascites -carbon tetrachloride-, model of hepatic encephalopathy -cirrhosis + portal vein ligation-, model of secondary biliary cirrhosis due to ligation of the common bile duct and steatohepatitis model with different degrees of fibrosis (metabolic model + carbon tetrachloride). In addition, the group has developed an endoscopic platform able to release drugs and active agents in colonic tract and is studying its applicability in different liver diseases.
The group has a consolidated collaborative relationship with other groups from the same centre as well as with other national and international groups and is part of the CIBER Liver Diseases Research Group. Likewise, various members of the group belong to different national and international medical societies such as SCD, AEEH, EASL.
Keywords: chronic hepatitis, metabolic-associated fatty liver disease, portal hypertension, cirrhosis associated infections.
Group leader
- Rosa Mª Morillas Cunill
Rosa Mª Morillas Cunill
Rosa Mª Morillas is the head of the Hepatology Section of the Digestive Department at Germans Trias i Pujol University Hospital (HUGTiP) and associate professor of the Degree in Medicine at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB). Since 1992, Morillas combined medical work with teaching and translational research. As a result of her research, a total of 186 papers have been published in national and international journals. She has participated in 154 continuing education courses in gastroenterology and hepatology, conferences and round tables. Morillas has authored 31 book chapters and participated in the development of practical guides and positioning documents, which have a great impact on the treatment of critical cirrhotic patients, viral hepatitis and NAFLD.
Contact: rmorillas.germanstrias(ELIMINAR)@gencat.cat
ORCID: 0000-0001-9117-5049 - Ramon Bartolí Solé
Ramon Bartolí Solé
Ramon Bartolí began his research career in 1992 in the Gastroenterology Department at Germans Trias i Pujol University Hospital (HUGTiP). Since May 2007, he has been a researcher at CIBER for Liver and Digestive Diseases at Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), leading the Translational Liver Research Group. He has consolidated basic and translational research focused on studies related to the gut-liver axis. Bartolí also has extensive experience in developing animal models of liver disease and endoscopy in rats. So far, he has supervised 4 doctoral theses, authored more than 30 scientific articles and book chapters. He has obtained 2 patents with the COVERGEL project and its licensing in 2020. In 2018, Bartolí completed a mentoring training at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology presenting the Covergel Project, winner of the 1st prize. Since 2020, he has been working on improving the colonic placement of fecal microbiota and probiotics with this COVERGEL platform for liver disease treatments in preclinical studies.
Contact: rbartoli(ELIMINAR)@igtp.cat
ORCID: 0000-0002-0636-0942
Research lines
The members conduct clinical and translational research on:
- Chronic hepatitis
- Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD)
- Cirrhosis and portal hypertension complications
- Hepatocellular carcinoma
Active projects
Project LIVERSCREEN. Screening for liver fibrosis - population-based study across European countries
Coordinating Organisation: Fundació Clínic per a la Recerca Biomèdica (FCRB); PI Workpackage 4: Rosa Maria Morillas
Funding agency: European Commission, Horizon 2020
Agency code: 847989
Duration: 01/01/2020 - 30/06/2025
More information
Investigación en gastroenterología y hepatología
PI: Helena Masnou
Funding agency: Norgine
Duration: 2020 - 2024
Scientific publications
Highlighted 2023 publications
Serra-Burriel M, Juanola A, Serra-Burriel F, Thiele M, Graupera I, Pose E, Pera G, Grgurevic I, Caballeria L, Piano S, van Kleef L, Reichert M, Roulot D, Pericàs JM, Schattenberg JM, Tsochatztis EA, Guha IN, Garcia-Retortillo M, Hernández R, Hoyo J, Fuentes M, Expósito C, Martínez A, Such P, Madir A, Detlefsen S, Tonon M, Martini A, Ma AT, Pich J, Bonfill E, Juan M, Soria A, Carol M, Gratacós-Ginès J, Morillas RM, Toran P, Navarrete JM, Torrejón A, Fournier C, Llorca A, Arslanow A, de Koning HJ, Cucchietti F, Manns M, Newsome PN, Hernáez R, Allen A, Angeli P, de Knegt RJ, Karlsen TH, Galle P, Wong VW, Fabrellas N, Castera L, Krag A, Lammert F, Kamath PS, Ginès P; LiverScreen Consortium Investigators. Development, validation, and prognostic evaluation of a risk score for long-term liver-related outcomes in the general population: a multicohort study. Lancet. 2023 Sep 16;402(10406):988-996. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(23)01174-1.
Díaz-González Á, Hernández-Guerra M, Pérez-Medrano I, Sapena V, Riveiro-Barciela M, Barreira-Díaz A, Gómez E, Morillas RM, Del Barrio M, Escudé L, Mateos B, Horta D, Gómez J, Conde I, Ferre-Aracil C, El Hajra I, Arencibía A, Zamora J, Fernández A, Salcedo M, Molina E, Soria A, Estévez P, López C, Álvarez-Navascúes C, García-Retortillo M, Crespo J, Londoño MC; ColHai Registry. Budesonide as first-line treatment in patients with autoimmune hepatitis seems inferior to standard predniso(lo)ne administration. Hepatology. 2023 Apr 1;77(4):1095-1105. DOI: 10.1097/HEP.0000000000000018.
Masnou H, Aguilar A, Iborra I, Sala M, Torner M, Clos-Parals A, Ardèvol A, Giménez M, Fortuny M, Sarrias MR, Morillas RM, Domènech E. Incidence, risk factors and clinical outcomes of multidrug-resistant microorganism infections among patients admitted for decompensated cirrhosis: A prospective study. Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2023 Apr;46(4):288-296. DOI: 10.1016/j.gastrohep.2022.09.001.
Additional information
- The group has a long-lasting experience in clinical trials in cirrhosis, portal hypertension, chronic hepatitis, alcoholic hepatitis, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, primary biliary cholangitis and liver fibrosis led by pharma industries but also in those promoted by scientific societies.
- Participation in 20 national and international clinical trials.
- Participation as teachers in various postgraduate courses and continuing educational programs in Gastroenterology and Hepatology and in numerous conferences, communications and round tables.
Contact
Ramon Bartolí Solé
(+34) 93 033 05 29
More links
Follow @RamonBartoli on X · Follow Ramon Bartolí on LinkedIn