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 20.09.2019

Biomarkers in blood for faster diagnosis: a new GAEM Accelerator project

The GAEM Foundation, headquartered in Barcelona Science Park (PCB) and engaged in promoting biomedical research to cure multiple sclerosis, has added a study conducted by Institut d’Investigació Biomèdica de Girona (IDIBGI) to its Project Accelerator Programme. The objective of the study, led by Dr Jordi Tomàs Roig, is to discover new markers that enable us to predict a patient’s evolution from a simple blood test, while contributing to the design of epigenetic drugs to slow down the disease’s progression.

 

GAEM Foundation has included promising research by IDIBGI in its Project accelerator, focusing on studying the chemical (epigenetic) markers found in the genetic material of the immune system when the disease is diagnosed and during its most progressive stages.

The working hypothesis behind the study is that the early detection of chemical (epigenetic) changes in the immune system would enable us to predict the patient’s evolution related to exacerbations and physical disability by means of a simple blood test. This research on biomarkers in blood could contribute to the design of epigenetic drugs that slow down the disease’s progression.

The project is led by Dr Jordi Tomàs Roig, an investigator at the IDIBGI Neurodegeneration and Neuroinflammation group, and the Girona Neuroimmunology and Multiple Sclerosis Unit, under the leadership of Doctor Lluís Ramió-Torrentà.

The first phase of the research aims to determine the epigenetic profile, in other words, the chemical markers in immune system cells, from peripheral blood in patients recently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and in more advanced stages.

Subsequently, the investigators will focus on determining MS biomarkers upon diagnosis and in progressive stages of the disease, in order to predict its evolution and identify potential therapeutic targets.

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