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 29.04.2026

Ruth Aguilar, staff scientist at ISGlobal: “Our experience in the study of biomarkers and immune responses has enabled us to create a platform that provides transversal support to biomedical research”

The Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) moved five of its groups from the malaria and neglected parasitic diseases programme to the Parc, where they are now based in the laboratories of Cluster II. This programme focuses on translational research aimed at the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of these diseases, with the goal of reducing their impact on the most vulnerable populations. Through a multidisciplinary approach, the groups promote the development of new therapeutic tools, vaccines and control strategies, in collaboration with international institutions and endemic countries, to advance improvements in global health.

During the latest Coffee Connection, we interviewed researcher Ruth Aguilar, coordinator of the Immune Response and Biomarkers service, to gain first-hand insight into her team’s research and how their trajectory over the years has led them to broaden their horizons. Through various collaborations, the Malaria Immunology group has extended its expertise to the study of other infections.

By using technologies such as ELISA, xMAP Luminex and targeted proteomics with OLINK (Certified International Core Lab), the team can analyse immune responses with great precision and identify relevant biomarkers across different pathologies. This capability has helped consolidate a transversal technological platform that supports biomedical research in multiple fields.

“As we have been working for many years on both the study of biomarkers in diseases and the analysis of immune responses, and we use high-throughput technologies that allow us to work with very small sample volumes while generating high-quality data, we leveraged this knowledge to create a platform that can provide transversal support for biomedical research across different areas and types of diseases, particularly in the study of antibody levels and their functionality,” explains Aguilar.