{"id":106441,"date":"2025-09-25T10:56:42","date_gmt":"2025-09-25T08:56:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pcb.ub.edu\/ibec-to-lead-two-biomedical-projects-under-the-2025-caixaimpulse-call\/"},"modified":"2025-09-25T10:56:42","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T08:56:42","slug":"ibec-to-lead-two-biomedical-projects-under-the-2025-caixaimpulse-call","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pcb.ub.edu\/en\/ibec-to-lead-two-biomedical-projects-under-the-2025-caixaimpulse-call\/","title":{"rendered":"IBEC to lead two biomedical projects under the 2025 CaixaImpulse call"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two projects led by the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC<\/a>), located at the Barcelona Science Park (PCB), have been selected for the 2025 CaixaImpulse programme call for proposals, which is promoted by the \u201cla Caixa\u201d Foundation. Researchers Anna Lagunas and Daniel Gonz\u00e1lez-Carter will lead two projects selected in the latest round of this initiative, with the aim of accelerating the market entry of biomedical innovations to bring them closer to the patients who may need them.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Researchers Anna Lagunas<\/strong> and Daniel Gonz\u00e1lez-Carter<\/strong>, from the IBEC’s Nanobioengineering<\/a> and Molecular Bionics<\/a> groups respectively, will lead two projects focused on treating diseases that affect the brain. Both projects are among the select 7% chosen from the 428 applications received in this call.<\/p>\n

A new solution for testing brain medicines<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Finding treatments for brain diseases is highly challenging because the brain is protected by a natural barrier that blocks most medicines from entering. This barrier plays a crucial role in shielding the brain from harmful substances but also prevents many potentially effective treatments from reaching their target. Current methods for testing new treatments, such as experiments on animals or simplified lab models, often fail to provide accurate results. Animal testing raises ethical concerns, and the outcomes frequently do not predict how medicines will behave in humans.<\/p>\n

To solve this problem, the project, led by Anna Lagunas<\/strong>, proposes a new device that mimics the natural barrier protecting the brain. This device, called a blood-brain barrier-on-a-chip model, re-creates the human brain\u2019s protective environment more accurately than previous methods. Using advanced sensors integrated into the device, it allows scientists to measure how well medicines can pass through the barrier, combining light-based tools and electrical readings. This innovation enables researchers to test brain-targeted therapies on a more realistic and predictive model, improving the reliability of results and reducing the need for animal testing.<\/p>\n

This groundbreaking technology represents a shift towards more humane and precise drug testing methods. By offering a better way to develop treatments for brain conditions, it could transform how therapies are created, benefiting patients and advancing medical research worldwide.<\/p>\n

Brain-TAG: an innovative strategy for targeted therapeutic delivery to the brain<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Treating diseases that affect the brain is extremely difficult, as most treatments cannot reach the brain due to its protective vasculature. To try to overcome this obstacle, traditional methods attempt to use natural features on the blood vessels to guide medicines to the brain. However, these features are not unique to the brain\u2014they are also present in other organs like the lungs and the liver. As a result, medicines often end up in places where they are not needed, lowering the efficacy of therapies and increasing unwanted side effects. Hence, many common problems, such as Alzheimer\u2019s disease and various brain cancers, could be treated more effectively if medicines were delivered specifically to the brain, leaving the rest of the body unaffected.<\/p>\n

The Brain-TAG project, from researcher Daniel Gonz\u00e1lez-Carter<\/strong>, introduces a completely new solution to this problem. Instead of depending on natural features, the research group has developed a process to create special \u201cstopping points\u201d only on the blood vessels in the brain. These stopping points are generated by injecting proteins which are displayed specifically on the brain\u2019s blood vessels. This method is unique because it does not rely on what the body already has; instead, it creates new, artificial sites where medicines can attach. In tests with healthy animals, the Brain-TAG stopping points have helped to bring treatments directly to the brain.<\/p>\n

If successful, medicines could be sent straight to where they are needed in the brain, making treatments more effective and safer, with fewer problems in the rest of the body. This breakthrough offers hope for improved care for people with serious brain conditions and may change how these diseases are treated in the future.<\/p>\n

The CaixaImpulse programme supports biomedical projects from research centres, hospitals, and universities in Spain and Portugal. The initiative aims to accelerate the market launch of these innovations, bringing them closer to the patients who may need them. It also encourages the development of new products, services, and companies in the fields of life sciences and health.<\/p>\n

\u00bb Link to the news:<\/strong> IBEC website [+]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Two projects led by the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC), located at the Barcelona Science Park (PCB), have been selected for the 2025 CaixaImpulse programme call for proposals, which…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":106446,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[231],"class_list":["post-106441","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-science","tag-ibec-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nIBEC to lead two biomedical projects under the 2025 CaixaImpulse call - Parc Cient\u00edfic de Barcelona<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Researchers Anna Lagunas and Daniel Gonz\u00e1lez-Carter are leading two projects focused on the treatment of diseases affecting the brain.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pcb.ub.edu\/libec-liderara-dos-projectes-biomedics-de-la-convocatoria-caixaimpulse-2025\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"IBEC to lead two biomedical projects under the 2025 CaixaImpulse call - 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