IRB Barcelona News - Scientific

• 5 May 2008
  A study reveals how cells communicate to activate the cell division machinery

  The finding made in the fruit fly may provide clues to address problems such as the proliferation of malignant cells and tumour growth in humans

• 4 April 2008
  New therapeutic targets to stop breast cancer metastasis to the lung

  The study, headed by Joan Massagué in New York, has involved researchers at IRB Barcelona and Hospital Clínic-IDIBAPS.

• 31 March 2008
  Identification of a new protein associated with Alzheimer’s and prion diseases

  Researchers at IRB Barcelona have demonstrated that the decrease in Dab1 protein expression caused by the infective action of prions also reduces the production of β-amyloid, a risk factor of Alzheimer’s disease.

• 14 February 2008
  A new control mechanism for genetic code translation discovered in bacteria

  Researchers study the evolution of life by examining the translation of the genetic codes of several organisms, in order to discover differences between bacteria and humans that allow the design of new antibiotics

• 28 January 2008
  A group of researchers discover a new code in the genome

  The finding of researchers at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC) and the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) has been possible thanks to the calculation capacity of the MareNostrum supercomputer

• 20 November 2007
  Identification of a gene that regulates thyroid hormones

  Researchers at IRB Barcelona report the first data on the functions of a new gene that is altered in diabetes, published in PLoS One.

• 6 November 2007
  Hemoglobin uncovered

  Researchers at the BSC and the IRB Barcelona unveil crucial information about the protein transporter of oxygen, which opens up the possibility to optimize its function by introducing modifications. The study is published in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

• 21 October 2007
  The accumulation of sugar in neurons may explain the origin of several neurodegenerative diseases

  A study published in Nature Neuroscience demonstrates that the excess of glucose chains (glycogen) induces neuronal death and causes Lafora disease, a fatal kind of epilepsy that affects adolescents. This mechanism, unknown until now, may provide the key to understanding other neurodegenerative pathologies.

• 17 October 2007
  Discovery of an essential protein for microtubule organisation

  This finding shows that centrosomes, organelles inside the cell responsible for organizing the microtubule network, are required for the correct development of an organism.

• 2 October 2007
  Stem cells could be a key factor in cancer

  Twenty leading authorities in cancer stem cell research, including Hans Clevers, John E. Dick, Joan Massagué and Sean J. Morrison, meet in Barcelona for the first time, invited by IRB Barcelona and the BBVA Foundation.