The "la Marató de TV3" funds 36 biomedical projects for research into infectious diseases
Two of the projects funded this year are for research on Can Ruti Campus
The funds collected in the 2017 edition of "La Marathon de TV3" and "Catalunya Ràdio" fundraiser will pay for 36 top-ranked biomedical research projects on infectious diseases with the aim of creating new tools for diagnostics and prevention and more efficient treatments to provide more years of quality life for patients. The 55 researchers who will carry out the research received their certificates today in an event that took place on Tuesday in the Catalan and Balearic Island Academy of Medical Sciences and Health. Two of these projects will be carried out at the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP) on the Can Ruti Campus.
The projects awarded to Germans Trias are:
'The impact of loss from clinical follow-up and aging of the population affected by HIV in Catalonia and the Balearics: population-based cohort study' coordinated by Dr Jordi Casabona Barbarà, Scientific Director of the CEEISCAT and Associate Investigator at the IGTP. The project is being carried out in conjunction with the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) with Dr Arkaitz Imaz Vacas as principal investigator and will be within the framework of the PISCIs cohort of aging and quality of life in HIV positive subjects.
The other project awarded is 'Extracellular vesicles as a new prognostic biomarker for Chagas disease, an emerging chronic infection in Catalonia,' led by Dr Carmen Fernández Becerra. Dr Fernández Becerra is a researcher at the Institute of Global Health in Barcelona (ISGlobal), and Associate Investigator at the IGTP. The project will be carried out with Dr Joaquim Gascón and Maria Jesús Pinaza, both of ISGlobal-Hospital Clínic. The main objective is to determine whether the proteins of T. cruzi that are associated with extracellular vesicles represent a valid biomarker, not only for prognostics, but also to demonstrate the effectiveness of new treatments for Chagas disease.
36 research projects on infectious diseases
The 9.8 million euros collected for the 2017 edition of the "La Marató" have helped to raise awareness amongst the public and promote research into infectious diseases, the cause of one in three deaths worldwide. The 55 research teams receiving funding will work during the next three years to find answers to questions about various pathologies, which experts agree will become a serious public health problem in the coming years.
The 36 projects awarded funding, according to the decision of the Trustees and the proposals of the Scientific Advisory Board, were evaluated the best out of the 214 presented. The Agència de Qualitat i Avaluació Sanitàries de Catalunya (AQUAS) has coordinated the international evaluation process. In 2023 the results obtained by these projects will be presented in a scientific symposium.