IGTP project receives €49,000 from CaixaImpulse to advance a precision cell therapy for multiple sclerosis

A project led by Federico Fondelli, researcher at the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), has been selected in the 2026 CaixaImpulse Health Innovation call promoted by the "la Caixa" Foundation. The project will receive €49,000 to advance the development of a new cell therapy strategy aimed at specifically restoring the immune system's tolerance to myelin in people with multiple sclerosis.

In multiple sclerosis, certain T cells of the immune system attack myelin, the protective layer surrounding nerve fibres in the brain and spinal cord. The project proposes a different approach from strategies based on broader immune modulation: retraining the immune response so that it can tolerate myelin again.

To achieve this, the team uses tolerogenic dendritic cells derived from the patient to generate regulatory T cells (Tregs) that specifically recognise myelin antigens. These cells are able to modulate the immune response. The team has developed a protocol compatible with Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards that makes it possible to obtain specific, stable Tregs with suppressive capacity without the need for genetic modification.

"In multiple sclerosis, the challenge is to stop the immune response against myelin without compromising the rest of the immune system. With this project, we aim to move towards a more specific and personalised therapy based on retraining the patient's own immune cells," explains Federico Fondelli, researcher in the IGTP Immunopathology Research Group.

Towards a more personalised therapy

The project also incorporates tools to select patients who may be more likely to respond to this approach. The team has identified a specific set of myelin peptides that could cover approximately the majority of people with multiple sclerosis and could be used to pre-select patients before starting cell production.

In addition, the researchers have developed a genetic test that could help predict, during the first few days of the GMP production process, whether the resulting cell batch is likely to be successfully obtained.

In the longer term, this approach could contribute to the development of more specific treatments targeting the immune response involved in the disease, reducing the need for broader immunosuppression. The same strategy could potentially be adapted to other autoimmune diseases, such as type 1 diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis, by modifying the antigens used.

Supporting biomedical innovation

The CaixaImpulse Health Innovation call, promoted by the "la Caixa" Foundation in collaboration with Criteria Bio Ventures, supports projects seeking to transform scientific knowledge into products, services and solutions with the potential to improve health. In the 2026 edition, 30 projects were selected from 449 applications.

Other IGTP projects supported by the "la Caixa" Foundation 

In addition to the project selected in the CaixaImpulse call, IGTP is participating in two other projects funded through "la Caixa" Foundation programmes in 2026.

Dr Laura Fernández López (CEEISCAT-IGTP) has received funding through the 5th Connecta call for the project CX26-00164 - Barreras y determinantes de acceso al sistema sanitario en personas migrantes usuarias del cribado comunitario del VIH, las ITS y las hepatitis víricas, which focuses on barriers and determinants affecting access to healthcare among migrants using community-based screening services for HIV, sexually transmitted infections and viral hepatitis.

Andreu Colom-Cadena (CEEISCAT-IGTP) is also a member of the consortium of the project HC26-00170 - A Family-Targeted Hand Hygiene Intervention in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), led by Anna Bordas (IDIAPJGol) and funded through the 2026 HealthCare Research Call. The project is coordinated by IDIAPJGol, with IGTP and the Fundació Institut d'Investigació Sanitària Pere Virgili participating as partner institutions. The study will assess a hand-hygiene intervention aimed at family caregivers of newborns admitted to neonatal intensive care units. IGTP has been awarded €26,270, within an overall project budget of €79,043.