The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology was formally launched, bringing together six top Catalan research centers: CRG, ICIQ, ICN2, ICFO, IFAE, and IRB Barcelona. The new institution aims to foster interdisciplinary research, leverage scientific impact, and position itself among leading European research institutions. Angel Nebreda of IRB Barcelona received a Proof of Concept grant from the European Research Council to investigate new breast cancer therapies based on p38 MAPK inhibitors using patient samples. IRB Barcelona hosted the 15th European Light Microscopy Initiative meeting, bringing together over 400 microscopy experts to discuss the latest developments in microscopy techniques.
1. NEWSLETTER OF THE INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH IN BIOMEDICINE
p4 ELMI comes
to Barcelona
Federica wants
girls to have fun
with science
Fly model
for cancer
p4 p8
p7 Science and fun
at Kids’ Day
invivo
Six top Barcelona
research institutes form
the Barcelona Institute
July 2015 | Issue 31
Angel Nebreda receives
ERC Proof of Concept Grant
On 13 July, the European Research Council awarded ICREA Research Pro-
fessor and IRB Barcelona Group Leader Angel R. Nebreda one of 45 Proof of
Concept grants attributed in 2015. Nebreda is one of six awardees in Spain, five
of whom are based in Catalonia.
These grants are top-up funding to investigate commercial applications of
scientists’ frontier research results, and are available to scientists who already
hold ERC grants. Nebreda was awarded an ERC Advanced Grant in 2011 for his
project, ‘P38 Cancer.’
His Proof of Concept grant is entitled ‘P38 Cure,’ and
aims to investigate new breast cancer therapies based on
available p38 MAPK inhibitors. “Our lab results support a
potential therapeutic use for p38 MAPK inhibitors in com-
bination with chemotherapy drugs,” he explains.
The researchers will use patient-derived samples
of specific breast cancer subtypes for preclinical
validation of a new drug combination therapies with
potential benefit to patients.
The Proof of Concept grants, worth up to
€150,000, cover the costs of activities to verify the in-
novation potential of ERC-funded projects.
IRB Barcelona has joined the Centre for Genomic Regulation
(CRG), the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ), the
Catalan Institute for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2),
the Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO), and the High Energy
Physics Institute (IFAE) for an ambitious joint endeavour. They have
come together to establish the ‘Barcelona Institute of Science and
Technology,’ which will pursue common scientific aims.
More on page 2.
Directors of the six Catalan centres that have come together to form the
Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology. (Photo: R. Vilalta).
Celebrating ten years
of discovery
Monday, 26 October is a day you won’t want to miss. IRB
Barcelona will honour a decade of discovery in the biomedical
sciences with a special symposium. Activities will celebrate our
achievements and look forward to where the biomedical sciences
are headed over the next ten years. More on page 5.
CEP63 guarantees correct
division of brain stem cells
In a joint study, researchers from the labs of Jens Lüders and Travis Stracker
have discovered that the protein CEP63 is crucial for the correct division of
brain stem cells. In its absence, mice reproduce Seckel Syndrome, a rare disease
that causes microcephaly and growth defects.
More on page 3.
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p2
S
ix top Catalan research centres have tak-
en a leap forward in their collaboration
by constituting ‘The Barcelona Institute
of Science and Technology.’
The centres involved are the Centre for
Genomic Regulation (CRG); the Institute of
Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ); the
Catalan Institute for Nanoscience and Nano-
technology (ICN2); the Institute of Photonic
Sciences (ICFO); the High Energy Physics In-
stitute (IFAE); and IRB Barcelona.
The Barcelona Institute seeks to foster in-
terdisciplinary research, to leverage its scientif-
ic impact, and position itself among the leading
European institutions. Together, the Institutes
rank fourth in the number of European Re-
search Council (ERC) grants received on the
basis of number of researchers (49 ERC grants
from 2007 to 2014).
“This new institution will allow the six
centres to launch more transversal scientific
projects and to achieve greater international
competitiveness,” says Rolf Tarrach, head of
The Barcelona Institute of
Science and Technology is born
New ties with
RIMLS and Trento
The list of IRB Barcelona’s international
ties is growing. On 3 June, Director Joan
J. Guinovart, together with the Chair of Post-
graduate Training Raúl Méndez and Academic
Coordinator Patricia Nadal, travelled to Ni-
jmegen, Netherlands, to sign a collaboration
agreement on research and training with the
Radboud Institute for Molecular Life Sci-
ences (RIMLS). RIMLS activities range from
research in molecular biology to the develop-
ment of tools for personalised medicine.
The agreement will allow IRB Barcelona
undergraduates and masters students to take
part in RIMLS’ “Molecular Mechanisms of
Diseases” Masters Programme, and in PhD
student placements that will familiarise stu-
dents from both institutes with the facilities
and technology available at the centres.
On 25 June, a separate agreement was
reached between IRB Barcelona and the Cen-
ter for Integrative Biology (CIBIO) of the
University of Trento in Italy aimed at pro-
moting PhD students exchanges among the
two institutes..
PRIZES
ROGER GOMIS, ICREA researcher and
head of the Growth Control and Cancer Metas-
tasis Lab, was been granted €240,00 over three
years by the charity Worldwide Cancer Research
to study a protein that confers tumour cells the
capacity to metastasise and resist treatment. Only
27 projects of the more than 700 presented ob-
tained funding.
EDUARD BATLLE, ICREA researcher and
head of the Colorectal Cancer Lab, received the
Premio Ciencias de la Salud from the Fundación
Caja Rural de Granada. The jury unanimously
chose to recognise Batlle’s study published in
Nature Genetics in February, which outlined the
development of a test that could identify cancer
patients at risk of relapse after surgery.
JOAN J. GUINOVART, IRB Barcelona Di-
rector and head of the Metabolic Engineering and
Diabetes Lab, received the 2015 Gaudí Gresol
Prize for Esteem and Excellence in the science
category. Presented by la Fundación Gresol in
Reus, the award recognises the merits and dedi-
cation of individuals with outstanding personal
and career development.
the European University Association and chair of
the Barcelona Institute’s Board of Trustees, which
also includes prominent international scientists,
Joan Massagué (Sloan Kettering Institute), Igna-
cio Cirac (Max Planck Institute), Miquel Salm-
eron (UC Berkeley) and Sergi Verdú (Princeton
University), as well as representatives from five
major foundations (”la Caixa,” Banc Sabadell,
Catalunya-La Pedrera, Cellex; and Femcat), and
from the Government of Catalonia.
Monsterrat Vendrell has been appointed Di-
rector of the Barcelona Institute and will take up
her responsibilities in September, once she has
handed over her duties as Director of Biocat and
of the Barcelona Science Park.
“From the interdisciplinarity of the six cen-
tres that comprise the Institute,” Vendrell affirms,
“we will consolidate a joint scientific initiative,
build a graduate training offer that responds to
current training challenges, and achieve the criti-
cal mass needed for efficient technology trans-
fer.”. IRB Barcelona Director, Joan J. Guinovart, and Dean
of Radboudumc, Paul Smits, formalise a long-lasting
partnership. (Photo: Radboudumc).
The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology was formally launched on 26 June 2015.
From left to right in the photo, Director Montserrat Vendrell, Chair of the Board of Trustees Rolf Tarrach,
and Vice-Chair Jaume Giró (Photo: R. Vilalta).
in vivo July 2015 | Issue 31
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Work led by Ernest Giralt, group
leader of the Peptides and Proteins
Laboratory, and Meritxell Teixidó, Research
Associate in the same lab, provides details
on the passive diffusion of peptide shuttles
through blood-brain barrier (BBB). Their
study appears in the June issue of the Jour-
nal of the American Chemical Society
The researchers designed and synthe-
sised peptides consisting of four phenyl–
prolines, which showed high water solu-
bility and could transport cargoes, as they
confirmed by attaching nipecotic acid and
L-DOPA to the molecule.
Additionally, the group confirmed that
stereochemistry plays a significant role in
passive diffusion across the BBB. This may
open the door to the design of chiral and
membrane-specific shuttles with potential
applications in cell labelling and oncology.
(sp).
Deeper knowledge
on blood-brain
barrier shuttles
SCIENCE BITES
New protocol for an old
technique Boc solid-phase pep-
tide synthesis requires a widely-used tech-
nique that includes anhydrous hydrogen
fluoride (HF) cleavage. Until now, there has
been no published protocol addressing issues
involving HF use. IRB Barcelona’s Markus
Muttenthaler and Fernando Albericio, and
Philip Dawson from the Scripps Research
Institute, have now provided this valuable
resource with an article in June’s issue of Na-
ture Protocols describing methods, setup and
safe handling of HF.
Can a denaturant stabilise
DNA? Modesto Orozco has coor-
dinated a study published in Angewandte
Chemie in July that reported an unexpected
finding: the combination of two extremely
powerful denaturants can stabilise the struc-
ture of DNA. The result opens up new pos-
sibilities related to the biotechnological use
of DNA and illustrates the complexity of the
interactions modulating the structure of this
molecule.
A review on Smads Maria J.
Macias, Pau Martín and Joan Massa-
gué published an article in the June issue of
Trends in Biocehmical Sciences in which they
analysed how genetic variations in Smads
may affect the structure, regulation, and
function of these proteins. They also pres-
ent a web application that highlights the se-
quence conservation and variability of Smad
proteins along evolution and in tumours, and
displays the Smads structures as 3D models
that can be rotated and zoomed in on.
Multifunctional repairers
Protein synthesis requires the at-
tachment of specific amino acids to tRNAs.
Errors in this process are proofread by ed-
iting domains. A study published in May in
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sci-
ences, with the collaboration of Lluís Ribas,
reveals that some of these domains can act
on different tRNAs, thus correcting the mis-
takes made by different aminoacyl-tRNA
synthetases. (sp)
➲
Brain development and sperm
production linked to CEP63
Chromosomes forming pairs during meiosis. Defects in CEP63 disrupt this process causing infertility, and
can also lead to neuronal stem cell death in mice. (Image: M. Marjanovic)
➲
➲
➲
T
he CEP63 protein is involved in brain
development and male fertility. This
is the main conclusion of a joint study
published in Nature Communications by IRB
Barcelona group leaders Travis Stracker and
Jens Lüders, and first-authored by Marko Mar-
janovic, a Marie Curie postdoctoral researcher.
The study is also of relevance to Seckel
Syndrome, a rare disease involving mutations
in CEP63 gene and causing microcephaly and
reduced growth.
The researchers reveal how defects in
CEP63 affect key processes during brain devel-
opment by demonstrating that it is involved in
the correct division of stem cells in this organ
and that its depletion causes the death of brain
stem cells. The scientists also describe that the
p53 protein triggers cell death and that its re-
moval from developing embryos allows the
brain to develop to its normal size.
“This finding paves the way to study
whether p53 inhibitors could provide the basis
of a future treatment to prevent microcephaly
but it is still early to say,” says Travis Stracker.
Furthermore, they have discovered that CEP63
is associated with sperm production—an un-
known function of this gene until now.
Male mice lacking CEP63 show severe in-
fertility. “In many cases, fertility problems are
not widely understood and with this study we
have provided a different molecular perspective
to examine,” explains Jens Lüders. (sa).
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M
ore than 400 microscopy experts and users met at the 15th
Eu-
ropean Light Microscopy Initiative (ELM) Meeting, an annual
microscopy conference held this year in Sitges on 19-22 May.
Advanced Digital Microscopy Core Facility manager Julien Colom-
belli and his CRG counterpart, Timo Zimmermann, organised the meet-
ing that brought together a community of people involved in using, devel-
oping or distributing Advanced Light Microscopy techniques for the life
sciences. “The distinctive feature of ELMI is that collaboration between
academics and companies is very strong,” explains Colombelli. “ELMI re-
volves around its annual conference, unique in its format because it dedi-
cates almost half of the time to hands-on workshops by companies offer-
ing their latest developments ‘beyond the usual coffee break exhibition.’
This year, we introduced new scientific sessions, such as ‘Cancer and Bio-
Keeping up with the frenetic pace of
microscopy development at ELMI 2015
S
cientists have been using the fruit fly Drosophila as a genetic model
system in biology since the beginning of the 20th
century, and yet it
keeps surprising us.
IRB Barcelona Group Leaders and ICREA Researcher Professors
Marco Milán and Cayetano González celebrated the vigour of research
with this emblematic model animal by organising the 26th
Barcelona
BioMed Conference, in collaboration with the BBVA Foundation, on
Drosophila as a model in cancer. The event, held on 15-17 June at the In-
stitut d’Estudis Catalans in Barcelona, drew the participation of 150 inter-
national fly experts.
“Research on Drosophila and cancer is moving forward in a very spec-
tacular way,” comments Milán. This model organism has been used for
over a century to understand genetics and basic developmental mecha-
nisms. Nowadays, it is used to reproduce some of the most common hu-
man tumours, and researchers are confirming that the tumours in flies be-
have in a similar manner to analogous human cancers.
“The power of fly genetics allows us to rapidly and precisely dissect
the molecular mechanisms underlying unlimited tumour growth, meta-
static behaviour and malignancy to the host at the cellular level,” says Mi-
lán. He draws attention to three key elements discussed during the confer-
ence. “First, the fly is being widely used to perform drug screening and
identify functional targets for specific types of tumours,” he says. “The
combination of Drosophila genetics and chemical biology helps us to iden-
tify the most effective drugs with the lowest number of off targets.”
A second example where flies play a useful role specifically in cancer
research is a systemic problem often associated with cancer patients, called
cachexia. “Often times in the final stages of cancer, the organism succumbs
to this general state of weakness and fatigue. This is a very complicated
syndrome to study. Drosophila is already helping us to identify the mo-
lecular mechanisms underlying cachexia,” explains Milán.
Finally, Drosophila continues to open new paths for basic research in
cancer biology and in other fields. “The fly is one of the best known or-
ganisms nowadays. We can use it to study the role of the immune system
in cancer development, cancer-associated inflammation, the causal rela-
tionship between genomic instability and tumourigenesis, cancer metabo-
lism, and the relationship between diabetes and cancer,” concludes Milán.
“Research on flies keeps evolving and contributing to our understand-
ing of diseases. Drosophila will keep surprising us for the time to come!”
(ltb).
Fruit fly research summons cutting-edge
science to the Barcelona BioMed Conference
medical Imaging,’ in which IRB Barcelona Group Leader Jordi Casanova
was invited to speak. We wanted to focus on scientific fields that are chang-
ing together with the new opportunities that light microscopy offers.” The
conference was “a tremendous opportunity” to highlight that light micros-
copy and imaging is very strong in Barcelona, and a strategic line of techno-
logical development for IRB Barcelona and CRG, whose imaging facilities
collaborate closely.
“Today more than ever, technology development happens at a frenetic
pace,” says Colombelli. “No single institute can cope with it. The expertise
and resources required to master new technologies are so great that net-
working is essential. Collaborations with experts in specific techniques is
fundamental to get proofs-of-principle working, and before integrating the
technology in house. ELMI is an invaluable framework for that.” (ltb).
IRB Barcelona alumnus Mohammed Mahidur Rahman discusses fruit fly research with a colleague
during the Barcelona BioMed Conference in June. (Photo: M. Minocri)
in vivo July 2015 | Issue 31
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in vivo July 2015 | Issue 31
S
ince 2008, the ”La Caixa” Foundation has allowed IRB Barcelona to
recruit 61 talented PhD students from across the world. The most
recent are two students who will arrive this Autumn under the ”la
Caixa”- Severo Ochoa International PhD Fellowship Programme.
On 7 July, the four IRB Barcelona PhD students chosen in 2014 after an
international selection process received their certificate in a ceremony held
at the CaixaForum in Barcelona. The event saw the participation of the 52
PhD students at the 18 research centres with the “Severo Ochoa” Distinction
of Excellence (in 2014), and was attended by Secretary of State for Science,
Carmen Vela.
The fellowships are awarded to students with outstanding academic re-
cords and great potential. The four students from IRB Barcelona come from
the UK, Poland, Germany and Spain and work in the fields of chemistry,
bioinformatics and developmental biology. .
Stop what you’re doing and sign up now to save your seat for
the IRB Barcelona 10th Anniversary Scientific Symposium and
Alumni Reunion. It’s an event you won’t want to miss.
On Monday, 26 October, IRB Barcelona researchers and staff
will step out of the lab for the day and head to the CCCB to cel-
ebrate a decade of discovery in the biomedical sciences with a special
scientific symposium. Activities are designed to celebrate achieve-
ments in areas of IRB Barcelona research and look forward to where
the biomedical sciences are headed over the next ten years.
Internationally renowned speakers in fields related to IRB
Barcelona science will discuss their latest research, together with
selected alumni speakers who will present projects they have been
working on since leaving IRB Barcelona. Key figures in IRB Bar-
celona’s history will also discuss the contributions the institute has
made to the research landscape in Barcelona and beyond, followed
by a round table conversation with figures from leading European
and North American research institutions on how to ensure excel-
lence in research. A final interdisciplinary session will bring together
high-profile representatives from the worlds of science, cuisine, and
football – three areas for which Catalonia is known worldwide – for
a lively discussion on high-impact leadership.
Check out the full programme and register before 5 October via
the IRB Barcelona webpage.
A once in a decade event
Celebrating the 2014 ”la
Caixa” graduate students
From left to right, Craig Donoghue, Elzbieta Szulc, Lada Murcia, and Jürgen Walther on 7 July at the
CaixaForum in Barcelona about to receive their certificate. (Photo: L.T. Barone)
p5
in vivo July 2015 | Issue 31
EXPLORA for Orozco and Ribas. The Spanish Ministry of Economy
has awarded Group Leaders Modesto Orozco and Lluís Ribas (also an
ICREA Researcher) €58,000 and €55,000 respectively within the National
Programme for Fostering Excellence in Scientific and Technical Research
‘Explora Ciencia.’ The goal of this programme is to promote ‘heterodox and
radical innovative’ approaches to basic science or technology development
that represent a significant step forward in knowledge.
ELIXIR accelerates with Horizon 2020 funding. The sustainable
European infrastructure for biological information, supporting life science
research and its translation to medicine, agriculture, bioindustries and soci-
ety, ELIXIR, has been awarded 19 million euros from the EU to sustain its
implementation over the next four years. From September 2015, ‘ELIXIR-
EXCELERATE’ will fast-track the development and deployment of es-
sential data services. The Spanish node of the infrastructure comprises 10
research centers and organisations, including IRB Barcelona.
Informatics in the BIB. IRB Barcelona has joined the Bioinformat-
ics Barcelona Association (BIB). The association includes 25 organisations,
including universities, research centres, hospitals, large scientific facilities,
companies, and others, and a further 23 organisations are in the process of
joining. BIB seeks to set in motion advanced research initiatives in knowl-
edge and tech transfer and aims to implement programmes to train special-
ists. BIB is also supported by the Government of Catalonia and the ”la
Caixa” Foundation.
Epilepsy European project engages Iproteos. The European project
ECMED (Extracellular Matrix in Epileptogenesis) aims to design, validate
and bring into practice new innovative therapeutic strategies to further the
development of treatments and diagnostic approaches for of epilepsy. Co-
funded within the H2020 framework programme, it will last for three years
with a budget of 3.5 million euros. The biotech company Iproteos, a IRB
Barcelona spin-off, is the only Spanish partner of the consortium.
IN BRIEF
The startup, GenomeCore, dedicated to create a computation-
al platform to manage the genomic information of its clients and
whose CEO and founder is IRB Barcelona alumnus Òscar Flores,
has joined Wayra, the Telefonica Group accelerator. For a year,
GenomeCore will participate in Wayra’s acceleration programme,
which includes financing, advice and logistical support.
Alumnus start-up gets Wayra nod
6. in vivo July 2015 | Issue 31
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A
s In Vivo readers will know, IRB Barcelona friend Carlos
Romero is spending his summer training to swim across the
Strait of Gibraltar in September. Through his initiative, Nadar-
ContraCorriente, he will raise funds for IRB Barcelona research in can-
cer and metastasis. It turns out that Carlos has lots of friends, and they
are joining in to help him out, in whichever
way they can.
“La Gran Nadada Popular”
Collaborators at the City
Hall and sports complex of Car-
los’ hometown, Sant Esteve Ses-
rovires, came together on 6 June
to organise a community swim-
along, where neighbours were
invited to the municipal pool,
opened especially for the day, to
swim 18.5 km – the distance of the Strait – in symbolic support of Car-
los. Four hours and 2,864 lengths later, 129 swimmers (ranging in ages
from two to 68, and including IRB Barcelona researcher Marco Milán
and his daughter Alba) had logged a distance of more than 71 km – the
equivalent of to Africa and back four times.
Helpers were on hand to sell NadarContraCorriente t-shirts, gener-
ously provided by Gili Industrial, and to hand out sweets, donated by
Chupa Chups, two local businesses, and raised 640 euros.
“Butifarrada en Martorell”
Friends at Les Vinyes restaurant in the neighbouring town of Mar-
torell, also pitched in with their support and or-
ganised a typical Catalan sausage
barbecue party on 17 July. With the
help of the Martorell town hall, the
square adjacent to Les Vinyes was
prepared with long lines of tables
and chairs as well as a stage for mu-
sicians Roger Fuster y Joan Farrés to
serenade the happy diners on a warm
summer night.
If you’re curious to know more,
check out the blog at www.nedarcontracorrent.org by Fran
Fernández (yet another friend!), and make sure you stay tuned for the
minute-by-minute updates as Carlos hits the water in Cadiz sometime
during the week of 21 September. (ss).
Swimming and sausages in support of science
TECHTRANSFERNEWS
FCRI PRESENTATION OF COLO-
STAGE & NOSTRUM BIODISCOVERY
Two promising IRB Barcelona projects, Co-
lostage (Eduard Batlle) and Nostrum Biodis-
covery (Modesto Orozco) were presented at
the Science-Business Forum, organised by the
Catalan Foundation for Research and Innova-
tion (FCRI) and EY Foundation in April. The
Forum aims to bridge biomedical research and
industry and make entrepreneurs aware of the
business opportunities that biomedical science
presents. Ten academic and 12 business proj-
ects rooted in biomedicine, were presented to
an audience of businessmen and investors.
BIO PHILADELPHIA 2015 On 15-18
June, IRB Barcelona headed to Philadelphia
for the BIO International Convention, a ma-
jor gathering of the international biotechnol-
ogy sector. A delegation of 37 companies and
seven research institutions was led by Biocat,
the organisation that coordinates and pro-
motes the life sciences sector in Catalonia.
TTS EUROPE & ENTENTE HEALTH
On 28-29 April, IRB Barcelona participated
in the 9th
edition of TTS Europe 2015 and the
final conference of the ENTENTE Health
project on best practices in healthcare technol-
ogy transfer. TTS is a high-level international
meeting, held this year in Spain for the first
time, which aims to foster better understand-
ing between all stakeholders in the biotech-
nology, biomedical and healthcare communi-
ties on the critical need for efficient transfer of
early innovative research to commercialisable
product technology.
INNOVATION WORKSHOP SERIES
On 9 June, Marc Ramis Castelltort, CEO at
Tech & Business Innovation, led an interactive
workshop for 20 IRB Barcelona members on
how to transfer academic results to the private
biomedical sector. The seminar, ‘Technology
transfer: turning academic results into busi-
ness opportunities,’ is part of a workshop se-
ries organised by the Innovation Department.
The city of La Palma will host the
‘100xCiencia’ forum on 7-8 October
2015. Organised by the 20 centres with
the Severo Ochoa Seal of Excellence, the
event will convene scientists and jour-
nalists to celebrate Spain’s frontier sci-
ence and debate the impact of science
in the media and society. Registration at
www.100xciencia.com.
“100xciencia" to
celebrate Spain’s
frontier science
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in vivo July 2015 | Issue 31
T
he traditional visit that IRB Barce-
lona staff’s kids pay every other year
to the Institute’s labs was extended
this year to welcome the families of our
neighbours at IBEC.
On 26 June the two institutes celebrated
a joint Kids’ Day receiving a flood of more
than 120 children of all ages who, after enjoy-
ing a science clown show, split into groups
for some hands-on science fun. IRB Barcelo-
na kids visited three stands where they could
play and learn with colourful chemistry, fruit
flies and bacteria. After a refreshing pause,
they toured through Ernest Giralt’s lab to see
what a scientific laboratory really looks like.
Activities wrapped up with a chance to
learn more about pH, draw pictures of re-
searchers, and taste ice cream made the sci-
entific way – with liquid nitrogen!
Check out a video of this special day at
https://youtu.be/WB2L3AvKfMU
Mini-scientists
for a day
A new lab look
IRB Barcelona labs have a new look!
Corporate blue panels and mosaic designs
now provide a welcoming entrance to each
lab. The goal of the redesign was to provide a
clear and easily recognisable institutional look,
and to give continuity to the disconnected
spaces assigned to IRB Barcelona within the
Barcelona Science Park. Magnetic grey panels
provide plenty of space to hang posters, and
signs hung above each lab clearly indicate
who’s inside. No excuses for not finding your
collaborators now!.
Spending the summer with science
W
hen you think about summer camp, does ‘science’ come to mind? For students in
the Catalunya-La Pedrera Foundation’s ‘Joves i Ciència,’ programme, it certainly
does.
Each June, 50 selected high-school students have the chance to travel to MónNatura Pyr-
enees, located in the impressive setting of Vall d’Àneu in northern Catalonia, for a unique
experience, participating in a real scientific research project. Like every year, IRB Barcelona
researchers were there to accompany them, guiding them through principles of biomedical re-
search. They cloned genes and expressed and purified proteins as part a project geared toward
understanding what happens in Alzheimer’s disease and design new drugs that could treat its
symptoms. It was a challenge that the kids were truly up for.
“The classes really put me to the test,” admits Irene, a student from Barcelona, “but at the
same time, they convinced me of my passion for the biosciences. The experience gave me an
idea on what a career in science is really like.”
Many of the students who have participated in past editions of ‘Joves i Ciència’ have gone
on to distinguish themselves at competitive universities, and to position themselves well to
receive grants to study at leading
laboratories.
Most importantly, the camp al-
lows the teenagers to share experi-
ences with people like themselves,
passionate about science. They form
lasting friendships and, who knows,
maybe valuable scientific collabora-
tions in the future. (hg).
More than 120 young scientists-to-be from IRB Barcelona
and IBEC families discovered what scientists get up to
during their days at work. (Photos: L.T. Barone)
A newly-redesigned IRB Barcelona lab. On the right, students
from the Joves i Ciència programme learn about Alzheimer’s.
(Photo: H. González)
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