Two initiatives were selected for the Health Research call, focusing on basic research addressing major biomedical and health challenges, and two for the CaixaImpulse Health Innovation call, aimed at transforming scientific knowledge into products and services that improve citizen health. The lead researchers are Ángel Goñi-Moreno (CNB-CSIC), Jose Luis Chiara (IQOG-CSIC), Marc Liesa (IBMB-CSIC), and Miguel Mompeán (IQF-CSIC).
The "NEWTON Biotwins" project, led by Ángel Goñi-Moreno, will apply digital twins to flow cytometry, creating computational models to help interpret complex cellular data. This aims to accelerate biomedical research, improve disease diagnosis and monitoring, and make cellular analysis more efficient and accessible.
Jose Luis Chiara will develop a new rapid and accurate diagnostic test for CACT enzyme deficiency, a rare metabolic disorder in newborns. The test, compatible with neonatal screening programs, will confirm the disease within a day, facilitating early treatment and reducing risks.
Marc Liesa's team will investigate why the pancreas releases excess insulin during fasting, a condition linked to weight gain and diabetes. The study seeks to understand the early biological changes connecting these situations and explore new therapeutic avenues for preventing or treating type 2 diabetes.
Meanwhile, Miguel Mompeán will study the process by which proteins in nerve cells lose their normal organization and form abnormal deposits in neurodegenerative diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia. The goal is to identify early, potentially reversible events to develop new therapies.
