About the VHIR
Here at the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) we promote biomedical research, innovation and teaching. Over 1,800 people are seeking to understand diseases today so the treatment can be improved tomorrow.
Research
We are working to understand diseases, to find out how they operate and to create better treatments for patients. Get to know about our groups and their lines of research.
People
People are the centre of the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR). This is why we are bound by the principles of freedom of research, gender equality and professional attitudes that HRS4R promotes.
Clinical trials
Our work is not just basic or translational; we are leaders in clinical research. Enter and find about the clinical trials we are conducting and why we are a world reference in this field.
Progress
Our aim is to make the research carried out at the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) a driving force for transformation. How? By identifying new channels and solutions for the promotion of people's health and well-being.
Core facilities
We offer specialist support for researchers, internal and external alike, ranging from specific services to preparing complete projects. All this, from a perspective of quality and speed of response.
News
We offer you a gateway for staying up to date on everything going on at the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), from the latest news to future solidarity activities and initiatives that we are organising.
The research conducted in our group is geared toward elucidating the cause and molecular mechanisms of neurodegeneration in Parkinson's disease (PD), a disabling, currently incurable common neurodegenerative disorder. To this end, we perform clinical and pre-clinical translational research in both PD patients and in human-relevant experimental in vitro and in vivo PD-related models.
Elucidating the molecular mechanisms underlying neurodegeneration in PD should allow to:
Mitochondria are highly dynamic organelles with complex structural features that play several important cellular functions, such as the production of energy by oxidative phosphorylation, the regulation of calcium homeostasis, or the control of programmed cell death. Given its essential role in neuronal viability, alterations in mitochondrial biology can lead to neuron dysfunction and cell death. Defects in mitochondrial respiration have long been implicated in the etiology and pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD). However, the role of mitochondria in PD extends well beyond defective respiration and also involves perturbations in mitochondrial dynamics, leading to alterations in mitochondrial morphology, intracellular trafficking, or quality control. Whether a primary or secondary event, mitochondrial dysfunction holds promise as a potential therapeutic target to halt the progression of dopaminergic neurodegeneration in PD.
IP: Miquel Vila Bover
IP: Marta Martínez Vicente Collaborators: José Antonio Arranz Amo, Eddie Pradas Gracia, Laura Castillo Ribelles, Clara Carnicer Cáceres, David Moreno Martinez, Jordi Riera Heredia, Marta Montpeyó Garcia-Moreno, Pablo Castillo Sánchez Funding agency: Fundació "La Caixa" Funding: 249950 Reference: HR22-00602 Duration: 01/11/2022 - 31/10/2025
IP: Marta Martínez Vicente Collaborators: Marta Montpeyó Garcia-Moreno, Miriam Izquierdo Sans, Laia Perez Lasarte Funding agency: Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte Funding: 65688 Reference: FPU18/05595 Duration: 15/10/2019 - 14/10/2023
IP: Marta Martínez Vicente Collaborators: Eddie Pradas Gracia, Laia Perez Lasarte Funding agency: Fundació Institut de Recerca HUVH Funding: 50649.27 Reference: VHIR/BEQUESPREDOC/2019/PRADAS Duration: 01/04/2020 - 31/03/2023
IP: Sara Marsal Barril Collaborators: Antonio Julia Cano, Javier Hoyo Pérez, Elena Granell Pallares, Adria Aterido Ballonga Funding agency: EUROPEAN COMMISSION Funding: 1079085 Reference: DOCTIS_H2020_SC1-BHC2019 Duration: 01/01/2020 - 31/12/2025
PMID: 37741513 Journal: NEUROBIOLOGY OF DISEASE Year: 2023 Reference: Neurobiol Dis. 2023 Sep 21:106308. doi: 10.1016/j.nbd.2023.106308. Impact factor: Publication type: Paper in international publication Authors: Bove, Jordi; de Fabregues, Oriol; de Fabregues, Oriol; Ramos-Vicente, David; Roch, Gerard; Selles, Maria; Vila, Miquel et al. DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2023.106308
PMID: 37755405 Journal: ASAIO JOURNAL Year: 2023 Reference: ASAIO J. 2023 Sep 13. doi: 10.1097/MAT.0000000000002038. Impact factor: Publication type: Paper in international publication Authors: Abbasi, Adeel; Alexander, Peta M A; Anders, Marc M; Arachchillage, Deepa J; Barbaro, Ryan P; Fox, Alexander D; Friedman, Matthew L; Malfertheiner, Maximilian V; Rali, Aniket S; Ramanathan, Kollengode et al. DOI: 10.1097/MAT.0000000000002038
PMID: 37769648 Journal: BRAIN Year: 2023 Reference: Brain. 2023 Sep 28:awad331. doi: 10.1093/brain/awad331. Impact factor: Publication type: Paper in international publication Authors: Ariznabarreta, Goiaz; Chocarro, Julia; Collantes, Maria; Honrubia, Adriana; Labandeira-Garcia, Jose L; Lanciego, Jose L; Penuelas, Ivan; Rico, Alberto J; Roda, Elvira; Rodriguez-Perez, Ana I et al. DOI: 10.1093/brain/awad331
PMID: 37165368 Journal: Health and Quality of Life Outcomes Year: 2023 Reference: Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2023 May 10;21(1):42. doi: 10.1186/s12955-023-02120-2. Impact factor: Publication type: Paper in international publication Authors: Alonso-Garcia, Lucia; Bruguera, Andreu; Casabona, Jordi; Diaz, Yesika; Egea-Cortes, Laia; Folch, Cinta; Forero, Carlos G; Hernandez, Juan; Mesias-Gazmuri, Jocelyn; Miro, Jose M et al. DOI: 10.1186/s12955-023-02120-2
Vall d'Hebron has participated in a phase III clinical trial which confirmed the efficacy and safety of subcutaneous infusion of levodopa therapy.
This initiative is part of a pioneering study that seeks to assess how the relationship between different age groups can influence the quality of life and mental health of patients.
Dr. Miquel Vila, head of the Neurodegenerative Diseases research group at VHIR, is the co-chair of the local organising committee. And Dr. Ariadna Laguna, principal investigator of the same group, is a scientific ambassador.
Vall d'Hebron Iniciativa per al Parkinson (VHIP) is a research project aimed at the development of biochemical markers for the early detection of Parkinson's disease. This study is carried out in people at high risk of having this disease, because they carry genetic mutations that predispose to the development of Parkinson's or because they present non-motor symptoms that manifest themselves years before motor symptoms.
