IQAC organises the first conference on infectious diseases

The Nanobiotechnology for Diagnostics group (Nb4D) from Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC) and the Bioanalytics and Biosensing group from University of Alcalá de Henares (BBG-UAH) celebrated on 13^th September the 1^st Communication Day “Combatiendo las Enfermedades Infecciosas desde el Diagnóstico y la Terapia” (Facing Infectious Diseases through Diagnostics and Therapy) in the framework of the Targeting-QS project (PID2021-126257OB-C21/PID2021-126257OB-C22), funded by Spanish State Research Agency. This project is aimed at understanding the bacterial communication mechanisms and developing more efficient diagnostic and therapeutic tools based on that, always bearing in mind the fight against the antimicrobial resistance (AMR) threat.

This event was intended to gather representatives of some of the stakeholders implied in the Infectious Diseases research line of the Nb4D group that have supported their project proposals and backed their investigation. Thus, people from patients’ associations (Alfa-1 España and Associació Catalana de Fibrosi Quística) and the industrial sector (Gold Standard Diagnostics) attended this small workshop. We also counted on the participation of Isabel Masip, from the Tech Transfer area of CSIC.

The day started with an introduction of the Project Leader, M.-Pilar Marco, presenting the principal points of the research line, and was followed by short presentations in which each researcher (PhD students Carla Ferrero and Juan Raya and consolidated researchers Pablo Salvador, Lluïsa Vilaplana and Arantza González) explained their main advances and outcomes. Comments and questions posed by the audience were the prelude of the final round table, where representatives from the research groups, the associations, the industry and the CSIC Transfer area, conducted by Elena Domínguez (BBG-UAH) debated on several topics with special focus on the real patients’ needs and the necessity to listen to them to establish politics and research priorities.

The organizer groups are extremely happy with the positive and proactive attitude of the invited people, conscient about the need to learn from them and improve and willing to repeat a similar event before the project ends.