Knowledge Transfer: The financial cushion of research groups

Since 2008, the research group on immunoreceptors of the University of Barcelona, led by Dr. Pablo Engel, licences monoclonal antibodies resulting from their research to different international companies. According to Dr. Engel, this practice presents clear advantages: "It is an additional source of funding that is very important to us in these times of crisis. In this way the money returns to the laboratory and allows us to offer scholarships or to carry on with our research until grants arrive.”

This research group works with lymphocyte membrane molecules with the aim of developing new treatments for autoimmune diseases, such as Sjögren's syndrome and systemic lupus erythematosus, and also cancers such as lymphoma or leukemia, among others. For their research, the group generates cells that produce monoclonal antibodies, which are then licensed to different companies. These antibodies are highly sought after in the field of biomedicine, since they allow, among other applications, to locate a protein within a tissue or block the function of a molecule to inhibit tumor growth. "The antibodies we generate are new, but once we transfer the antibody-producing cell to companies, they can produce unlimited quantities by themselves," Dr. Engel explains. The buyers are mainly US companies, which then include these antibodies in their catalogues for other researchers.

"Many of us do not think about the transfer potential of our research, but I am convinced that there are many research groups at the University of Barcelona that have products and knowledge that can be transferred," says Dr. Engel. The Valorisation and Licencing Area of the Bosch i Gimpera Foundation is in charge of conveying the discoveries of researchers to society, thus generating returns for both the UB and the researchers themselves.