Vascular Biology and Metabolism (VAM)

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Overview

The VAM area was created to allow a comprehensive, cooperative and multidisciplinary approach in basic, clinical and epidemiology research. The ultimate goal is the innovation and transfer of solutions in a group of diseases that are closely interrelated and that constitute the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the world: cardio-cerebrovascular disease, diabetes-metabolic syndrome and renal impairment. The VAM area includes preclinical and clinical research staff from our center, and collaborative work with groups of the highest international prestige. VAM area includes 8 groups: Cardiovascular Pathology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Nephrology, Ophthalmology (focused on retinal vascular disease), CIBBIM-Nanomedicine and Kidney Physiopathology, Medical Molecular Imaging, Neurovascular Diseases, and Research on Aging, Frailty and Transitions in Barcelona. All groups use an integrative tridimensional approach to generate knowledge on the mechanisms of diseases to generate new diagnostic and therapeutic tools.

Publications

248
total
1470
impact factor
5.93
average impact factor

Group Leader: Anna Meseguer Navarro

Research focus:

1) Inherited rare kidney diseases including: Dent1, Familial Hypomagnesemia with Hypercalciuria and Nephrocalcinosis (FHHNC) and cortico-resistant nephrotic syndrome due to mutations in the Crb2 gene.

2) Tubular regeneration versus fibrosis and the role of sex hormones in kidney injury. Discovery of time-dependent transcriptional programs involved in regeneration of male and female kidneys upon injury, using the pig as a model. Relevant results have been tested in human samples.

3) Discovery of common mechanisms between kidney regeneration and ccRCC. The HAVRC1/KIM-1 protein and more.

Training:

8 Ph.D. thesis, one from the PhD4MD Program, currently supervised by our group.

Relevant collaborations:

Vivek Malhotra. CRG

Patients Associations (ASDENT and HIPOFAM).

Rare Kidney Stone Consortium (RKSC), led by the Mayo Clinic (MN, USA).

Nostrum Biodiscovery, Mare Nostrum Supercomputing Center.

European Rare Renal Diseases Network (ERKNet) (Gema Ariceta. Coordinator).

VHIR Annual Report 2019