Integrative Systems Biology, Metabolomics and Cancer

Our group performs a multidisciplinary research, combining techniques from the fields of biochemistry, cellular and molecular biology and bioinformatics for an integrated analysis of biological samples within a Systems Biology and Systems Medicine approach. Our main research line is the study of metabolism and metabolic networks for therapeutic and industrial purposes. We have pioneered the development and application of ¹³C-based fluxomics and omics integration with a new generation of genome scale metabolic models to characterize metabolic alterations underlying human diseases. We focus on the role of metabolic reprogramming in two key players of tumorigenesis: metastasis and resistance to chemotherapy, to identify vulnerabilities exploitable as therapeutic metabolic targets efficient for both processes.

Our team is partner in several international projects aimed at precision medicine (EC FP7 and H2020 programs). Thus, we contribute to: i) An Europe-driven international effort to develop a robust data infrastructure to exchange standards for metabolomics (PHENOMENAL-H2020); ii) the training of young researchers in the fields of metabolomics and systems medicine (Marie Curie Training Networks H2020 MOGLYNET and HAEMMETABOLOME). We lead the consolidated SGR group on Integrative Biochemistry, that also integrates the Microbiota and intestinal epithelium IBUB group, leaded by Dr. Laura Baldomà, with which we collaborate in the framework of industry and international projects. Our group is a node of the Biomedical Research Network Center in Hepatic and Digestive Diseases (CIBEREHD) and a core node of the Spanish Institute of Bioinformatics (INB), both supported by ISCIII-Spanish Ministry of Health. INB is the Spanish node of the inter-governmental organization ELIXIR. As UB node of INB, we contribute to develop and sustain software tools in the field of metabolomics and fluxomics and to establish Europe-wide standards in these fields.