Medicinal Chemistry & Pharmacology
Medicinal Chemistry & Pharmacology
Medicinal Chemistry & Pharmacology
Who We Are
Our group is located at the Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences of the University of Barcelona (UB), Barcelona’s main university and Spain’s leading research university.
We combine expertise in organic and medicinal chemistry and in pharmacology. Thus, we are able to develop new synthetic methodology, design and synthesize novel bioactive compounds and perform in vitro and in vivo experiments for testing them in relevant models of diseases.
Regarding the synthetic work, it is performed at the Laboratory of Medicinal Chemistry which has just finished a 1.5 million € full refurbishment, and has all the equipment required for conducting state-of-the-art organic and medicinal chemistry research:
- basic equipment (rotavapors, heaters, vacuum oven, etc.) and medium-sized apparatus (automated column chromatography systems, microwave oven for organic reactions, parallel synthesizer, etc.),
- specialized equipment, such as an H-Cube Pro system for performing flow-chemistry, a LambdaSphere® photoreactor for performing flow-photochemistry, and a Peschl photoreactor for conducting large-scale photosynthesis,
- analytical equipment (e.g., several HPLC, a FT/IR spectrometer, gas-liquid chromatograph, etc.),
- a new high field (400 MHz) solution NMR spectrometer, with automatic sample changer, multinuclear probes and variable temperature facilities, and
- mass spectrometry facilities that include a spectrometer for GC-MS analysis and a HPLC/MS equipment,
- on-line access to hundreds of specialized journals and databases such as SciFinder®, Web of Science®, Scopus®, The Merck Index®, Pubmed, Pubchem, Espacenet, etc.
Moreover, there is a laboratory for special and dangerous reactions fully equipped with gases (CO2, NH3, Cl2, O2, etc.), an ozone generator and, a high-pressure hydrogenation laboratory.
The pharmacological evaluation work is performed at the Unit of Pharmacology, Pharmacognosy and Therapeutics. The Faculty of Pharmacy include an Animal Experimentation Facility, where there is the animal welfare center, with behavioral and cognitive facilities. The laboratory of pharmacology has the essential equipment to perform cell cultures (CO2 incubators, laminar flux cabin), protein and gene determination (Electrophoresis and immunoblot devices, Chemiluminiscence reader, PCR, etc), plate spectrophotometer, plate luminometer, plate fluorimeter, fluorescence microscopy etc.
In addition to the equipment available in the Faculty facilities, we have access to the Scientific and Technological Centers (http://www.ccit.ub.edu/EN/home.html), a group of UB centers that support research with large equipment’s, including 500 MHz and 800 MHz NMR spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis, mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography, several flow cytometers, wide-field transmitted light and fluorescence microscopes, stereo fluorescence microscope, confocal microscopes, and electronic microscope, among others.

Diagnostics with Modern Chemical Probes
Generation of functional probes by modern chemistry such as CH activation for modified tryptophan peptides and the preparation of fluorescent…
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Neurodegeneration in ageing and neurodegenerative diseases
We focus our research in the study of the molecular mechanisms involved in behavioral abnormalities and cognitive decline, by using…
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Design, synthesis and evaluation of new polycyclic inhibitors of the M2 channel of the influenza A virus.
Amantadine and rimantadine have been in clinical use as anti-influenza A virus agents for decades. The mechanism of action of…
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New imidazoline I2 receptor ligands
The imidazoline I2 receptors (I2-IRs) are altered in the brain of Alzheimer’s disease patients and I2-IR ligands may have therapeutic…
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Unveiling the multitarget anti-Alzheimer drug discovery landscape: A bibliometric analysis
Sampietro, A.; Pérez-Areales, F. J.; Martínez, P.; Arce, E. M.; Galdeano, C.; Muñoz-Torrero, D. Pharmaceuticals 2022, 15, 545
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Discovery and in vivo proof of concept of a highly potent dual inhibitor of soluble epoxide hydrolase and acetylcholinesterase for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease
Codony, S.; Pont, C.; Griñán-Ferré, C.; Di Pede-Mattatelli, A.; Calvó-Tusell, C.; Feixas, F.; Osuna, S.; Jarné-Ferrer, J.; Naldi, M.; Bartolini,…
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Disease-modifying treatment with I 2 imidazoline receptor ligand LSL60101 in an Alzheimer’s disease mouse model: a comparative study with donepezil
Vasilopoulou F, Rodríguez-Arévalo S, Bagán A, Escolano C, Griñán-Ferré C, Pallàs M. Disease-modifying treatment with I2 imidazoline receptor ligand LSL60101 in…
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Inhibition of Soluble Epoxide Hydrolase Ameliorates Phenotype and Cognitive Abilities in a Murine Model of Niemann Pick Type C Disease
Griñán-Ferré C, Companys-Alemany J, Jarné-Ferrer J, Codony S, González-Castillo C, Ortuño-Sahagún D, Vilageliu L, Grinberg D, Vázquez S, Pallàs M.…
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A Novel NMDA Receptor Antagonist Protects against Cognitive Decline Presented by Senescent Mice.
Companys-Alemany J, Turcu AL, Bellver-Sanchis A, Loza MI, Brea JM, Canudas AM, Leiva R, Vázquez S, Pallàs M, Griñán-Ferré C.Pharmaceutics. 2020. 12(3). pii: E284. doi: 10.3390/pharmaceutics12030284. https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/12/3/284/htm
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More than 600 research publications.
28 patents.
112 competitive projects.
50 contracts with companies.
54 PhD Thesis.
More than 55 international students.
Research Groups

Carmen Escolano
is an Associate professor at the Unit of Medicinal Chemistry with experience in the synthesis of complex molecules and molecules oriented to new therapeutic targets in cancer and neurodegenerative diseases.
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Rodolfo Lavilla
Full professor of Organic and Medicinal Chemistry at the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Barcelona. Received is PhD in Pharmacy at the University of Barcelona, made a postdoctoral stay in the University of California, San Diego and afterwards joined faculty in the University of Barcelona.
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Diego Muñoz-Torrero
Diego Muñoz-Torrero is Associate Professor of Organic and Medicinal Chemistry, with 30 years experience in the design and synthesis of drug candidates against neurodegenerative and protozoan diseases.
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Santiago Vázquez
is a Full Professor in Organic and Medicinal Chemistry in the Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutic Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences o the University of Barcelona (UB).
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Mercè Pallàs
is Full Professor of Pharmacology, with 30 years experience in the field of neuropharmacology of aging and neurodegeneration, Current research interest is the study of new compounds based on established targets and in epigenetics-based targets
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Dr Mercè Pallas was interviewed in InquietMENTE
Dr Mercè Pallas was interviewed in InquietMENTE, a radio program on Health and Neuroscience in radio 5, about superneurons and…

The conversation
Dr. Griñan-Ferré and Dr. Pallas have published an opinion article in The Conversation, comment an article by Nassif C. Integrity…

Workshop targeting neuroinflammation for CNS treatment disorders
Dr Griñan participated in the WORKSHOP TARGETING NEUROINFLAMMATION FOR CNS TREATMENT DISORDERS held by Spanish Society of Pharmacology in Madrid…