Prizes of the Board of Trustees of the University of Barcelona and Bosch i Gimpera Foundation for research and knowledge transfer

The study “Malthus living in a slum: urban concentration, infrastructures and economic growth” got the José Manuel Blecua Prize for the best article published in a distinguished journal in the field of humanities and social sciences, coming from a doctoral thesis. The research by David Castells Quintana shows that in order to have a growth of productivity from urban concentration processes, basic infrastructures should cover at least the 80% of urban population. That is, a lack of basic services, like in sub-Saharan Africa, is counterproductive not only for peopleʼs quality of life but also seen from an economic perspective. The awarded article, published in the reference journal Journal of Urban Economics, uses data by the World Bank, United Nations or other data gathered by the researcher. In the specific case of sub-Saharan Africa it also uses information, for example, from the NASA, about annual rainfall or nocturnal lightening.

Also, the honourable mention José Manuel Blecua has been awarded to the research on an innovative therapy to treat depression, which consists on working on the internal conflicts of patients: dilemmas between two sides of oneself (such as “I prefer to feel good than happy”). These conflicts, also called implicative dilemmas (ID), are often hidden by the same person who suffers from them and they are not usually aware of them. The research by Adrián Montesano says that, indeed, people who solve these ID and reconstruct self-narrative speeches are also the ones that show the most important improvements on depression symptoms. Montesano highlights that his research is applied-like and that therapy through ID is combinable with other interventions and can be used in different drug and psychological treatments.

The Ramon Margalef Prize of the Board of Trustees to the best article published in a distinguished journal in the field of experimental sciences and health was for Benjamí Oller Salvia, for his design of a molecule, in particular a peptide created out of beesʼ poison, which can be an important contribution to increase the efficiency of drugs that treat diseases in the central nervous system. The substance transfer from blood to the brain is strictly controlled by a cell barrier that tries to stop the coming in of external agents and infections. This protective function, however, is an impassable choice for most drugs aimed to treat diseases in the central nervous system, ranging from cancers to several minority diseases. There is a whole line of research -in which the doctoral thesis of Dr. Oller Salvia belongs- by the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) dedicated to peptide shuttles to cross this barrier.

The Antoni Caparrós Prize for the best project on knowledge transfer was awarded to the exhibition “Modernism. Art, workshops, industries”, commissioned by the Professor of History of Art Mireia Freixa and which was exposed at the exhibition room of La Pedrera during six months. It received more than 93.500 visitors during the six months it was opened to the public and was an exceptional platform to inform society about this heritage. The exhibition, which gathered the work of a whole series of research and doctoral theses, showed a view of Modernism focused on industrial arts and highlighted the work of many craftsmanship workshops and local manufactures.

The Antoni Caparrós Prize has also been awarded to a project by the research group Integrative Systems Biology, Metabolomics and Cancer, led by Professor Marta Cascante, for their contribution in the development of a new additive for the health and food sector with vegetable waste generated by the extraction of oil. In particular, the researchers characterized the properties of maslinic acid (present in olive skin) as an inhibitor of the development of intestinal polyposis, a disease that creates benign tumors which can provoke cancer in the long run. The research, transferred to the company Biomaslínic, has uses in the field of nutrition and health but it also includes the aim of revalorizing agroforestry waste, which would make the economic impact to be very high.

The winner of Senén Vilaró Prize for the best innovative company was Minoryx Therapeutics, a company specialized in the discovery and development of new drugs to treat rare diseases which affect children and teenagers. It was created in 2011, with the support and counselling of Bosch i Gimpera Foundation, by Marc Martinell, Xavier Barril and Joan Aymamí. In 2015, this spinoff of the University of Barcelona closed a financial round of 19,4 million euros, the biggest round reached by a biotec in Catalonia up to that moment, led by Ysios Capital and with the participation of Caixa Capital Risc, Health Equity and international investors such as Roche Venture Fund, Kurma Partners and Chiesi Ventures.