Research

Barcelona Centre for International Health Research (CRESIB)

Team leader

Strategic objectives

IDIBAPS’ area 6 of International Health became in 2006 a new CERCA research centre monographic in international health, the Barcelona Centre for International Health Research (CRESIB, Hospital Clínic – Universitat de Barcelona; www.cresib.cat) from which IDIBAPS is a Trustee together with the Generalitat de Catalunya, the Hospital Clínic and the Univesitat de Barcelona.

CRESIB has more than 85 researchers from different backgrounds including molecular biology, genetics, immunology, microbiology, epidemiology, clinics, statistics, medical anthropology and health economy. Our tenure track researchers include:

Research Professors:
Pedro L. Alonso
Hernando del Portillo
Joaquim Gascón
Edward B. Hayes
Clara Menéndez
Ivo Mueller
Jaume Ordi
Robert Pool
Tomàs Pumarola
Antoni Trilla
Jordi Vila

Associate Research Professors:
John J. Aponte
Carlota Dobaño
Marjolein Gysels
Alfredo Mayor

CRESIB’s mission is to improve global health through research and training. The Centre is scientifically organized in a matrix to maximize interaction between researchers and promote multidisciplinary, translational and cross-cutting research in order to achieve its mission (See Figure).

CRESIB collaborates with more than 100 research centres in 40 countries, but we have stable strategic partnerships:

  • In Mozambique the Manhiça Health Research Centre (CISM, www.manhica.org), studying the most prevalent diseases in sub-Saharan Africa such as malaria, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, pneumonia and other bacterial invasive diseases and diarrheal disease.
  • In Morocco we develop a broad portfolio of activities in maternal and child health in partnership with the Ministry of Health, the University Hospital of Rabat and two main women’s and children’s hospitals.
  • In Bolivia we work together with the Universidad Mayor de San Simón, the Viedma Hospital, CEADES and the Ministry of Health to improve the understanding of the epidemiology, clinical presentation and immunology of Chagas disease and develop new diagnostic and treatment tools.

The centre’s scientific output has grown continuously over the last years in terms of both volume and the impact factor of its publications, with 84 original articles and an impact factor of 324 in 2010.

Highlights of our results in 2010

  • CRESIB lead the Malaria Eradication Research Agenda (malERA) initiative which brought together more than 250 scientists from 36 countries in a series of consultations with the aim of identifying the research and development priorities to potentially eradicate malaria. The results will be published at the beginning of 2011 in a special issue of PLoS Medicine.
  • Several studies have assessed the immune response to malaria infection in pregnancy and the effect of HIV infection, suggesting a higher efficacy of the Intermittent Preventive Treatment for malaria in pregnancy (IPTp) among HIV-positive mothers.
  • A novel immune spleen evasion mechanism for Plasmodium vivax has been described
  • CRESIB promoted the creation of the Ibero-American network NHEPACHA, which aims to accelerate the development of new diagnostic and treatment tools for Chagas disease.
  • 3.3% of the HIV seronegative adult patients presenting with fever at the Manhiça District Hospital (Mozambique) were found to have Acute HIV Infection. These individuals may be hypertransmitters and could be targets for the positive prevention of sexually-transmitted HIV.
  • The Microbicide Development Program completed its MDP301 Phase III trial of a candidate microbicide, which included a social science component led by CRESIB who developed an innovative mixed-methods model for studying adherence and sexual behavior.
  • A new efflux pump contributing to resistance to different classes of antibiotics has been characterized.
  • Procalcitonin and reactive-C-protein have been shown to be potential markers to differentiate viral and bacterial pneumonia in a malaria-endemic area.
  • CRESIB researchers participated in the international Brighton Collaboration process to develop a case-definition for viscerotropic disease as an adverse event after yellow fever vaccination.