Fundación Occident and CNB: projectsupporting young researchers
Fundación Occident, of (GCO) Grupo Catalana Occidente, continues to support research by financing several scientific projects at the National Biotechnology Centre (CNB-CSIC).
Fundación Occident, of (GCO) Grupo Catalana Occidente, continues its support for research through collaboration with the National Biotechnology Centre (CNB-CSIC).
The financial assistance awarded to complete a doctoral thesis in CNB-CSIC groups went to Yolanda Rodríguez Carrasco, a researcher in the Department of Immunology and Oncology, whose research group is working on the study of cellular signalling networks that govern the behaviour and activation of B lymphocytes.
In addition, the four grants allocated for emerging groups at the centre were awarded to young researchers Juana Antonia Ávila-Flores, James Pelletier, Luis F. Seoane and Adrián Valli. The trajectory and innovative projects of these four scientists reflect the multidisciplinary nature of the research conducted at the CNB-CSIC, which addresses issues with a high impact on society, such as agriculture, health and the environment.
The project by Antonia Ávila-Flores, a researcher in the Department of Immunology and Oncology, focuses on the potential of diacylglycerol kinase enzymes as a reinforcement in antitumour therapy and in the search for the mechanisms to regulate these enzymes in different types of cells involved in the immune response.
Thanks to the help of Fundación Occident, James Pelletier, a researcher in the Systems Biology Department, financed by the International Human Frontier Science Program Organization (HFSPO), is researching essential physiological processes in cells with a minimum genome and developing technologies for their application as therapies.
Luis F. Seoane, a researcher in the Systems Biology Department, focuses his research on mathematical modelling of brain plasticity and the development of new systems for analysing complex networks in areas such as network theory, linguistics or economic and social systems. Thanks to the help of Fundación Occident, Seoane will be able to conduct scientific research and establish collaborations in various leading international laboratories in the field.
The project by Adrián Valli, researcher for the Ramón y Cajal programme in the Department of Plant Molecular Genetics, focuses on developing tools to control viral infections that affect plant species used in the agricultural and food sectors by means of innovative biotechnological approaches.
The doctoral thesis project led by Dr Yolanda Rodríguez Carrasco focuses on the role of the diacylglycerol kinase protein in the B-lymphocyte-mediated immune response, a project that allows for personalised approaches to immunotherapy.
The collaboration between Fundación Occident and the Spanish National Biotechnology Centre (CNB-CSIC) began in 2019 with its direct support for research projects on COVID-19 related topics. This latest call by the Foundation continues its support for research and the values it represents, funding several scientific projects at the CNB under an agreement signed between the two entities in December 2021.
