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Microbiology

57
Publications
75.44
%Q1
150
Number of citations
81.63
% Open Access Publications
36
Ongoing Projects
1
Number of Presented Theses
11
Number of Active Clinical Trials
The VHIR Microbiology Research Group focuses on studying the microbiological aspects of infectious diseases, aiming to develop strategies for diagnosis, prevention, and clinical management. Our work spans basic, translational, and clinical research. We are particularly interested in exploring antimicrobial resistance mechanisms, nosocomial infections, viral respiratory diseases, the surveillance and characterization of emerging pathogens, as well as viral, fungal, and sexually transmitted infections, and global health challenges. The group comprises principal investigators who are clinical microbiologists from the Microbiology Department at Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, as well as early-career researchers, including predoctoral fellows and clinical microbiology residents, supported by a dedicated team of technical staff. We are members of the CIBER (Biomedical Research Networking Center) for Infectious Diseases at the Instituto de Salud Carlos III.

eCORE

  • Global Health
  • Personalized Medicine, Innovative Diagnostics, Molecular Imaging & Digital Health

Team

Group Leader
Juan Jose Gonzalez Lopez

Principal Investigator (PI)
Juan José González-López, Andrés Antón Pagarolas, Joan Joseph Munné, Nieves Larrosa Escartín, Francisco Rodríguez Frías, Tomàs Pumarola, Maria Francesca Cortese, Alba Mir-Cros

Researchers
Albert Moreno Mingorance, Ariadna Rando Segura, Aroa Silgado Giménez, Beatriz Pacín Ruiz, Belén Viñado Pérez, Cristina Andrés Vergés, Elena Sulleiro Igual, Juliana Esperalba Esquerra, Lidia Goterris Bonet, Maria Piñana Moro, María Teresa Martín Gómez, María Teresa Tórtola Fernández, Mayli Lung Suárez, Narcís Saubí Roca, Rosa Maria Bartolomé Comas, Selene Garcia Garcia, Virgínia Rodríguez Garrido, Yannick Hoyos Mallecot

PhD Students
Alejandro Mediavilla Pérez, Alejandra González Sánchez, Carles Rubio Maturana, Daniel Romero Herrero, Jesús Trejo Zahinos, Josep Roca Grande, Maria Arnedo Muñoz, Patricia Martinez Vallejos, Paula Salmerón Menéndez, Guillem Puigsech Boixeda, Marina Vicente Ciurans, Jana Rovira Pluja, Arantxa Pérez Ugarte, Marta Bernat Solé, Patricia Nadal Barón, Saul Levy Blitchtein, Marcos Belsol Alfonso, Ester del Barrio Tofiño, Ignasi Prats Méndez

Lab Technicians
Alisa Davtyan Avetisyan, Eugènia Agustí Carol, Marta Vila Salvador, Rodrigo Vasquez Mercado,

Nursing and Technical Staff
Manuel Solivella Rodríguez, Carla Coll Costa, Olaya López Pérez

Selected Publications

Maria Piñana; Alejandra González Sánchez; Cristina Andrés; Jorgina Vila; Anna Creus Costa; Ignasi Prats Méndez; Maria Arnedo Muñoz; Narcís Saubi; Juliana Esperalba; Ariadna Rando; Patricia Nadal Baron; Josep Quer; Juan José González López; Pere Soler Palacín; Jaime Martínez Urtaza; Nieves Larrosa; Tomàs Pumarola; Andrés Antón.
Genomic evolution of human respiratory syncytial virus during a decade (2013-2023): bridging the path to monoclonal antibody surveillance
J Infect. 2024 May;88(5):106153
DOI: 10.1016/j.jinf.2024.106153
IF: 14.3

Pérez-Ugarte A, Oliveira-Souto I, Nadal-Baron P, Zarzuela F, Serre-Delcor N, Treviño B, Aznar ML, Pou D, Mediavilla A, Rubio-Maturana C, Belsol-Alfonso M, Ruiz E, Goterris L, Sulleiro E
High malaria PCR positivity in asymptomatic migrants from sub-Saharan Africa
J Travel Med. 2024 Aug 3;31(6):taae087
DOI: 10.1093/jtm/taae087
IF: 9.1

Dopico E, Vila M, Tabernero D, Gregori J, Rando-Segura A, Pacín-Ruíz B, Guerrero L, Ubillos I, Martínez MJ, Costa J, Quer J, Pérez-Garreta J, González-Sánchez A, Antón A, Pumarola T, Riveiro-Barciela M, Ferrer-Costa R, Buti M, Rodríguez-Frías F, Cortese MF
Genotyping Hepatitis B virus by Next-Generation Sequencing: Detection of Mixed Infections and Analysis of Sequence Conservation
Int J Mol Sci. 2024 May 17;25(10):5481
DOI: 10.3390/ijms25105481
IF: 4.9

Rubio Maturana C, Dantas de Oliveira A, Zarzuela F, Ruiz E, Sulleiro E, Mediavilla A, Martínez-Vallejo P, Nadal S, Pumarola T, López-Codina D, Abelló A, Sayrol E, Joseph-Munné J.
Development of an automated artificial intelligence-based system for urogenital schistosomiasis diagnosis using digital image analysis techniques and a robotized microscope
PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2024 Nov 5;18(11):e0012614
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0012614
IF: 3.4

Nadal-Barón P, Trejo-Zahinos J, Arando M, Barberan-Masegosa A, Bernat-Sole M, Pérez-Ugarte A, Villatoro AM, Alcubilla P, Sulleiro E, Gonzalez-López JJ, Antón A, Alberny M, Mitjà O, Larrosa MN, Hoyos-Mallecot Y
High increase of Nichols-like clade circulating Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum in Barcelona from 2021 to 2023.
Sci Rep. 2024 Oct 8;14(1):23419
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-74355-y
IF: 3.8

Selected Projects

AMBROSIA: Multiplexed Plasmo-Photonic Biosensing Platform For Rapid And Intelligent Sepsis Diagnosis At The Point-Of-Care
Principal Investigator: Juan José González-López
Agency: European Comission
Funding: 269,812 €
Period: 2022-2026

Búsqueda de biomarcadores (inmunológicos y/o celulares) predictivos de respuesta virológica o de control de la infección en la hepatitis crónica D
Principal Investigator: Maria Francesca Cortese
Agency: Instituto de Salud Carlos III
Funding: 220,000 €
Period: 2024-2026

Estudio multicéntrico para la mejora del diagnóstico y la caracterización molecular de las diferentes formas clínicas de leishmaniasis en el área mediterránea.
Principal Investigator: Elena Sulleiro Igual
Agency: Instituto de Salud Carlos III
Funding: 108,750 €
Period: 2024-2026

Vigilancia y control de la infección relacionada con la asistencia sanitaria por bacterias multirresistentes a través de la secuenciación de genomas completos. Proyecto IRAS 2
Principal Investigator: Nieves Larrosa Escartín
Agency: Instituto de Salud Carlos III
Funding: 90,750 €
Period: 2022-2024

Sistema integral para la vigilancia clínica, epidemiológica y microbiológica (SiVEV/BCN) de la enfermedad asociada a enterovirus en Barcelona ciudad
Principal Investigator: Andres Antón Pagarolas
Agency: Instituto de Salud Carlos III
Funding: 214,170 €
Period: 2023-2025

Patents

Reagents and fast methods for pathogen characterization and serology testing
Priority Number: EP19382496.8
Priority Date: 13/06/2016
Applicants: 100% VHIR

Reagents and fast methods for pathogen characterization and serology testing
Priority Number: PCT/EP2020/066292
Priority Date: 12/06/2020
Applicants: 100% VHIR

Reagents and fast methods for pathogen characterization and serology testing
Priority Number: P5073US00,17/618.837
Priority Date: 13/12/2021
Applicants: 100% VHIR

VHIR Annual Report 2024