FUNDACIO DE RECERCA CLINIC BARCELONA-INSTITUT D INVESTIGACIONS BIOMEDIQUES AUGUST PI I SUNYER

Their core work

IDIBAPS is one of Spain's leading biomedical research institutes, affiliated with Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, focused on translating clinical research into treatments for chronic and complex diseases. Their core work spans liver disease (particularly cirrhosis), HIV/AIDS vaccine development, neuroscience, and cardiometabolic disorders. They run clinical trials, develop biomarker-based diagnostics, and build predictive models for personalized medicine — bridging the gap between laboratory discoveries and patient care. They also contribute significantly to large-scale brain simulation and computational neuroscience initiatives.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their early H2020 period (2015–2018), IDIBAPS concentrated heavily on fundamental biomedical research — brain reconstruction and simulation (Human Brain Project), genomic and transcriptomic studies (ZENCODE-ITN, 3D-ADAPT), and infectious disease (HIV, liver cirrhosis). Their recent work (2018–2023) shows a clear shift toward clinical translation and data-driven medicine: personalized therapies, multi-omics integration, predictive modelling, and standardization of clinical cohort data. The appearance of keywords like "blockchain", "GDPR", and "standardization" in recent projects also signals growing engagement with health data governance and regulatory compliance.

IDIBAPS is moving from fundamental biology toward data-integrated, regulation-aware clinical translation — ideal for consortia needing partners who understand both the science and the compliance landscape of precision medicine.

How they like to work

IDIBAPS operates predominantly as an active research partner, joining 67 of 88 projects as a participant rather than leading them. However, when they do coordinate (14 projects), they take on substantial grants — HIVACAR (EUR 2.96M) and LIVERHOPE (EUR 2.2M) are among their largest, indicating they lead in their strongest clinical domains. With 1,095 unique consortium partners across 46 countries, they function as a highly connected hub in European biomedical research, comfortable in both large-scale flagship initiatives (Human Brain Project, Graphene Flagship) and focused clinical consortia.

With 1,095 unique consortium partners across 46 countries, IDIBAPS maintains one of the broadest collaboration networks among Spanish biomedical research institutes. Their partnerships span nearly all of Europe and extend globally, reflecting their involvement in large flagship projects and multi-centre clinical trials.

What sets them apart

IDIBAPS combines deep clinical access (through Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, one of Spain's top university hospitals) with strong computational and data science capabilities — a rare combination that lets them run clinical trials and simultaneously develop predictive models from patient data. Their dual strength in liver disease and HIV immunotherapy gives them a distinctive niche: few European research centres coordinate large therapeutic trials in both areas. For consortium builders, they bring both patient cohorts and analytical infrastructure to the table.

Highlights from their portfolio

• HIVACAR
  Their largest single grant (EUR 2.96M) as coordinator, testing combination immune therapies toward a functional cure for HIV — a high-impact clinical ambition.
• LIVERHOPE
  Coordinated EUR 2.2M trial repurposing simvastatin and rifaximin for decompensated cirrhosis, targeting a disease with few effective treatments.
• PRIORS
  EUR 2M ERC Consolidator Grant they coordinated on neural circuit dynamics — demonstrates independent research excellence beyond consortium participation.