The Medina Foundation researchers study library metagenómicas that will make it possible to develop new drugs such as antibiotics against anti tumor and Multiresistant pathogens

with project Consolider Ingenio 2010

-research claim to help discover new antibiotics to treat infections commonly associated with patients in intensive care unitspost-operative or immunosuppressed.

– trials are being carried out in robotic stations of enormous capacity for testing of samples, with generating capacity of more than 1 million data month.

-studies metagenomic on microbial diversity indicate that they are less than 10% of the microorganisms that live in our environment.

Madrid, 2011-August Consider a library of genetic information on different microorganisms, especially bacteria, with the aim of seeking new innovative medicines that can respond to unmet medical needs to increase hope and quality of life of the population. This is the main objective that seeks the team of researchers from the MEDINA Foundation, led by Dr. Olga Genilloud, in collaboration with researchers from the CSIC. For several years, researchers from the project metagenomics and natural products of microbial origin with pharmaceutical application ” have been generating a series of bookstores metagenómicas – from the cloning of large DNA fragments-from which you are looking for intensivamentenuevas active molecules that will be very useful in developing new drugs.

Pharmacological compounds that will begin to be studied are new antibiotics against Multiresistant pathogens to antibiotics in conventional use and causing infections associated with units of intensive care, post-operative or immunocompromised patients. Another aim is the discovery of new antitumor agents against certain types of tumors that do not have treatment and for which the chemical diversity of the libraries of natural products produced by micro-organisms is a starting point for the identification of new compounds.

To achieve the various objectives, researchers are using all the resources, vanguard and technology experience in the discovery of new drugs of the Medina Foundation, to carry out trials of screening for high density. Such trials are underway in robotic stations of enormous capacity for testing of samples, with generating capacity of more than 1 million of data per month, which will make it possible to identify clones containing sequences of DNA from the environment responsible for the production of new bioactive molecules.

The work undertaken by these scientists has not been easy since, despite the fact that science has more than 60 years isolating new molecules, metagenomic studies indicate that only knows less 10% of the microorganisms that live in our environment (bacteria, fungi, protozoa, etc) given that a large majority can not be grown in laboratory conditions. Furthermore, an added difficulty is that only a small fraction of the genes involved in biosynthesis of these molecules are expressed in quantities sufficient to be detected from the extracts obtained from the cultivation of these microorganisms.

Consolider Ingenio 2010 program

The wit Consolider programme aims to achieve research excellence in Spain, enhancing cooperation between researchers and scientists, generating multiple research groups. The set of projects included in the Consolider program are mobilizing more than two billion euros over four years, of which about 50% are provided by the State.

Also the Plan of incentive, incorporation and intensification of the research activity (I3) equipped with EUR 130 million in the next 3 years, will allow universities and the public research agencies to hire more than 900 accredited career researchers.