The Pasqual Maragall Foundation and the BBRC promote their research into Alzheimer's

In order to enhance key areas in its research structure, the Pasqual Maragall Foundation has appointed Dr. Carolina Minguillon, Director of the new Office of Strategic Funding for Research and Dr. David Vállez Director of the Neuroimaging Platform of its research center, the Barcelonaβeta Brain Research Center (BBRC). In this way, key areas in Alzheimer's research are being strengthened with a new office that will promote, among other projects, the development of research programs outside the BBRC, such as the Pasqual Maragall Researchers Program and the research done in the Foundation's research center enhancing neuroimaging infrastructures and techniques.

Carolina Minguillon, promoted to Director of the Strategic Research Funding Office

In this new position Dr. Minguillon will have the mission of identifying lines and opportunities in the research of Alzheimer's and age-related neurodegenerative diseases, and also boost, promote and manage the deployment of aid programs for the realization of excellent clinical or translational scientific research projects, such as the Pasqual Maragall Researchers Programme.

In addition, she will be responsible for strategically positioning the Foundation as a funding agent for research into Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. In addition, she will be responsible for the coordination with the researchers who won the grants and the alignment of these with the research of the BBRC, and to design and coordinate the execution of the Foundation's research programs. 

As Dr. Minguillon herself explains "this new office responds to the needs faced by the Foundation at a time of growth and internationalization and will enhance the opportunities to conduct research both in our country and beyond our borders”.

Minguillon has a degree in Biology and a PhD in Genetics. She joined the BBRC in 2015 and since 2017, she has been responsible for directing the BBRC's Research Management Office.

David Vállez, new Director of the Neuroimaging Platform

The new head of the Neuroimaging Platform will be in charge of overseeing the acquisition of the magnetic resonance images and the management, analysis and quality control of the data, to share them with the research groups of the BBRC and ·collaborators and will therefore coordinate the magnetic resonance  imaging (MRI), neuroinformatics and advanced image processing teams.

In the words of Dr. Vállez, "joining the BBRC means for me a very exciting challenge and an opportunity to contribute to the goal of preventing Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. Continuing to promote the excellent research in neuroimaging that is carried out at the BBRC will help the growth of the center and will have a positive impact on continuing to better understand the mechanisms of this disease".

The BBRC Neuroimaging platform is equipped with a state-of-the-art magnetic resonance scanner (Philips Ingenia 3.0T CX) dedicated exclusively to research, with the scientific and technical support of Philips, perfectly prepared for the acquisition of images of large cohorts. In addition, it is accessible to external researchers, as well as to national and international clinical trials.

David Vállez has been Senior Researcher and Data Manager at the Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine at the Amsterdam University Medical Center in recent years. In addition, he has participated in the AMYPAD project, a European collaboration to improve the knowledge, diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer's through the use of brain positron emission tomography (PET). Vállez holds a doctorate in Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging from the University of Groningen (Netherlands) and a master's degree in Clinical Psychoneuroimmunology from the University of Girona.