MEICA
MEICA
Francisco Sánchez Madrid from the CNIC is the scientific coordinator of the MEICA project that aims to study the molecular basis underlying inflammatory diseases. This three-year project is jointly financed -on the basis of a public-private partnership- by Fundación Genoma España, the autonomous Community of Madrid, and the private companies ALK Abello S.A. and Sistemas Genómicos S.L..
In MEICA, a total of 20 groups participate from the CNIC, Centro Nacional de Biotecnología (CNB), Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas (CIB) (both part of the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, CSIC), University Hospital La Princesa, Madrid, Instituto de Investigación Biomédica (IRB), Barcelona, and from the Universidad Complutense, Madrid.
The aim of the project is to identify the genes that are involved in the immune response to inflammatory diseases. The particular objectives of this study are
- To analyse the contribution of chemokines and metalloproteinases to the leukocyte migration using cell-based and animal models of allergic and inflammatory diseases
- To study the role of different ways of T lymphocyte activation in cellular and animal model systems
- To analyse the role of macrophages and dendritic cells during the inflammatory response
- The characterisation of the genes that are involved in different vascular diseases associated with the inflammatory response
It is expected that in the context of MEICA novel biomarkers will be identified that will allow the development of novel approaches to diagnosis and treatment of asthma, lupus, Rheumatoid arthritis, and psoriasis.
More information about this project will soon be avaible on this website.
