Noticias

• La pérdida del olfato puede ser una señal temprana de enfermedades como el Alzheimer o Parkinson , además de síntoma frecuente de la COVID-19

La doctora en Neurociencias e Investigadora Científica del Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas  (CSIC) en el Instituto Cajal Laura López-Mascaraque impartió el pasado jueves, 4 de marzo, la conferencia online “El poder del olfato: emociones, memoria y enfermedades” actividad divulgativa organizada por Navarrabiomed en el marco del proyecto INNOLFACT . Durante la  sesión expuso la estrecha relación de este sentido con el sistema cognitivo del ser humano y explicó que su pérdida es una señal temprana de enfermedades como Alzheimer y Parkinson entre otras, además de un síntoma característico de la COVID-19.

En el evento López-Mascaraque aportó a los cerca de cien asistentes datos que corroboran la conexión entre personas con enfermedades neurodegenerativas y desajustes del sentido olfativo : “Una pérdida del olfato diagnosticada hace 10 años puede predecir la enfermedad del párkinson, por ejemplo, porque se ha visto que el 96% de pacientes diagnosticados con esa enfermedad tienen problemas olfativos”. Ocurre lo mismo con el Alzheimer, ya que existen distorsiones tempranas: “La corteza olfativa es una de las primeras regiones que se ven afectadas”, aseguró López Mascaraque.

Asimismo, incidió en la anosmia o pérdida completa del olfato causada en pacientes afectados por COVID-19. Según detalló la ponente, las células de soporte de las neuronas olfativas contienen receptores a los que se adhiere con facilidad el virus SARS-CoV-2, lo que produce “una ruptura total de la arquitectura del epitelio olfativo”. 
Por otro lado, en palabras de López-Mascaraque, el sentido olfativo es el más sensible de todos: “Los recuerdos que nos evoca son más fuertes”. Tiene las únicas neuronas del cerebro expuestas al exterior, con su sistema de receptores al que se dedica una parte sustancial del genoma humano. Estas neuronas interpretan las sensaciones olfativas en su camino desde la nariz hasta el cerebro, siendo la ruta más corta a las emociones, evocando recuerdos y tiempos pasados. Un estudio realizado en la Universidad de Rockeffeler demostró que mientras recordamos un 5% de lo que vemos o el 15% de lo que saboreamos, con el olfato somos capaces de evocar un 35%.

El proyecto INNOLFACT

INNOLFACT  es una investigación liderada por la Unidad de Neuroproteómica Clínica de Navarrabiomed bajo la dirección de su Investigador Principal Enrique Santamaría. Al  comienzo del evento, Santamaría realizó una breve introducción de la iniciativa INNOLFACT que tiene como objetivo principal innovar en los diagnósticos mediante la asociación entre el sistema olfativo y las funciones cognitivas. El proyecto está financiado por el Departamento de Desarrollo Económico y Empresarial del Gobierno de Navarra dentro de la convocatoria de proyectos estratégicos de I+D para el periodo 2020 – 2022.

Forman parte del consorcio profesionales de las siguientes entidades: Unidad de Geriatría de Navarrabiomed, Complejo Hospitalario de Navarra (CHN), ADItech Corporación Tecnológica, Centro de Investigación Médica Aplicada (CIMA), Clínica Universidad de Navarra y los laboratorios Ojer Pharma.

Acceso al webinar completo 
 

•    The SNS-O has also created a technical group to set up and coordinate comprehensive care pathways for these patients.

The Navarre Health Service (SNS-O) has created a technical work group to coordinate comprehensive care pathways for patients with persistent COVID-19 (long COVID-19) and post-COVID complications.

This multidisciplinary group is made up of primary care and specialized care professionals from the three geographic areas of the SNS-O and is led by the Service for the Effectiveness and Continuity of Care. Its goals include channeling care to these patients, establishing uniform response pathways and providing tools for treatment and self-care for early functional recovery of patients suffering from after-effects and/or persistent symptoms.

These actions will complement the care provided since May 2020 at the specific post-COVID Pulmonology consultation room for the most severe COVID-19 cases, in conjunction with Nutrition and Rehabilitation, among other medical specialties.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that around 1 in 10 people suffer from long COVID-19 up to 12 weeks after the acute phase of infection. According to the Ministry of Health, the most common symptoms include tiredness, shortness of breath, muscle pain, loss of sense of smell or taste, persistent fatigue, headache and so-called “brain fog,” which describes several symptoms associated with cognitive impairment, such as memory loss, disorientation, and learning and concentration problems.

Furthermore, the less frequent permanent after-effects of COVID-19 include pulmonary fibrosis and long-term or permanent neurological damage.

PersiCOV-19 research project

Navarrabiomed has promoted more than 30 research studies on COVID-19 patients to date. Now, in 2021, the Hospital Complex of Navarre (CHN) and Navarrabiomed have started up the PersiCOV-19 Project, a study that aims to create a registry of patients with persistent COVID-19 in order to compile information, acquire greater knowledge of the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 and make progress on the research study.

Patricia Fanlo Mateo, a specialist in Internal Medicine, is responsible for the registry and will coordinate the research projects that use it. Other researchers collaborating on this study include Dr. Julio Oteiza Olaso and Dr. Julio Sánchez Álvarez, from the Internal Medicine Service, and Dr. Marina Sesma Arrondo, a primary care specialist at the Barañain Healthcare Center.

The Navarrabiomed Clinical Trials Platform is responsible for design and implementation of the registry. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee for Drug Research of the Community of Navarre (CEIm).

Social support for patients with persistent COVID-19

The study will be implemented with funding from Navarrabiomed, as well as funding from other sources. Specifically, Murieta City Hall raised €655.40 in the Murieta New Year’s Eve Charity Run, an online event that promoted doing exercise as a way of supporting and raising awareness about people suffering from the after-effects of persistent COVID-19.

Yurema Lana González, the Mayor of Murieta, and Javier Martínez de Morentin Urrutia, a Murieta town councilor, recently visited Pamplona to deliver the amount raised by the charity race to Patricia Fanlo Mateo, a specialist in Internal Medicine at the CHN, and Eva Zalba Garayoa, the Head of the Management Area of the Clinical Trials Platform at Navarrabiomed, the organization that will channel the funds through the Miguel Servet Foundation.

In June 2020, the platform of patients with persistent COVID-19 in Navarre was created under the coordination of Virginia Mateo Solana.

Those interested in joining this platform can make contact at this email address: covidpersistentenavarra@hotmail.com.
 

• El Gobierno de Navarra presidirá el Consorcio, en el que se han integrado centros tecnológicos, universidades, clústeres, colegios profesionales y asociaciones empresariales para promover la transformación digital de empresas y Administración

Un total de 33 entidades públicas y privadas integrarán el Consorcio del Polo de Innovación Digital de Navarra-IRIS, que busca mejorar la competitividad de pymes, industria y administraciones públicas a través de la transformación digital. El consejero de Desarrollo Económico y Empresarial, Mikel Irujo, presidirá la comisión rectora del Consorcio de la que también es miembro el consejero de Universidad, Innovación y Transformación Digital, Juan Cruz Cigudosa.

En el día de hoy, se ha constituido el Consorcio del Polo de Innovación Digital de Navarra-IRIS cuyo plenario se ha reunido por primera vez. Además del Gobierno de Navarra, forman parte del consorcio los principales representantes de los sectores industrial, de conocimiento e investigación y tecnológico de la Comunidad Foral, junto con otras administraciones públicas e instituciones. Así, forman parte de ella el Ayuntamiento de Pamplona, las tres universidades (UPNA, UNAV y UNED), los centros tecnológicos NAITEC (de movilidad y mecatrónica de Navarra), Lurederra y ADITech;  la Asociación de la Industria Navarra (AIN); CENER (Centro Nacional de Energías Renovables), CNTA (Centro Nacional de Tecnología y Seguridad Alimentaria); el CSIC a través de IdAB - Instituto de Agrobiotecnología; Navarra Biomed; la Fundación para la Investigación Médica Aplicada (FIMA); y las sociedades públicas INTIA, SODENA  CEIN, así como las empresas tecnológicas Nasertic, Animsa, Tracasa y Tracasa Instrumental.

A ellos se han unido, además, los clústeres NagriFood (de industria agroalimentaria), Enercluster (de energía), ACAN (de automoción), CLAVNA (de la industria audiovisual), ATANA (de tecnologías), el Functional Print Cluster (de impresión funcional); además de la agrupación Desarrollo Sakana-Dinabide, la Cámara de Comercio y la Confederación Empresarial de Navarra (CEN) y. Asimismo, forman parte del Consorcio IRIS el Colegio Oficial de Ingenieros Industriales de Navarra (COIINA), el Colegio de Graduados en Ingeniería Ramas Industriales e Ingenieros Técnicos Industriales de Navarra (CITI) y el Colegio Oficial de Ingenieros de Telecomunicación (COIT).

El hecho de que IRIS haya sido capaz de reunir a los principales actores de la Comunidad Foral ha sido destacado por el Gobierno de Navarra, quien lo ha calificado de “algo único”. Todas las entidades e instituciones trabajarán ahora de forma conjunta y en red para potenciar la digitalización en las pequeñas y medianas empresas y en las propias administraciones públicas, de forma que redunden en una mayor competitividad de la industria y del tejido empresarial, una mejora de los servicios a los ciudadanos y del bienestar de la sociedad.

Intercambio de conocimiento

El trabajo conjunto de todos estos agentes tiene como objetivo fundamental apoyar la transformación digital de la actividad económica de Navarra, por lo que su actividad  se traducirá en la transferencia del conocimiento en materia de I+D, inteligencia artificial, supercomputación, ciberseguridad y robótica, que beneficiará preferentemente a las empresas de Navarra. El Consorcio colaborará con otras iniciativas regionales europeas que tienen los mismos objetivos, prestando servicios a empresas y facilitando su acceso a instalaciones de experimentación que se encuentren situadas en dichas regiones.     

Las entidades participantes en IRIS se comprometen a prestar diversos servicios al Consorcio y a colaborar con el resto de integrantes del Consorcio. Entre las funciones fundamentales de IRIS están la atracción de talento y la formación; la transferencia de conocimiento; la experimentación y la consultoría; el fomento del emprendimiento y la divulgación.

Para su funcionamiento en el día a día, el Consorcio se estructura en una comisión rectora, presidida por el consejero Mikel Irujo e integrada por el Ayuntamiento de Pamplona, la UPNA, la Universidad de Navarra, NAITEC, AIN, Nasertic, Animsa, ADITech, Sodena, CEIN y Tracasa. Además, se ha constituido un plenario, en el que están presentes los 33 socios. Por último, desde ADITech realizarán las labores de coordinación.

El Consorcio se ha establecido como una agrupación sin personalidad jurídica para concurrir a la convocatoria de Polos Europeos de Innovación Digital de la Comisión Europea. Este Consorcio es un paso previo, en modalidad multi-sede y virtual, a la creación del Polo de Innovación Digital de Navarra, que se ubicará en el terreno anexo a la UPNA.  El Consorcio, cuya gobernanza se ha formalizado hoy, está abierto a la incorporación tanto de entidades colaboradoras, públicas y privadas, como de nuevos socios.

La información sobre las actividades del Polo de Innovación Digital se puede encontrar en el sitio www.irisnavarra.com.

• In the recently published study, researchers look at the impact on sleep quality, levels of physical activity, sedentary behavior and self-regulation.

The study “Physical activity, sedentary behavior, sleep quality and self-regulation in Spanish preschoolers,” carried out by researchers from the Universidad Pública de Navarra (UPNA) and Navarrabiomed, confirmed that “the impact of home lockdown as a result of COVID-19 has led to increased antisocial behavior, anxiety and even depression-related behavior among preschool children (ages 4-6).” These results are associated with a significant reduction in physical activity, an increase in sedentary behavior and a drop in sleep quality.

This work, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, featured the participation, in March-April 2020, of 268 preschoolers between ages 4 and 6, along with their parents, from three schools in Pamplona. Levels of physical activity and sleep quality were obtained directly using an accelerometer that the participants wore on their wrists for six days.

According to the authors, “Our findings provide evidence of the negative effects of lockdown on physical activity, sedentary behavior, sleep quality and self-regulation.” Specifically, daily physical activity decreased by 43.3 minutes, sedentary behavior increased by 50.2 minutes, and sleep quality fell by 2.09%. The lockdown period also negatively increased anti-social behavior, anxiety and depression-related behavior. The study therefore demonstrates that preschoolers showed increased problems with internalization and externalization during lockdown. “In these age groups, behavioral and emotional problems can potentially trigger problems of internalization (i.e., anti-social behavior) or externalization (i.e., anxiety- or depression-related behavior).” Preschoolers who met WHO minimum recommendations for physical activity during lockdown (180 minutes per day, of which 60 minutes should be of moderate or vigorous intensity) displayed less antisocial behavior.

Limitations encountered

According to the authors, this study is the first to examine the effects of COVID-19 home lockdown on levels of physical activity and sleep in preschool children carried out directly and objectively using accelerometers instead of surveys and personal interviews. In any event, they also pointed out some limitations when analyzing their results. Firstly, it is possible that behavioral changes occurred during the first week of lockdown, when the greatest changes to daily routines took place and families were still adapting to the new situation. “Given that lockdown lasted for several weeks, preschool children may have subsequently reverted back to their normal habits, including their sleep patterns and physical activity.” Secondly, the study faced two major limitations: only a reduced number of children could be measured using accelerometers and there was little time for monitoring. Finally, it cannot be overlooked that children's lifestyles largely depend on the decisions of their parents, and the geographic/urban environment may also have affected the physical activity and sleep patterns of these children.

The authors of the article are Alicia M. Alonso-Martínez, Robinson Ramírez-Vélez, Yesenia García-Alonso, Mikel Izquierdo (Researchers from the Physical Exercise, Health and Quality of Life (E-FIT) Group at the UPNA and Navarrabiomed), and Antonio García-Hermoso (principal investigator and Head of the Physical Activity, Children and Youth Unit at Navarrabiomed). The study falls within the framework of the work of the Physical Activity Observatory for minors between ages 3 and 6 in the Autonomous Community of Navarre. This observatory is a research project financed by the Government of Navarre’s Ministry of Education. Observatory participants include researchers from the Physical Exercise, Health and Quality of Life (E-FIT) Group at the Universidad Pública de Navarra and the Navarrabiomed Biomedical Research Center.
 

• The Government of Navarre is funding the project to the tune of €1.7 million.

INNOLFACT is a multicenter initiative whose aim is to implement precision olfactory medicine and develop gender-based nasal immunomodulator therapies, particularly in the areas of aging and neurodegenerative disorders. The Government of Navarre’s Ministry of Economic and Business Development selected ten strategic R&D projects, one of which was INNOLFACT, which earned the highest score of all the candidates and was awarded total funding of €1.4 million for the 2020-2022 period.

A consortium was created to implement the project made up of the institutions involved. The team leader is the Navarrabiomed Clinical Neuroproteomics Unit under the direction of Enrique Santamaría Martínez, the principal investigator (PI) and unit head. The other consortium members include professionals from the Navarrabiomed Geriatrics Unit, the Hospital Complex of Navarre (CHN), ADItech, the Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), Clínica Universidad de Navarra and Ojer Pharma laboratories.

Research development

During the research phase, the institutions will focus on the characterization of the olfactory molecular mechanisms involved in the development of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, and on jointly assessing the olfactory and immune systems in the aging process. Researchers expect the results to provide predictive biomarkers and, as a result, new nasal immunomodulator therapies that allow for intranasal drug administration instead of conventional intravenous therapy.

Enrique Santamaría, PI and head of the Clinical Neuroproteomics Unit, explained the project’s ambitious goals: “With INNOLFACT, we want to perform an in-depth characterization of the olfactory system-immune system-brain axis. The technological resources made available by consortium members will enable us to carry out an exhaustive molecular characterization of this axis in both humans and animal disease models, which will help us identify and characterize molecules with immunomodulating potential that can also be used for intranasal administration. This provides advantages when treating cerebral disorders that currently have no treatment.”

The consortium will also analyze the olfactory capacity of elderly people with the aim of determining if loss of smell may be a symptom of a weaker immune system and one that is therefore less able to fight neurodegenerative disorders. Work will also be done to offer self-diagnostic tests and specific training sessions designed to improve or stop olfactory deterioration and help strengthen the immune system.

Collaborating institutions

The INNOLFACT research project forms part of the scientific activity of the Navarre Health Research Institute (IdiSNA) with the support and collaboration of different institutions: the Spanish Olfactory Network (ROE), Association of Family Members of Alzheimer’s Patients in Navarre (AFAN), Navarre Association of Parkinson’s Patients (ANAPAR), Spanish Parkinson’s Disease Federation (FEP), Committee of Representatives of Disabled Persons in Navarre (CERMIN) and Federation of People with Physical and Organ-Related Disabilities (COCEMFE NAVARRA). Navarrabiomed also liaises with the Global Consortium for Chemosensory Research (GCCR), where more than 600 researchers from 50 countries participate.

• Professionals from the Emergencies Section of the Navarre Health Service, along with volunteer firefighters and workers from the University Hospital Center of Toulouse and Navarrabiomed participated today in the installation of the mobile emergency unit at the Refena Conference Center within the framework of the European EGALURG network.

The Europe Occitania Multipurpose Mobile Unit (UMPEO), built by the University Hospital Center of Toulouse (CHUT) within the framework of the EGALURG European cross-border cooperation network to improve emergency and disaster healthcare in the Pyrenees, was installed today at midday in the Refena Conference Center parking lot in Pamplona / Iruña.

As part of the strategy for vaccination, Navarre has welcomed the emergency healthcare unit with the aim of administering the COVID-19 vaccine. Primary care management professionals from the SNS-O and Navarrabiomed will coordinate the movements of the emergency unit as it travels to different towns in Navarre in January and February.

The unit will provide support for vaccination of dependent people, social health personnel, home care services and primary care professionals working in rural basic health zones. Specifically, the mobile unit will travel from Refena to different towns, including Altsasu / Alsasua-Etxarri, Irurtzun, Oronoz-Mugaire, Sangüesa / Zangoza, Carcastillo, Peralta / Azkoyen, Lodosa, Los Arcos, Estella / Lizarra. In each town, the mobile unit will act as a key vaccination center so that this procedure does not have to be given at healthcare centers, thus keeping them from becoming overcrowded. This is expected to reduce the risk of infection and speed up the vaccination process.

At the event, Diego Reyero Díez, Head of the Emergencies and Primary Care Transport Section, said that the emergency unit will provide optimal conditions for COVID-19 vaccination. He said, “The mobile emergency unit has separate areas for greater comfort and flexibility for vaccination.”

Kiko Betelu Corcuera, Assistant Director of Emergency Services and Technical Director of Vital Urgency Care in Navarre, pointed out that the mobile unit can also be used to raise awareness about vaccination and the importance of so-called herd immunity. “The increase in the vaccinated population will mark a turning point in the pandemic, so the faster that happens, the better,” said Betelu.

Innovative infrastructure in Europe

To make use of the UMPEO emergency unit, a team of professionals from the Emergencies Section of the Navarre Health Service and Navarrabiomed spent Monday and Tuesday (January 11-12) in Toulouse receiving technical training on installation deployment and handling from the CHUT, the EGALURG Project leader and also the institution responsible for building the mobile unit.

As explained by Anna Ribera Cano, an emergency services doctor from Toulouse Emergency Medical Services, another member of the EGALURG Project, “This mobile unit is unique in Europe because it can be deployed so quickly. It can be operative in 20 to 45 minutes.

 As a hospital care support facility, it can handle as many as 18 patients at a time”.

The facility is designed to admit patients in intensive care beds, eight absolute emergency beds and 10 relative emergency beds, in five fully equipped subunits. It takes up a maximum area of 66 m2 and is 12 meters long. Though the mobile unit was originally designed to be used in the cross-border area at major events and mass gatherings, and to provide response services in emergencies and disasters, its construction deadlines were tightened and its design was adapted in light of the current pandemic.

Also participating in the event was Tomás Belzunegui Otano, the Scientific Director of the EGALURG Project, who said, “Though the current pandemic has made implementing the EGALURG Project more difficult, the institutions involved have continued working together on all planned actions. Being able to bring the mobile hospital to Navarre highlights the direct advantages of cross-border regional cooperation.”

The mobile unit has also been used in remote regions of Haute-Garonne to perform massive PCR testing and was deployed in Bayonne, France, to provide support for emergency services at the Hospital Center of the Basque Coast (CHCB), which was overwhelmed by the pandemic. After being installed in Navarre, plans include enabling the UMPEO to be used in coming months by the Emergency Medical Services of Catalonia (SEM) and the Aragon Health Service.

EGALURG cooperation network

The EGALURG consortium is headed by the CHUT, and its partners include Navarrabiomed, the CHCB and the SEM. The European network started operating in 2019 and will have a total duration of 30 months.

Its goals include harmonizing protocols for more effective use of healthcare resources. Developing innovative tools is one of the key parts of the project and is reflected in the mobile hospital, as well as a platform that will simulate emergency situations and help train healthcare personnel so they are prepared for these cases. Navarrabiomed is in charge of this platform.

The project is co-funded (65%) by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Interreg Program V-A Spain-France-Andorra (POCTEFA 2014-2020). The goal of the POCTEFA program is to strengthen the economic and social integration of the Spain-France-Andorra cross-border area. Its help is focused on developing cross-border economic, social and environmental projects through joint strategies in favor of sustainable regional development.