Research at the Clínic

Currently, the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, focuses on alleviating symptoms and improving the quality of life of patients. However, new drugs and therapies are being developed with the aim of slowing the progression of these debilitating diseases.

The Hospital Clínic Barcelona is participating in several clinical trials of drugs aimed at these diseases, administered intrathecally, that is, directly into the cerebrospinal fluid. The trials are for the treatment of diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, frontotemporal lobar degeneration, progressive supranuclear palsy and Huntington's disease, with a range of action mechanisms, from immunotherapy to gene therapy, including modulators of metabolism and protein accumulation.

In addition, the team participated in the first clinical trial of a drug targeting prion diseases, a group of rare but lethal neurodegenerative diseases for which there had hitherto been no treatment.

The same RT-QuIC technique is currently being implemented in cerebrospinal fluid for the 4R tau protein, present in Parkinsonisms, such as progressive supranuclear palsy and corticobasal degeneration, as well as some cases of frontotemporal dementia. The aim of these studies is to improve early detection and provide more effective treatment for these complex conditions.