Miguel Hernandez University of Elche

Miguel Hernandez University of Elche

Information

addictions, Alzheimer's, bioethics, behavioural sciences, embryonic development, diabetes, gene editing, neurodegenerative diseases, epidemiology, physics, mathematics, microbiology, neuroscience, mental health, transgenics
Contact
Mª José Pastor Vicente
Head of Press Area
mjose.pastor@umh.es
96 665 8992
Ángeles C. Gallar Martínez
Head of Scientific Culture and Innovation Unit
agallar@umh.es
965222569

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SMC participants

Director of the Nutrition and Bromatology research group.

Full professor at the Miguel Hernández University, specialising in Pharmacology and pain, coordinator of the SED Bioethics working group and coordinator of the Neuropharmacology applied to pain research group of the ISABIAL Foundation

Director of the Institute of Neurosciences, a joint centre of the Miguel Hernández University of Elche (UMH) and the CSIC

Professor and vice-director of the Institute for Research, Development and Innovation in Health Biotechnology of Elche (IDiBE) of the Miguel Hernández University

Director of the Institute of Bioengineering at the Miguel Hernandez University of Elche and director of the Biomedical Neuroengineering group at the Center for Biomedical Research Network on Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN)

Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Applied Biology.

Professor of Preventive Medicine and Public Health at the Miguel Hernández University and director of the Global Health research group.

CSIC Group Leader at the Institute of Neurosciences (CSIC-UMH)

Professor of Preventive Medicine and Public Health and Director of the Unit of Epidemiology of Nutrition at the University Miguel Hernández

CSIC research professor at the Instituto de Neurociencias de Alicante (CSIC-UMH) and member of the Royal Academy of Sciences of Spain

Contents related to this centre
blind

A team has developed a wearable designed to aid navigation for people who are blind or visually impaired. The system uses artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to probe the environment and send signals to the wearer when approaching an obstacle or object. The technology, which is presented in Nature Machine Intelligence, was tested with humanoid robots and blind and partially sighted participants in both virtual and real environments.

brain cells

A set of articles published in Nature and Nature Methods draws a high-resolution map of the structure of and connections between the brain cells of mice. The map is based on data from a single cubic millimetre of brain and includes more than 200,000 cells, around 84,000 neurons and 524 million synaptic connections. Although this is a very small part of the mouse brain, it will help us understand how different types of cells work together.

Rehabilitation

An international team has developed an implantable neuroprosthesis in the spinal cord that can interact with various robotic devices and enable movements in people with severe spinal cord injuries. The study, conducted in nine patients, showed that the device facilitated robotic-assisted walking and cycling and promoted neuromuscular activation. The results are published in the journal Science Robotics.  

video game

A multidisciplinary team of researchers in the United States has implanted a paralysed person with a brain-computer interface capable of detecting and decoding finger movements. The system achieved a degree of accuracy that allowed him to play a video game. The results are published in the journal Nature Medicine.

Food in plastic containers

In 2015, the human health impact of exposure to certain chemicals cost the equivalent of $1.5 trillion, says a study published in PNAS. The study estimates cases of ischaemic heart disease and stroke associated with bisphenol A (BPA) exposure; deaths of 55-64 year olds associated with di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) exposure; and cognitive losses in children of mothers exposed to brominated flame retardants (PBDEs).

rat

The seventh Annual Report of the COSCE Transparency Agreement, prepared by the European Animal Research Association, which analyses transparency in the use of animals for scientific experimentation in Spain in 2023, was presented today. According to the document, transparency is consolidated among the signatory institutions -168 in 2024- and all of them publish a statement on their websites on the use of animals. Public mention of the number and species used stands at 47%, compared to 38% the previous year.

pain

Chronic pain is a public health problem that affects almost one in six people in Spain, with very different origins and characteristics. Specialists in psychology and pain explain what it is, how it is treated, what consequences it has for those who suffer from it and how to learn to live with it.

Nobel Medicina

The Karolinska Institute has awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology to Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun for the discovery of microRNAs, small RNA fragments that do not contain instructions for making proteins but instead participate in the regulation of gene expression. Their role is fundamental in processes such as cell differentiation, and their alteration can influence diseases like cancer.

pregnant

A study conducted in Spain and five other European countries shows that exposure to mixtures of endocrine disruptors during pregnancy is associated with metabolic health problems in children. The research, published in JAMA Network Open, followed more than 1,100 mother-child pairs between 2003 and 2016 and found a correlation between measures of metabolic dysfunction in children aged 6-11 years, and their prenatal exposure to chemicals such as metals or organochlorine pesticides, among others. According to the authors, these results could be related to the current increase in metabolic syndrome across the lifespan, which results in an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. 

estimulation

A clinical trial involving 60 people with upper and lower body paralysis showed that a non-invasive electrical spinal cord stimulation device - called ARCEX - helps improve hand and arm function in quadriplegic patients. The study, the results of which are published in Nature Medicine, showed that 43 of the people with paralysis experienced improved arm and hand strength and function after receiving electrical stimulation along with rehabilitation exercises.