Some 25 million people worldwide are at risk of Chagas disease and an estimated 6 million people, most of whom live in Latin America, are infected with Trypanosoma cruzi. Despite these statistics, Chagas disease is still a neglected disease and less than 1% of those infected have access to treatment. Today, the disease is no longer confined to rural areas of Latin America where transmission is primarily vector-borne. As a result of migratory flows, Chagas disease has spread to non-endemic countries, including Spain, where it is transmitted vertically from mother to child and through infected donor blood and organ transplants.
In ISGlobal, we are working to combat Chagas disease on three fronts. In Bolivia, the endemic country with the highest incidence, in partnership with the CEADES Foundation and in collaboration with the country’s National Chagas Programme (SEDES), the Universidad Autónoma de Juan Misael Saracho in Tarija and the Universidad Mayor de San Simón in Cochabamba, we have created a platform promoting comprehensive care to improve prevention efforts and enhance the diagnosis and treatment of chronic Chagas disease. We are also working to develop new drugs and biomarkers of therapeutic response. Finally, we are focussed on generating scientific evidence that will strengthen European legislation relating to the detection and control of Chagas disease.
As a result of intercontinental travel, imported infectious diseases continue to represent a problem. Moreover, with the introduction or presence of certain vectors, there is a risk that certain diseases may be reintroduced into our region. ISGlobal undertakes epidemiological surveillance and works to improve the tools for the diagnosis and treatment of these diseases.
Main Lines of Research
- Epidemiology of Chagas disease in non-endemic areas
- Biomarkers of therapeutic efficacy and biomarkers for the early diagnosis of cardiac lesions in patients with Chagas disease
- Clinical trials of new drugs to treat Chagas disease
- Pharmacokinetics of benznidazole
- Helminth infections
- Travel medicine
- Migrant health
- Vector control, diagnosis and treatment of leishmaniasis
Our Team
Our Team
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Alex Almuedo Riera Medical Research Fellow -
Julio Alonso Padilla Assistant Research Professor and Director of the Chagas Initiative -
Cristina Alonso-Vega Clinical Trial Monitor -
Miriam Jose Álvarez Associated Researcher -
Cristina Ballart Associated Researcher -
DANIEL CAMPRUBI Medical Research Fellow
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Núria Cortés Predoctoral Researcher -
Leonardo de la Torre Research Assistant -
Carmen Fernández Associate Research Professor -
Montserrat Gállego Associated Researcher
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Quim Gascon Research Professor, Head of the Chagas, Parasitic and Imported Diseases programme, and Director of the Chagas Initiative -
Anne-Sophie Gresle Public and Patient Involvement & Patient Experience Manager -
Luis Izquierdo Associate Research Professor -
Irene Jimeno Predoctoral Researcher -
Irene Losada Medical Research Fellow & Chagas Initiative Coordinator -
Miguel J. Martínez Associated Researcher -
Jose Muñoz Associate Research Professor
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Elizabeth Posada Research Assistant -
Ana Requena Assistant Research Professor -
NATALIA RODRIGUEZ Associated Researcher
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Carme Subirà Research Technician -
Faustino Torrico International Scholar
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Antoni Trilla Research Professor, Dean of the Faculty of Medicina and Health Sciences, UB -
Isabel Vera
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Anna Vilella Associated Researcher
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Nana Williams Scientific Coordinator of the STOP Project
Highlighted Projects
Euroleish.net
Control of Leishmaniasis. From bench to bedside and community
TESEO
New chemotherapy regimens and biomarkers for Chagas Disease
ECO
Enhanced and equitable coverage of COVID-19 testing and treatment in Bolivia and Paraguay
MENA Migrant Health
Transforming data collection and surveillance to drive migrant health research, care and policy
Other projects
See Past ProjectsNHEPACHA
New Tools for the Diagnosis and Evaluation of Chagas Disease
ADAM
Malaria mass and focal drug administration to advance malaria elimination in Mozambique: accelerating programmatic implementation and policy translation
HIDDENVIVAX
Novel organ-on-a-chip technology to study extracellular vesicles-mediated cryptic infections in Plasmodium vivax malaria
Subclinical Infections in Children and Long Term Health Effects
Infection acquisition in early life and health outcomes in childhood - MARATO TV3
G_SensMalaria
Portable Graphene Multiplex Electrochemical Sensor for Rapid Detection of Severe Malaria
EpiGen
Building Scalable Pathogen Genomic Epidemiology in Ethiopia